I recently had to lengthen my crampons to fit a new pair of a boots. This wasn’t the straightforward procedure I was expecting it to be: because of the design of the crampon I had to take the entire thing
Read moreAnatomy of a crampon
Year: 2012
A short history of Nanga Parbat, the Naked German Mountain
With the news last week that Sandy Allan and Rick Allen have completed the Mazeno Ridge on Nanga Parbat (8125m), the longest continuous ridge on any 8000 metre peak, I was reminded of the colourful history of this giant mountain in Pakistan, the most westerly of the 8000ers, once considered to be a German mountain, and now at least temporarily dressed in tartan.
Read moreWhat’s next? Elbrus, I suppose
When I crept into Everest Base Camp on 22 May and posted some messages to say I’d reached the summit and was safely back down again, I was overwhelmed at the response I received, from close friends, to people I’ve
Read moreBackpacking in the Black Mount: a high level route for midges
The most talked about subject in Britain at the moment isn’t the upcoming London Olympics, but the crap weather we’ve been having. First it was the wettest April on record, then it was the wettest May on record. I happened
Read moreA menagerie of mad mountaineers
Some people will probably say the title of this post is tautological, but all things are relative. On Everest this year there was an elderly Italian climber who, justified or not, had a reputation for being a bit of a
Read moreMystery of the vanishing Himalayan lake
I’m no climate change sceptic, and I’ve seen its effect on shrinking glaciers many times. While scientific evidence for climate change is clear, not everyone is convinced it’s happening. One of the most powerful methods being used to convince sceptics is photographs showing how much glaciers have changed over time. But photos aren’t always what they seem.
Read more5 Everest horror stories
Book review: Dark Summit by Nick Heil and High Crimes by Michael Kodas “There’s three things that could happen: you could fail, you could get up it, or you could not come back. You’ll just have to make sure you
Read moreWhy Altitude Junkies is my choice for the 8000m peaks
“We’re a couple of high-altitude junkies.” Pete Boardman This is a follow up to last week’s post about choosing an 8000 metre peak expedition operator. In that post I offered up some pointers to help you make the right choice and
Read moreHow to choose an 8000m peak expedition company
So you’ve done a few high altitude mountaineering expeditions and you’re ready to climb your first 8000 metre peak, but there are many options and companies offering their services at a bewildering disparity of prices. How do you tell them
Read moreEverest 2012: Climbing and alcohol
The story of the 2012 Altitude Junkies expedition to climb Everest by the North Ridge Sometimes you get lucky in life, and everything just seems to fall into place like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. These times are rare and
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