Summer 2018
I decide to set off on an adventure with a group of motivated, able and curious young people who are going to attempt a summit.
The goal is an unclimbed 6,000 metre peak in the Ladakh region of Jammu-Kashmir, India, and this is the itinerary: Milan - New Delhi - Leh - Kargil - Padum.
For some of the group this is the first trip, others are more travelled. One of them is a friend (Luca Vallata), others are acquaintances (Federico Secchi and Federico Martinelli) and some I don't know at all (Enrico Mosetti and Davide Limongi).
We have two essential aims:
- to move Alpine style, with the porters' logistics
- to have as little impact as possible
There are many worries: not gelling as a group, health problems despite vaccinations, lack of support if something goes wrong, unexpected bureaucratic hurdles; added to all these, once we reach base camp, are rockfalls from the mountainsides and strange noises (bears) when you're trying to rest in your tent.
It was forty extremely intense days, full of waiting, reading, card games, arguing and making up.
Once I got over the fear and sealed friendships old and new, I discovered the paradox of covering huge distances in just hours and short distances in entire days; and relearned how to share limited space and be part of a group, increasing my ability to adapt.
What did I get from the trip?
I strengthened my conviction that each of us can and should be more aware of our own environmental impact, and consequently commit to producing less waste.
What do I mean? Natural resources like water and electricity, but also purchases we can give up and journeys we can make on foot rather than taking the car.
It may seem that this approach of mine is in contrast with our world, our wellbeing, my own work, but I believe that my profession itself can raise awareness of our duty to take action in our daily lives.