I’ve recently been reading The Everest Years by Chris Bonington, during which he states that he was the 7th Brit to climb Everest. So who were the 7 and what were their stories?
Read moreThe first 7 British people to climb Mount Everest
Everest
Did Rudyard Kipling’s explorer see Hamish MacInnes looking behind the ranges?
The title of Hamish MacInnes’s book Look Behind the Ranges is taken from Rudyard Kipling’s poem The Explorer about a man who is urged to cross the mountains behind his home by an inner voice. But what would Kipling’s explorer have made of Hamish MacInnes?
Read moreA short history of Everest by Kenton Cool
The two things I miss most since moving from London to the Cotswolds are live jazz and mountaineering lectures. Imagine my delight then, to learn that Kenton Cool would be giving a lecture about Everest a few fields away from where I live.
Read moreMy favourite book of 2022: Snow in the Kingdom by Ed Webster
This is a poignantly belated book review, if ever there was one. Ed Webster died of a heart attack last month at the age of 66. His book Snow on the Kingdom had been sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read for more than seven years.
Read moreDid George Mallory climb Everest in 1924? I asked ChatGPT for an answer
There’s been a lot of hype about the new chatbot ChatGPT. If it can impersonate a real person, then it occurred to me that I could interview George Mallory and find out if he actually reached the summit of Everest in 1924. So I did, and here’s what happened.
Read moreA guided tour of Himalayan mountaintops by an Everest guide, from the comfort of your armchair
Most of us have used Google Street View at some point, but not so many of us know about Street View’s kinder, mellower, more refined, engaging and adventurous younger brother, a website that specialises in mountain panoramas.
Read moreMy new book is out! Sherpa Hospitality as a Cure for Frostbite
It’s ages since I last published a book, and I’m very excited about my latest one. Sherpa Hospitality as a cure for frostbite takes us from the early years of Himalayan mountaineering to the present day when Sherpas have become superstar climbers in their own right.
Read moreThe story of Sherpa mountaineers from early expeditions to the present day
I’m super excited to make two big announcements in today’s post – a rare public appearance and a new book that explores the journey of Sherpas from the porters of early expeditions to the superstar climbers of the present day.
Read moreMove over Jim Dale, there’s a new audiobook narrator in town
A quick message to announce something that I know some of you will have been waiting for as eagerly as when you used to wonder what colour socks your gran was knitting you for Christmas. Yes, that’s right, I’ve narrated my first audiobook!
Read moreNine Lives by Robert Anderson: Everest from all angles
I don’t often accept books for review – not because I’m not interested, but because life is short and there are too many books I want to read. Sometimes, however, I make an exception, like when Robert Anderson offered me a copy of his latest book Nine Lives.
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