Day 11: May 26, 2023, as told by Nathan McCarthy

A tall story.

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Name: Nathan McCarthy

Age: 21

Hometown: New York City, NY

Area of study: Health & Exercise Science, and Spanish

Year in school: Entering final semester

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I joined the Everest Base Camp Expedition because... After some lecture this past fall, I was talking to a buddy of mine about our upcoming summer courses, and he mentioned the Everest Base Camp trip that would fulfill EXE 500 credits. Trekking, traveling and learning about nerdy exercise science seemed perfectly up my alley!

I'm involved with the SU collaborative research studies by... There are quite a few different ongoing studies on this trip which I am a participate in all of them. The main study is measuring spleen contraction before and after exercise at low altitude vs high altitude. The exercise in this study is a VO2 max bike test which is a study in itself. We did a baseline VO2 max in Kathmandu. The following day we did a normobaric hypoxia VO2 max at the same altitude but with less oxygen. Lastly we are doing a VO2 max at ~4300m and will use the data to compare lowlanders to highlanders/sherpa, mostly looking at hemoglobin saturation and genetic variation. I am participating in three other side studies, one of which measures balance at low altitude using a force plate and various visual stimulus. This data is then compared to the same test done in hypoxia. The third test I am participating in is using an ultrasound to look at my heart and arteries and more generally “vascular stiffness” compared to that at high altitude. The last test is tracking our breathing and electrical signals of our heart during sleep and comparing at the two altitudes. Central sleep apnea is expected when adjusting to altitude, but having the data will be valuable to the researchers. It has been very interesting learning about the various data that is being collected and I am excited to see what conclusions are made from the studies.

I'm most looking forward to... continue trekking! I am excited to reach the highest altitude I have on foot and see how my body responds. I am excited to reach the summit of Kala Pattar (5545m) and Everest Base Camp (5365m) to get closer to some of the highest peaks in the world while rubbing shoulders with the mountaineers that endure some unfathomable experiences. I look forward to documenting all of my experiences with my camera and sharing with my friends and family back at home.

My favorite part of the trip so far has been... a long list! As my first time in Asia, it has been invaluable exploring the culture. Experiencing a montestary as well as being taught the significance of various Buddhist art, has given me a greater appreciation for Nepali culture. The strong discipline and self-less Buddhist values are apparent in the character of the locals I have interacted with. Trekking through the beautiful countryside of the Khumbu valley is another aspect of exploration I have cherished. Learning about high altitude physiology and having the opportunity to participate in these research studies has also been very valuable and I’m sure will impact the start of my career. Lastly, making friends, Western and Nepali, and spending time hiking, playing word games, cards and chess has been a very enjoyable pastime.

The worst part of the trip so far... can also be interpreted as the best part of the trip! Being stripped of the luxuries and comfort I have back at home is a necessary reset to remind myself to be grateful for all I have. The bathrooms do not meet the near-perfect Western standard we are used to. We do not have the opportunity to shower every day, drink tap water, use cell service and watch TV with any free time we have here. Although we are still pampered with three meals a day and yaks/porters carrying a lot of our gear – this furthermore reminds me of how fortunate I am and makes me feel very grateful.

One thing most people don't know about me... I will try eating just about anything. I feel as though cuisine is a principle representation of culture, demonstrating the values as well as geography of a country. Due to the very common GI issues that come with traveling to Nepal, I have not yet gotten to explore the cuisine as much as I would have hoped, but what I have tried has been great. The chicken briyani, curry and naan back at the Kathmandu Guest House was great and while hiking we have gotten some great meals aswell. Some great soups and teas, as well as their country famous steamed dumplings - momos with their signature sauce. The fried veggie dish pokra was delicious as well as the veggie/buffalo meat stir fry we had last night. I am excited to continue eating and experiencing Nepali culture!

Daily Recap

On the third morning in Pheriche, I woke up just past six and stripped myself of the pulse-ox, nasal canula and respiratory belt for Trevor’s sleep apnea test. I later discovered I sustained ~80 bouts of sleep apnea per hour. Meaning ~80/hr >10s breaks in breathing which apparently is pretty standard in hypoxic conditions but shocking nonetheless. Shortly after I made it to the dining room for morning tea where I bothered Spencer, a Calgary student preparing to begin his masters in science, with strength and conditioning questions. So great to be surrounded by people that enjoy the nerdy nuances of the body! We all shared breakfast together which for me consisted of muesli (similar to granola with milk), omelets and toast.

I then had some three hours before my final research participation of the trip. I read some of Jon Krakauer’s “Into Thin Air” describing the struggles of the 1996 Everest summit disaster, lost a game of chess and shared a coffee with Lukpa Sherpa to collect info for my journal prompt of the day. Afterwards I had various blood collection which took more needles and pricking than I had hoped, but in the name of science I complied. They took blood to look at my hemoglobin concentration and compared that to my values from Kathmandu. I then did a carbon monoxide rebreathe to see how that affected the Hb oxygen binding, followed by another blood draw. They also took some blood for some sort of ongoing epigenetic study? I’m convinced they are making clones of us. Anyways, we had another great lunch which consisted of a buffalo burger and French fries. Usually we are offered seconds and thirds, but that was not the case with today’s special lunch so Mike and I picked up some peanut butter and crackers at “Pheriche Shop” which we inconspicuously ate (at least I think) as dessert during Kim’s presentation on DNA methylation.

After some downtime, a small group of us walked Phura Sherpa over the ridge to her hometown Dingbouche and had tea in her sister’s lodge which I’m glad we did. Now we wind down reading or playing games as we wait for dinner. A typical and lovely day in Pheriche! I’m excited to continue hiking in two days from now. Sending love to my family back at home! I’m excited to share photos and stories with y’all!

PS. Happy birthday Mom! Love, Carolyn!