Kangchenjunga base camp trek: Oktang and the south side

May 30, 2018 Trip reports 8000m peaks, asian trekking, bokta, drohmo ri, edita, himalayas, jannu, kangchenjunga, nepal, seven summits treks, trekking 8 Comments

We had ascended a long valley to climb our peak and see the north side of Kangchenjunga. Now it was time to see the south side, and the nature of the trekking was about to change as we crossed a number of passes. This is part two of my Kangchenjunga trek report.

7 fish who climbed Everest

May 23, 2018 Humour aquatic heroes, bonita norris, dick bass, doug scott, edmund hillary, everest, gerlinde kaltenbrunner, naomi uemura, paul devaney, tenzing norgay 3 Comments

Here at the Footsteps on the Mountain blog, we try to take a look at the quirkier side of mountaineering by highlighting stories that don’t get much attention elsewhere. I bet you can’t think of a single fish that has scaled Everest, but there are a few.

Kangchenjunga base camp trek: Pangpema and the north side

May 16, 2018 Trip reports 8000m peaks, drohmo ri, edita, expedition himalaya, himalayas, jamie mcguinness, jannu, kangchenjunga, nepal, project himalaya, trekking, trekking peaks 6 Comments

I was long overdue a visit to Kangchenjunga, one of the 8,000m peaks I have read most about, but seen least of. Here is the first of two trip reports about our trek to the Nepalese side last month, covering our visit to the north base camp.

UK readers: Seven Steps from Snowdon to Everest available for less than a quid

May 11, 2018 My books and writing amazon, everest, mountain literature, old post, seven steps from snowdon to everest, snowdon, travel writing 2 Comments

A quick plug to UK readers of my blog and other writing. If you or friends have not bought my book Seven Steps from Snowdon to Everest yet, then Amazon are currently running a promo and flogging it for the bargain price of £0.99.

In memory of Chongba Sherpa of Tate, a high-altitude superstar

May 9, 2018 Reviews and tributes 8000m peaks, chongba sherpa, everest, himalayan database, manaslu, nepal, obituaries, sherpas 2 Comments

While I was in Kathmandu last month, I learned that Chongba Sherpa passed away last year after a short battle with cancer. He climbed with me on Manaslu in 2011 and Everest in 2012, and we stood on both summits together. He climbed Everest a remarkable 14 times.

Revised edition of The Manaslu Adventure available from all good e-bookstores

May 2, 2018 My books and writing 8000m peaks, amazon, manaslu, mountain literature, nepal, the manaslu adventure, travel diaries, travel writing 6 Comments

A quick book update. I’m in the process of publishing revised editions of the Footsteps on the Mountain Travel Diaries. The revised digital edition of The Manaslu Adventure is available now at a bargain price from the main online bookstores.

Drohmo Ri, the world’s easiest 6,000m peak? Not quite

April 25, 2018 Opinion and advice bokta, doug scott, drohmo peak, drohmo ri, himalayas, jamie mcguinness, kangchenjunga, nepal, project himalaya, trekking, trekking peaks 15 Comments

If you ever trek to Pangpema to see the north side of Kangchenjunga, then you should definitely allow an extra half day to climb Drohmo Ri, even if you’re just a trekker. It’s a piece of piss to get up, and the view is something special.

Introduction to the Apennines — Part 2: Maiella

April 18, 2018 Opinion and advice abruzzo, apennines, cicerone guides, hill walking, introduction to the apennines, italy, maiella, monte acquaviva, monte amaro, monte morrone, wildlife 3 Comments

Maiella is Italy’s equivalent of the Cairngorms, but at a much higher altitude. It’s a huge plateau of multiple summits linked by broad ridges, and divided by deep, mouth-watering gorges. You can walk for miles without dropping below 2,000m.

Archive footage of the 1955 first ascent of Kangchenjunga

April 11, 2018 Reviews and tributes george band, himalayas, joe brown, kangchenjunga, mountain films, nepal, royal geographical society 5 Comments

It’s not often I’ve sat through a whole silent movie that doesn’t feature slapstick comedy and a honky-tonk piano playing in the background, but in this case I made an exception. It’s archive footage of the 1955 British Kangchenjunga expedition.

My first visit to Kangchenjunga

April 4, 2018 Expedition dispatches 8000m peaks, doug scott, douglas freshfield, erwin schneider, frank smythe, himalayas, jamie mcguinness, joe brown, joe tasker, joseph hooker, kangchenjunga, nepal, pete boardman, trekking 5 Comments

By the time you read this I will be somewhere in the Kangchenjunga region of Nepal, in the far east of the country near its eastern border with India. It’s a region dominated by one huge mountain, 8,586m Kangchenjunga, the third-highest mountain in the world.