The Doctor and the Apprentice: the Jeeves and Wooster of mountaineering literature

February 26, 2025 Reviews and tributes book reviews, geoff dutton, ken wilson, mountain literature, mountain rescue, mountaineering ethics, scotland, scottish highlands, the ascent of rum doodle 2 Comments

A few years ago on this blog, I posed the question Where are the humorous mountaineering books?. Towards the end of last year, I discovered a hidden gem of witty mountaineering literature quite by chance: a collection of whimsical short stories that I believe would have had P.G. Wodehouse chuckling appreciatively.

Why xenon and the noble gases have a noble mountaineering pedigree

February 12, 2025 History acclimatisation, albert mummery, alexander kellas, cuillin ridge, everest, furtenbach adventures, himalayas, inaccessible pinnacle, isle of skye, john mackenzie, nanga parbat, norman collie, scotland, sgurr alasdair, sgurr nan gillean 0 Comment

There’s been some controversy in mountaineering circles about the noble gas xenon after mountaineering operator Furtenbach Adventures announced that they’ll be offering it to their Everest clients. It’s entirely appropriate that somebody has got around to using a noble gas to aid in mountaineering, for reasons I will explain.