This is typical disision at the field that so many unkown factors we could not prepare all! Our final goal is drilling 3-5m deep at potential permafrost side higher than 5300m. I already lost two diamond bits by hard rock. Hand drill is nice to light weight for high altitude clibming but hard to oprerate!! Peruvians everybody hate this sytem. So only the option also avalable at Arequipa town is back to electric drill. We can buy easy SDS-plus drill that I brought adapter from Alaska. For the generator, that is tricky because air is almost half in Fairbanks. 1kw generator can run at 5000m but also half or less power. So I brought Botch SDS-plus hammer drill (800W). We need more than 2kw generator. We decide to bring 5kw!!!! That is crazy almost 100kg(200lb) need lift up!

They are strong!

even for them, mission is not easy for many reason. One of them, we are not normal climbing route. No trail system makes 10 times (maybe 100 times) difficult to carrying up someting!

Tropical sun is stright to down! so this meas dark quickly! we should stop today.

The way back to the car, Misti already had beautiful moment!

It was first bg chanllenge! site was occupied rocky lava field, so hard rock! I am not sure how we can drill by hand this!!

One of the favorite American kids pets, yes Guinea pig! almost everybody knows this cute animal. many people know this is not pig family but also not coming from Guinea! Guinea pig is originated Andes. Here in Peru, this animal is very important protine source for high altitude Peruvian Andes people! Here is dish, I try today!

it’s tast like rubbit, but still has nice tooths, fingers, and eyes!

only sad thing is this restrant cooking not very well. some meat has still red (not cook) especially face! Guinea pig has nice cheak meat as you know, but I could not enjoy this part 🙁

Arequipa is beautiful town in Peru!

You can see Chachani, Misti mountains around 20000′ high.

We had great lunch!! (Lunch is biggest food in most of the countries in Latin counties.) Especially Ceviche is impressive! seafood (sea artine, octopus etc. with lemon juice).

8 Hours of flight from Los Angels, I am Peru’s capital city Lima now! Food looks good! Itry to eat empanada with cafe, it was excellent!

6am, I check in at Fairbanks airport. A lot of luggage, heavy! Jose will pick me up at Arequipa airport, however, I need transfer at Lima to the domestic along?! Hope everything going well.

(Photo by D.Trombotto)

I am leaving for Peru tomorrow! Targeted mountain permafrost is higher than 5300m south side of saddle. So, Chachani is located about 20 degree south latitude, south facing slope is less solar radiation like north facing slope in AK! I introduce some impressive items from my packing list !

Oximeter! This is great tool to quick measure oxygen level in your blood. This can help prevent high altitude problem.

A pulse oximeter is a medical device that indirectly measures the oxygen saturation of a patient’s blood (as opposed to measuring oxygen saturation directly through a blood sample) and changes in blood volume in the skin, producing a photoplethysmograph. It is often attached to a medical monitor so staff can see a patient’s oxygenation at all times. Most monitors also display the heart rate. Portable, battery-operated pulse oximeters are also available for home blood-oxygen monitoring. The original oximeter was made by Milliken in the 1940s.^[1] The precursor to today’s modern pulse oximeter was developed in 1972, by Aoyagi at Nihon Kohden using the ratio of red to infrared light absorption of pulsating components at the measuring site. It was commercialized by Biox in 1981. The device did not see wide adoption in the United States until the late 1980s.(from Wikipedia)

SPOT satellite  messenger, This is wonderful item for telling my location to friends as well as twitter/facebook! Important item for snowmachine trip!!

water purifier, this makes water clean!

I like Nikon SLR, but if weight is limited situation, micro3/4 system camera is maybe a better choice!

The time fly very quickly! Only one month left to go to Kilimanjaro! Good news are 1). I am physically ready! 2). visa, ticket is ready! 3). research plan is ready, and 4. web site is improved a lot (see below)! We will focus to organize web sites, data input system, and lesson plan within a month!! Stay tune!

Remember! our expedition web site is: http://xpeditiononline.com/globe2010.html

Last year’s picture page is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/33628000@N08/sets/72157622528670868/

Final episode is finally start!! We need one year time to build new story. The title of the story is “The Great Journey”! We follow comedy touch human history (Mongoloid traveling to America) with paleo climate change. More later! I give you some snapshot!

It was fun trip and to meet many wonderful things and history that learned during high school era. When I traveled Silk Road or Tibet Plateau area, I always remind “Sanzang fashi; 三藏法師” maybe famous as “Monkey King“,or known to the Chinese as “Journey to West”,written by Wu Ch’eng-en(1500?-1582),. This is definitely fascinated true story (not the monkey and others). He left China 633AD (about 1400 years ago!!) to go to India then return to China! You will see his foot step following map. It is not just amazing also feel almost impossible such old days! But he made it! He teaches us today that whatever, who has passion everything may possible!

The last day in Xian (Changan), China, where was biggest city in the world during his life time, I had a great time to think about this ancient super hero!

The materials, text, Buddhism books that Sanzang fashi brought back  from India were preserved at Dayan Ta (大雁塔). This was build 652AD by Tong Emperor.