Is this the world’s first ascent of Chimborazo from sea to summit?

September 29, 2017 Expedition dispatches andes, carihuairazo, chimborazo, chimborazo sea to summit challenge, cycling, ecuador, edita, edward whymper, first ascents, sea to summit 2 Comments

On Wednesday, Edita and I reached the 6310m summit of Chimborazo for the second time. We climbed via the Whymper Route on the southwest ridge, which traverses across the west face to join the Normal Route that we climbed last

Ice needles and guinea pigs: acclimatising in Ecuador

September 15, 2017 Expedition dispatches andes, chimborazo, chimborazo sea to summit challenge, cotacachi, cotopaxi, cycling, ecuador, edita, rucu pichincha, sea to summit, sincholagua, volcanoes 3 Comments

The fun is over. Tomorrow the serious business of cycling up Chimborazo begins. Our aim is to cycle from sea level then climb to the summit, with a bit of hiking in between. I have no illusions. It’s going to

The peat-bog method of training for a big adventure

September 1, 2017 Expedition dispatches an teallach, britain, chimborazo, corbetts, cycling, ecuador, edita, hill walking, munro bagging, munros, north coast 500, peak bagging, scotland 1 Comment

In the last three weeks I’ve cycled 830km across 1273 hills, hiked up 8 Munros and 4 Corbetts, and scratched 253,953 midge bites 37 times per day. I camped for 20 consecutive nights and have lost count of the number

Get me off this bike and back on my feet

August 21, 2017 Expedition dispatches britain, cycling, edita, hill walking, north coast 500, scotland, wildlife 1 Comment

There was a surreal moment during our cycle ride of the North Coast 500 a few days ago. I had pedalled myself to complete exhaustion up and over steep hills for nine days, and my legs had nothing left. I

Some thoughts on hiking in the Dolomites and via ferrata

August 2, 2017 Expedition dispatches austrian alpine club, cicerone guides, dolomites, edita, italy, tre cime di lavaredo, trekking, via ferrata 3 Comments

We looked upon our four days in the Dolomites as a reconnaissance: an easy hike from hut to hut, carrying little more than a day pack. We had no set itinerary, and chose our route from day to day. We also wanted to do some research with a view to climbing the famous via ferratas.

Unfinished business on Corno Piccolo

July 29, 2017 Expedition dispatches abruzzo, apennines, corno grande, corno piccolo, gran sasso, hill walking, italy 2 Comments

Our big adventure was due to start in the Dolomites, but just before we left Rome, we had one final opportunity to sneak up Corno Piccolo, the last major peak in the Gran Sasso range to elude us.

The long road to Chimborazo on legs and wheels

July 26, 2017 Expedition dispatches andeanface, andes, chimborazo, chimborazo sea to summit challenge, cycling, ecuador, edita, edward whymper, margaret watroba, scotland 6 Comments

By the time you read this I will have embarked on the first stage of a two-month adventure that will take me from the mountains of Italy to the coast of Scotland and — if all goes to plan — the highest point on the planet in a way that’s never been done before.

The story of Gosainkund, the sacred mountain lake

March 15, 2017 Expedition dispatches gosainkund, himalayas, langtang, legends and folklore, nepal, tamang heritage trail, trekking 0 Comment

Last time I was in the Langtang region, my Nepalese friend Siling told me about the origin of Gosainkund, the sacred lake that I will be passing as I cross over the Laurebinayak La, a high pass dividing the Langtang and Helambu regions of Nepal.

My first visit to the Langtang Valley

March 8, 2017 Expedition dispatches edita, gosainkund, jamie mcguinness, langtang, naya kang, nepal, nepal earthquake, tamang heritage trail, teahouse trekking, trekking, trekking peaks, yala peak 4 Comments

By the time you read this Edita and I will be somewhere in the Helambu region of Nepal, an area of low-lying hills and terraced fields north of Kathmandu. Our destination is the Langtang Valley, which in 2015 was the scene of a great tragedy.

Kilimanjaro: returning to the crown of Africa

December 21, 2016 Expedition dispatches africa, east africa, kilimanjaro, mount kenya, mount meru, seven steps from snowdon to everest, tanzania, trekking, volcanoes 5 Comments

I’ve been thinking a lot about Kilimanjaro this year. I first climbed it in 2002, and I was long overdue a return. Back then I didn’t know whether I would be strong enough. This time it should be a different story, and we hope to explore a bit of the crater while we’re up there.