The fall mountaineering season in Nepal can – if at all – only start later. According to unanimous reports in the Nepalese media, the government in Kathmandu postponed the reopening for flights to and within Nepal until 1 September at the earliest. The reason was the increasing number of infections with the coronavirus, it was said. So far (as of 11 August), more than 23,000 cases have been registered in the Himalayan state, 83 people have died of COVID-19. The number of unreported cases is likely to be significantly higher.
A quarter of the usual flights
Actually, the Himalayan state should be allowed to be flown to again from next Monday. In a first phase, about a quarter of the usual flights were to be permitted. Allegedly, the Ministry of Tourism had also worked out the overdue safety regulations including quarantine rules. It remains unclear, however, what they are supposed to look like. As reported, some operators had canceled their expeditions in Nepal planned for the fall season due to the hesitant behavior of the government, others wanted to stick to their plans.
First foreign expedition arrived in Pakistan
Since last Saturday Pakistan is officially open for foreign tourists again. A five-member expedition team from the operator Summit Climb, led by German climber Felix Berg, arrived in the capital Islamabad today. I will tell you about the destination of the expedition in a few days.
In Pakistan more than 285,000 coronavirus cases and over 6,000 deaths have been counted so far. However, the number of new infections had recently decreased.
