author, mountaineering writer – books, blog, opinion
When the Victorian mountaineer Edward Whymper visited Ecuador in 1879 – ostensibly to study the effects of high altitude, but in reality to polish off a few first ascents in the High Andes – he was far from impressed. In
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There are some facts about Mera Peak, one of Nepal’s most popular trekking peaks, that not many people know. This is partly the fault of adventure travel companies offering it as a trip, whose literature can range from vague to
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The last day at Manaslu Base Camp before our summit push. Although our acclimatisation schedule has been quite aggressive, a reasonably benign weather window has appeared which we need to take advantage of. We leave for Camp 1 tomorrow (23rd)
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As the rain continues to hammer on the roof of my tent, as it has every day since arriving at Manaslu base camp, I think about the last few days, our first sleeping on the mountain. It’s been a struggle
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Five years ago when I turned back on Aconcagua, the highest mountain in South America, 500 metres from the summit, I told myself I would never go back. It’s a boring mountain, the guides are too cautious, there are plenty
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The story of Cho Oyu, autumn 2010 While we live in a society which offers us a huge amount of choice over what we do, for the bigger events the wheel of life more often than not turns in a
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So finally, after nearly two weeks in Tibet, we have arrived at the foot of the Turquoise Goddess, when we arrived at Cho Oyu Base Camp yesterday. It has been a rapid ascent. Less than 2 weeks after leaving the
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