H O UG H T O N MIF F L IN by Geoffrey C Saign PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS: Cover © John Van Hasselt/Corbis © David Keaton/CORBIS © John Van Hasselt/Corbis © John Van Hasselt/Corbis © Bobby Model/M-11 Images/AGPix © Robert Holmes/CORBIS © David Keaton/ CORBIS Associated Press CHANDRA SHEKHAR/Getty Images © WildCountry/CORBIS 10 David Samuel Robbins/ Getty Images Copyright © by Houghton Mifflin Company All rights reserved No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the copyright owner unless such copying is expressly permitted by federal copyright law With the exception of nonprofit transcription into Braille, Houghton Mifflin is not authorized to grant permission for further uses of this work Permission must be obtained from the individual copyright owner as identified herein Address requests for permission to make copies of Houghton Mifflin material to School Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Company, 222 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA 02116 Printed in China ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02190-4 ISBN-10: 0-547-02190-9 RRD 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 Mount Everest The wind is so cold on Mount Everest your toes and fingers can freeze The air is so thin that you’ll find it hard to breathe And if you’re not careful, avalanches can bury you! Meet the people who live in this harsh place Apa (in the blue and black jacket), a Sherpa guide, has climbed Mount Everest 17 times! A Sherpa village lies near the mountains in Nepal Nepal, Home of the Sherpas The Sherpa people live in Nepal, a small country with many high mountains Mount Everest is the highest mountain in Nepal and in the world Many Sherpas live in villages near the mountains This is one reason Sherpas are great climbers They live in the hills at a high altitude and are used to the thin mountain air Yaks carry heavy loads for farmers and climbers The Sherpa Community Many Sherpas are farmers They use strong animals called yaks to help them on the farm Yaks look like big, hairy cows Children go to school, but they also help on the farm Many children have to walk a long distance to go to school Sherpa Guides Many Sherpas are guides in the mountains Climbers from other places hire Sherpa guides to help them climb Mount Everest The climbers hike to base camp, which is far up the mountain Yaks and guides carry the equipment Climbers rest in tents at base camp for a few weeks to get used to the thin air Each part of the climb must be approached with care Mount Everest can be a very dangerous climb The groups climb one section of the mountain at a time At each camp they sleep in tents Near the top, climbers use oxygen tanks to help them breathe Some climbers have to halt their climb if they get sick or hurt Famous Sherpas Many Sherpas have climbed the high slopes of Mount Everest The most famous Sherpa is Tensing Norgay He reached the top of the mountain with Sir Edmund Hillary Babu Sherpa also set a record on Mount Everest He slept in a tent on top of the mountain He stayed on the top for almost a whole day This is hard to because it is bitterly cold at the top, and the air is thin Tensing Norgay was part of the first pair of climbers to reach the top of Mount Everest Sherpa Records Some Sherpas are fast climbers One guide climbed from base camp to the top in less than nine hours Most climbers take a week to climb to the top Lhakpa Sherpa climbed to the top of the mountain four times She was the first woman to this Her younger sister, Ming Kipa, was the youngest person ever to climb Mount Everest Lhakpa Sherpa and her sister, Ming, both set climbing records on Mount Everest The Sherpa Community More and more people want to climb Mount Everest They need guides, food, and a place to sleep This increases the number of jobs for Sherpas Some Sherpa climbers work to help children in their villages For example, some Sherpas helped to pay for new schools in their villages Many Sherpa guides give money to their community Sherpas and the Mountains Sherpas respect the mountains and want to take care of them In the past, climbers left garbage on the slopes Now Sherpas are cleaning it up Sherpas are strong climbers and gentle people They hope people keep climbing their mountains If they do, you can bet a Sherpa guide will be there to help them succeed Sherpas will keep helping climbers reach the top of the mountain 10 Responding Word Builder What words or phrases you know that have the same meaning as succeed? Copy this word web and add more words TARGET VOCABULARY succeed triumph excel at Write About It Text to Self Sherpas succeed at mountain climbing What have you succeeded at? Write about a time you succeeded at something Use words from the web in your writing 11 TARGET VOCABULARY altitude approached avalanches equipment halt increases section slopes succeed tanks Question Ask questions before you read, while you read, and after you read TARGET STRATEGY This piece of equipment is used in mountain climbing and in SCUBA diving 12 Level: N DRA: 34 Social Studies Strategy: Question Word Count: 610 3.5.25 Build Vocabulary HOUGHTON MIFFLIN Online Leveled Books ISBN-13: 978-0-547-02190-4 ISBN-10: 0-547-02190-9 1032080 ... at a high altitude and are used to the thin mountain air Yaks carry heavy loads for farmers and climbers The Sherpa Community Many Sherpas are farmers They use strong animals called yaks to help... a Sherpa guide, has climbed Mount Everest 17 times! A Sherpa village lies near the mountains in Nepal Nepal, Home of the Sherpas The Sherpa people live in Nepal, a small country with many high... The air is so thin that you’ll find it hard to breathe And if you’re not careful, avalanches can bury you! Meet the people who live in this harsh place Apa (in the blue and black jacket), a Sherpa