Photo By Capt. Holli Nelson | Sgt. 1st Class David Casteel of the West Virginia National Guard poses in front of...... read more read more
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West Virginia National Guard Sgt. 1st Class David Casteel began the journey of a life time on Nov. 18 – trekking to the base camp of Mount Everest, Nepal, the world’s highest mountain.
Casteel, who works full-time at the Parachute Maintenance Facility at Camp Dawson in Kingwood, said he has been interested in the mountain since the early 1980’s when he read a National Geographic article about Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay being the first to summit the mountain.
“For some reason, after reading that article, Mount Everest took hold of me, and it was a place I wanted to see in person,” he said. “I wanted to walk in the footsteps of those who had made that journey so many times before, and also be able to interact with those climbers who were going to
leave base camp and summit the mountain.”
This past May, Casteel sat down and actually put some hard thought into taking the trek. After talking with his wife about the trip, she jokingly said, “why not now?” “That pretty much sealed it for me,” he said. “At that point decided I would be making the journey.”
Casteel flew into Kathamandu, Nepal, on Saturday with the group he is trekking with, International Mountain Guides (IMG).
The trek follows the legendary route to Everest Base Camp, and also goes over Cho La Pass to the more remote Gokyo area. Today, they plan to trek to Namche Bazaar, Napal. Then, on to Tengboche, through Pangboche, Pheriche, and a nice acclimatization hike onto the ridge to see the North Ridge of Ama Dablam. Then they will continue up to Lobuche Village, taking acclimatization hikes to the surrounding sights including the old weather station. From Lobuche they will head up to the small village of Gorak Shep, the original base camp for Mount Everest. From there, they’ll climb Kala Pattar (18,192 ft.) to modern day Everest Base Camp (about 17,500 ft).
After departing Everest Base Camp they will descend to Dughla (below Lobuche) before turning west to head over Cho La Pass (17,485 ft.) which leads to the Gokyo valley where they can view the south face of Cho Oyu (26,906 ft.). They plan to explore the world’s highest alpine lake system and then climb to the summit of Gokyo Ri (17,570 ft.). From Gokyo they’ll descend back to Phortse (home of many IMG Sherpas), on down to Namche and eventually back to Lukla, having completed the Everest Base camp/Gokyo loop trek.
Casteel started training back in July by mountain biking at least 10-12 miles every day, and riding a five-day, 390-mile ride on the Erie Canal, crossing the state of New York from Buffalo to Albany. About mid-July he also started hiking with a 30-pound pack, alternating from hiking up and down steep inclines in town to hiking on the rail trail. In August, he increased his workouts, some days wearing an elevation training mask. He would hike nine miles every other day and work in the gym to strengthen certain muscle sets.
In relation to local landmarks and elevation points, the altitudes Casteel will be facing far surpass anything in the area or even the United States. The highest point in West Virginia is 4,863 feet at the summit of Spruce Knob and Mount Whitney, in the Sierra Mountains of California, rises 14,494 feet above sea level and is the highest point in the continental United States. The base camp of Mt. Everest sits at an elevation of 17,598 feet.
The amount of effort he’s put into this experience has been possible with his support system, Casteel said.
“My unit has been supportive of me going on this trek, with a number of guys in my section very encouraging of me,” he said. “One of my biggest supporters has been my supervisor at the Parachute Maintenance Facility, First Sgt. Walter Dess. Since the first day I told Walt I was going on this trip, he has always been good about allowing me to take time off in order to train, and also constantly asking me about the trip and just what all it’s going to take to get there.”
“My wife has been very supportive as well, constantly pushing me as I train. She’s watched all those documentaries and movies with me, so she knows how important taking on this challenge was for me,” he said. “She’s been excited for me and has taken on the role of sending out periodic Facebook posts to those following my progress, so I could focus on training and preparation. My dad, my sisters, my in-laws, and my nieces and nephews have all been excited for me and supportive too.”
We will be following along in his journey as he treks to various base camps and locations surrounding Mt. Everest over the coming weeks. Stay tuned to our Facebook page at Facebook.com/WV.NationalGuard and Instagram at Instagram.com/wvnationalguard for photos and updates on Casteel’s progress.
| Date Taken: | 11.20.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 11.20.2017 12:44 |
| Story ID: | 255981 |
| Location: | NP |
| Web Views: | 357 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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