Ninth edition of Lonely Planet's Trekking in Nepal Himalaya

The latest edition (ninth edition August 2009) of the Lonely Planet's Trekking in Nepal Himalaya has now been released. The classic guidebook has been updated for new treks and also for changes to existing itineraries resulting from road construction in the hills of Nepal.

At The Mountain Company we are delighted to be included under UK Travel Operators on page 26 for the first time. We are also listed in the excellent TrailBlazer guidebooks to the Everest and Annapurna regions.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk

WWF Report reveals that 353 new species discovered in the Eastern Himalayas

A World Wildlife Report published today reveals that more than 353 new species have been discovered in the Eastern Himalayas between 1998 and 2008. The Eastern Himalayas region includes Bhutan, northeast India, Myanmar, Nepal and southern parts of the Tibet Autonomous Region (China).

However, the report also highlighted the fact that only 25% of the original habitats remain intact due to population growth and rapidly increasing demands for commodities by global and regional markets.

Climbers turn back on K2 summit day

All climbers have turned back on a recent summit attempt on K2. Deep snow above the Bottleneck slowed them down when late in the day the decision was made to descend back to High Camp.

The climbers are on their way descending back to Base Camp except the Kazakhs, Maxut Zhunmayev and Vassiliy Pivtsov, who with characteristic determination have stayed in Camp Four preparing for a possible new attempt today. I wish the best of luck to Maxut and Vassiliy!

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk