Andes vs Himalayas: The Ultimate Mountain Showdown

In this video, we pit two of the world’s most iconic mountain ranges against each other: the Andes and the Himalayas. From towering peaks to incredible biodiversity, trekking adventures to rich cultural histories, find out which range stands tall in the ultimate mountain showdown. So, which one would you rather explore?

Sources:

National Geographic - Andes Mountains Overview

Encyclopedia Britannica - The Himalayas

Lonely Planet - Best Treks in the Andes and Himalayas

[MrPoornakumar]

Himalaya's (Hima=snow. Alaya=abode, in Sanskrit) are invariably mentioned singly, but should be associated with other mountain ranges too - Karakorum, Hindu'kush, Kun lun, Tien'shan, Altai & all converging at Pamirs, itself a crazy knot of all these. Minor ranges like Hinduraj, Zanskar, Ladakh ranges, though lofty, run for short distances at various angles to Himalayas. I clarify this - the 14 eight thousanders are: Everest or Chomolongma (8848 m Himalaya), K2 or Godwin Austen (8611m Karakorum), Kanchenjunga (8586 m Himalaya), Lhotse (8516 m Himalaya), Makalu (8485 m Himalaya), Cho Oyu (8188 m Himalaya), Dhaulagiri I (8167 m Himalaya), Manaslu (8163 m Himalaya), Nangaparbat (8125 m Himalaya), Annapurna I (8091 m Himalaya), Gasherbrum I or K5 (8080 m Kara korum), Broad peak I or K3 (8051 m Karakorum), Gasherbrum II or K4 (8034 m Karakorum) & Shisha Pangma or Gosainthan (8027m Himalaya) are in both ranges. No seven thousanders are outside this Asian region, in any other continent. Aconcagua the highest peak outside at 6960.8m, is in Andes (South America) & 222 peaks (all in Asia) are higher than it. North America's highest, Mt. Denali (McKinley) at 6190.5 m is ranked 809. None in Africa or Europe exceed the 6000 m limit. Highest point I reached, Mt. Khardung La (I am not a mountaineer), is revealed to be at 6002 m in recent reckonings.
Himalayas runs for a 1000 miles (1600 km) between the anchoring peaks Namche Barwa (7816m, ranked 47) in east, around which River Brahmaputra takes a turn to south and Nanga parbat (= naked peak, 8125m, ranked 8) in west, mistaken to be in Karakorum range, because of its proximity.
Longest glaciers outside Poles are in this region: Fedchenko 77 k.m. is in Pamirs (Gorno Badakhshan, Tajikistan). Siachen (76 k.m.), Biafo (67 k.m.), Baltoro (63 k.m.), Batura (57 k.m.) & Hispar (49 k.m.) are in Gilgit-Baltistan region straddling Karakorum range.
A feature associated with Himalaya range (between Himalayas & Kun'lun ranges) is the unique Tibetan plateau at uniform elevation of about 4500m (14760 ft; incidentally 4, 384.4 m = 14, 384.4 feet) with "rare" atmosphere (a third less air pressure than at sea level) that it is hard to breathe while the native Tibetans are well adapted. Tibet is about a million square km. in area. Comparable Altiplano area is in a wide stretch in the Andes (in Bolivia-Peru) above 4000 m, on a tenth of Tibet's area. The heating in summer of Tibet plateau is the reason for regular Monsoon rains in South & South-East Asia. This too is unique in the world (can't see anywhere else).
Culture is a consequence of Geography (Orography & Climatology that depends on Ocean currents).
Andes is the longest mountain range. Though we consider them as "separate", it is but a continuation of the same Mountain chain, called "Rockies" in North America (Rockies is the continuation of Andes). Bio-diversity you allude to is a consequence of this "long" mountain chain from N.Pole to S.Pole covering "all" Latitudes (Koppen's climate zones). But isn't so in a continuum of mountains in Himalaya group, in which the Northern marker is "Khan Tengri" [7318 m/27° 36’ 30”N/ 88° 06 ‘42“E] & Southern marker is "Kabru South" [7010 m/42° 12’ 39”N/ 80° 10‘ 30“E], a sub-peak of Kanchnjunga. It implies a stretch of only 15° in Latitude. So, where is the scope for comparison?
7:40 You mentioned "Sherpa" which is actually Sher-paw (Sher=tiger, Paw=foot in Nepali & Hindi sharing same alphabet, grammar & Sanskrit roots). Nepal falls within the cultural zone of North India, irrespective of political divisions. Only that the British failed to win that land & incorporate it n their Indian Empire(the King/Queen of England is the Emperor/Empress of "Empire of India" too, created by them, if you read the Indian coins minted before 1947). Hindus whether in India or Nepal (Nepalis can freely move in India; my car-washer is a Nepali gentleman who lives with his family) make the same pilgrimages to same places ("Kumbh Mela" in Prayag where 10 million people might gather for a holy day, or eternal Varanasi; there are 51 Shakti-peethas too as per legend - 5 in Bangladesh, 2 in Nepal, 1 each in Pakistan, Sri Lanka & Tibet and of course, 0 - none in USA).
8:18 To sum it up - it is stupid to compare. I don't know (nor care) who is the winner. But I can say you're the loser, with abominable paucity of knowledge but still deign to proffer an opinion. You need to learn a lot, before.

[linhlethithuy]

what a fantastic video! I really loved the visuals and the way you compared the two mountain ranges. Honestly, though, I feel like the Himalayas get too much credit when it comes to trekking experiences. the Andes have some stunning trails and unique cultures that are often overlooked. What do you all think?