Blog
Here you’ll find our blog posts, listed by main category. To receive posts by email as they appear, sign up for updates here!
- Animals and Nature
- Art and books
- Athletes
- COVID-19
- Climbing and Trekking
- Climbing clinic
- Climbing competitions and Events
- Comedy
- Dental camps
- Earthquakes
- Expert Interviews
- HRA
- Health and Medical
- Hospital
- Mount Everest
- Musa Masala
- Musa Newsletter
- Nepal
- News stories
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- Our friends
- Outdoor Medicine
- Scholarships
- Search and Rescue
- Sherpa culture
- Sherpas
- Specialized Cards
- The Good Trekker
- Tributes
- Wongchu Sherpa
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Hiking Tips for Newcomers by Suzanne Cheree Ellis, NREMT-P
Have you ever gotten the itch to just get out there and head into the wilds, and when you arrived had an “oh no” moment? Suzanne Cheree Ellis, the creator of the Ellis Collapsable Isolation Box, is a Paramedic in Texas. Suzanne is here to tell us about her recent family adventure. She is starting off a new series of informative posts with two main themes: beginners’ outdoors tips and safely managing outdoor activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. We realize social distancing is often the goal of outdoor adventuring, so let’s do it safely while we explore and have fun. Thanks Suzanne, so glad you made it back to us!!
COVID-19 in Nepal
We had our first Musa Masala group Zoom call last week, and it was so wonderful for everyone to get together, even if just through the screens. We were all supposed to be in Nepal at the hospital on October 4th for the opening of the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital, then our Climbing Competition in Kathmandu followed by the first Musa trek in the Mardi Himal. But a few things have changed (COVID-19), so we took time to talk about the current situation in Nepal. We will share part of that with you here and in the next few weeks share our conversations on the opening of a road to Lukla, wow! And we will fill you in on the situation with the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital.
Heat Illness: How to Prevent and Treat It
Musa Masala is happy to introduce Dr. Stephen Simon. Stephen is joining us as we launch our latest aid in our educational library. Here is the Musa Masala Heat Illness Card! As I write this it is 112 degrees F. outside, so what appropriate timing.
Thriving Outdoors with Type 1 Diabetes
Whether you’re climbing, hiking, camping or even trekking in the Himalaya, wilderness travel can be a challenging experience. Add in controlling your blood sugar as a type 1 diabetic as your body adjusts to new foods, environments and stress levels, and you can have your hands full.
We reached out to a special adventurer, Svati Kirsten Narula. Svati is a writer, runner and hiker with a lot of experience in managing her diabetes care as she travels far and wide.
Nepal and COVID-19: Food Distribution with Wongchhu Peak Promotion
Unlike the worsening situation in the United States, Nepal has taken a different approach to COVID-19. The central government put a total lockdown of the country in place on March 24th. Although it resulted in the closing of the spring climbing and trekking season and caused terrible economic damage to the population, Nepal was able, with physical distancing and the wearing of masks, to keep the number of infections down in the country. As of July 26, there are 18,483 confirmed cases, and sadly, 44 deaths.
Our Climate, Our Health: Enviromedics with Author Paul Auerbach
Enviromedics: The Impact of Climate Change on Human Health, is the title of a book released in 2017, written by Paul Auerbach and Jay Lemery. Both emergency department physicians and avid outdoorsman and past presidents of the Wilderness Medical Society (Dr. Auerbach is one of the founders), these two practitioners were in a unique position to see the changes not only to the environment, but how those changes were affecting their patients in the emergency room.
Musa Masala: Who We Are
Thanks to everyone who participated in our very first virtual comedy Jam Jam!!
We’re grateful to our comedians and emcee, Louis Beck. A big thank you to Kellie Lin Knott, who engineered and ran the show, too. She did an amazing job shuffling everyone around.
We plan on using this format for more comedy events and we’ll also feature guest speakers and educational programs for climbers and trekkers and all sorts of outdoor enthusiasts.
Mount Everest's First Summit Wedding! An Interview with Pem Dorjee Sherpa
May is traditionally the ideal weather window month on Mt Everest—a short period when getting to the top is not impeded by jet streams or monsoon season. This year, COVID-19 has closed the mountain for climbing on the Nepali side, and only a select group of Chinese climbers are going from Tibet. We here at Musa Masala thought this would be a great time to talk with our friend Pem Dorjee Sherpa. Pem is instrumental for so many quality changes to his home village of Chyangba in Nepal. He is on the Board of Directors for the Himalayan Yokpu Foundation, which is constructing the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital. We will talk about that, but for now, let’s get the lowdown on how he and his wife, Moni, were married on the summit of Mt Everest on May 30th, 2005!
Buffology: Practical Uses for Buffs
Musa Masala would like to thank Douglas Burns for this awesome post on the humble buff. Often used to save voices and throats at Everest Base Camp, buffs have been proving themselves in the mountains for years. (The recycling of moist, humidified air from your lungs helps stave off the dreaded Khumbu cough.) Doug is going to tell you about many other uses and we included a handy chart so you can play with yours to create your own unique look.
A Nurse's View: Life in the ER During COVID-19
Travel nurse Linda Andrus is back on a plane on her way to the East Coast to work in another ER dealing with COVID-19. She graciously took some of her only free time to write down about her experiences at the outset of the virus in California. Linda has a written a stunning piece on what it was like in the first few weeks as her workplace came to grips with COVID-19. This is personal and tough read.
MacGyver EMS in the Time Of COVID-19: The Ellis Collapsible Isolation Box
Our world is rapidly changing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many medical workers are thinking outside-of-the-box in order to help patients. Here is a story about one of our team members who took that box and made it her own.
Suzanne Cheree Ellis is a paramedic and one of our frontline workers responding to the coronavirus crisis. Suzanne created a removable, mobile isolation box that can fit on a standard ambulance gurney. She remarked that after taking a class on Medical MacGyvering from fellow Musa, Dr. Tatiana Havryliuk, at a Wilderness Medical Society Conference, she felt inspired. Suzanne is also an amazing artist. We have sold many of her beautiful works to raise money for the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital. Jam Jam!! Suzanne, great job to you and everyone at Marble Falls Area EMS.
Staying Safe and Sane: COVID-19 Tips from Dr. Paul Auerbach
The COVID -19 pandemic has changed our lives so quickly. We want to be able to provide help as we all navigate this crisis. As we continue to provide updates from our members working in hospitals, we came across an article on The Doctor Weighs In by our friend Dr. Paul Auerbach that does a great service by providing important information, additional resources and useful tips on getting through this together.Paul is on the planning committee for the Wongchhu Sherpa Memorial Hospital and a founding member of the Wilderness Medical Society. He's also the author of numerous books, including Enviromedics: The Impact of Climate Change on Human Health,Auerbach's Wilderness Medicine and Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine.
COVID-19: Report from the Frontlines
Musa Masala began with the idea of a group of medical professionals getting together with a group of climbing and trekking guides to make educational materials to help people stay safe in the outdoors. Today with COVID-19 infecting people around the world we seem to be in the middle of it. Our guides are all out of work with the closure of the spring climbing and trekking season in Nepal and our medical crew find themselves staring into the unknown with a tsunami of illness coming their way. We will be sharing with you our eyewitness stories from our members who are now doing everything they can to protect the public, while trying not to infect themselves, their families and loved ones. It is exhausting and it is scary. Tatiana Havryliuk is an emergency physician in NYC and one of the founders of Musa Masala.
Climb Mt. Baker with Musa Masala!
For the first time, we are excited to invite you to come with us! We’ll travel to the the beautiful Northern Cascade mountains for a three-day climb of the magnificent Mt. Baker. At 10,871 ft., this volcano is a perfect introduction to glacier climbing. And who better to go with than Willie Benegas of Benegas Brothers Expeditions?
Read on for more info. The climb will take place June 9-11, 2020. We have limited spots available.
In the Shadows of Everest: Gaëtan LaMarre and the Khumbu Climbing Center
Gaëtan Lamarre is a documentary filmmaker from Canada. We at Musa Masala were lucky to get to interview him as he took his short film about the Khumbu Climbing Center, In the Shadows of Everest, around to film festivals. This film is just stunning. It captures the beauty of the Khumbu region and the village of Phortse in such detail. The story of how the center came about is fascinating. There is so much good stuff here. Read on then please watch the film at the link below and make a donation to the Alex Lowe Foundation. Enjoy!
Let's Clean Up Nepal
Raj Shrestha is a man on a passionate mission to clean up Nepal. In a short time, he has begun to transform the trekking routes in the Himalaya and the famous places in Kathmandu. He does it on his own power and enlists like minded activists and experts to help. Amazingly, that is not his only project! We asked him to tell us about his remarkable accomplishments that started in 2017. We are so impressed and want to share his plan with everyone.
Musa Comedy Jam Jam Returns!
We did it again, another comedy show! We were so lucky that the Voodoo Comedy Showcase in downtown Denver let us move in for a couple of hours to laugh and raise some money. Here is a little overview of last month’s show in Denver and last year’s in Utah! Keep your eyes open for more Musa comedy near you!
We dedicated this show to our inspiration and friend Dr. Jen. We miss her terribly, and we know she would have loved to have been there. Her infectious laughter and spirit will always be with us.
Namaste Ramila: A Tsering's Fund Update
This is a very special post for us at Musa Masala. We started our website in June of 2016 with one of our purposes being to highlight some of the great work being done in Nepal in the non-profit area. We searched for small organizations that worked on goals that would change individual lives through dedication and a desire to help in a focused, well-managed fashion. We interviewed Peter Schmieding of Tsering’s Fund in September of 2016. (Check out that post here. Three years later, both Musa Masala and Tsering’s Fund have come a long way!)
How to Properly Fit a Backpack
Have you ever gone through the totally miserable experience of hiking or climbing with a poorly fitting, overloaded or falling apart pack? Guilty of all the above. What misery, and usually it seems to be raining whenever this happens, just to add to the mix. Well we have come across the solution to your problems, except the rain part.
Musa Masala at Everest Base Camp: The Everest ER Interview
Once again the Musa team visited Everest ER, the medical tent run by the Himalayan Rescue Association to treat climbers, porters, guides and staff at Mt. Everest Base Camp.
The following video features an interview that Lakpa Sherpa and Dr. Jennifer Konopka did with Dr. Suvash Dawadi and Dr. Subarna Adhikari while they worked at the clinic during the 2018 climbing season. A great footnote is that this was the first year two Nepali doctors worked together at Base Camp. They were joined by Dr. Brenton Systermans from Australia.