5 of the silliest mountain firsts

September 3, 2014 Humour aconcagua, andes, ben nevis, britain, charity challenges, cho oyu, chris darwin, edmund hillary, everest, first ascents, guinness book of records, hill walking, himalayas, huascaran, lhakpa ri, nepal, norman croucher, peru, snowdon, tibet 2 Comments

With the news that a man climbed Snowdon pushing a brussels sprout with his nose, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at what other silly things have been done on mountains. So here are some of the world’s more improbable first ascents.

Climbing big mountains isn’t everyone’s cup of tea

February 5, 2014 Opinion and advice aconcagua, andes, argentina, high altitude mountaineering, mera peak, seven summits, south america, travel writing, trekking 7 Comments

We’re all different; some of us enjoy walking all day up a steep hill and going to sleep in a tent, while others prefer lying on a beach or partying all night. Luckily the world is big enough to accommodate all of us, but there seems to be a surprisingly large number of people who climb big mountains when they’re really not enjoying themselves.

Everest’s magic miracle highway

January 8, 2014 History aconcagua, everest, expedition logistics, glaciers, history of mountaineering, john noel, maurice wilson, reinhold messner, tibet 8 Comments

When the 1922 expedition team set out, they already knew their approach to Everest lay up a side valley known as the East Rongbuk, but they knew little of the terrain they would find there. When they arrived they discovered a tumbling mass of jagged ice towers the size of buildings, but there was also a miraculous way through.

Everest’s most extraordinary false summit claim

November 20, 2013 Humour aconcagua, alan arnette, argentina, augusto ortega, everest, everest base camp, false summit claims, ladakh, media sensationalism, nepal 14 Comments

Last week the world’s mainstream media were awash with stories about the world’s first dog to climb Mount Everest. It was a heart-warming tale about a cute little doggie who had been rescued from a garbage dump in India and went on to become a pioneering canine mountaineer. But how on earth could it be true?

What’s the world’s best mountain for cheating?

August 21, 2013 Humour aconcagua, bottled oxygen, denali, douglas freshfield, elbrus, everest, kilimanjaro, machapuchare, mont blanc, mountaineering ethics, pico de orizaba, snowdon, vinson massif, wilfrid noyce 17 Comments

Climbing purists should look away now. This post is for those with a more laid back approach to getting up mountains. I thought it might be interesting to compare some of the world’s high mountains to see how far you can get up them using mechanical transport, and so I give you the Mountains for Cheating infographic.

Adiós Leo Rasnik, guide of Aconcagua

July 17, 2013 Reviews and tributes aconcagua, andes, argentina, aventuras patagonicas, climbing fatalities, cordillera blanca, leonardo rasnik, mountain guides, obituaries, peru, seven summits, south america, tocllaraju 6 Comments

It’s time to say goodbye to another friend from South America who has lost his life in the mountains. The Argentine climber Leonardo Rasnik was found dead in the Peruvian Andes on Thursday. He was assistant guide when I climbed Aconcagua in 2010, and a more cheerful and enthusiastic human being you couldn’t wish to meet

When the mountain is trying to tell you something

July 9, 2013 Opinion and advice aconcagua, alaska, american alpine institute, belmore browne, commercial mountaineering, denali, first ascents, history of mountaineering, hudson stuck, seven summits, united states, weather 16 Comments

When Belmore Browne and Herschel Parker had to turn around just 50m short of the summit of Denali during a storm in 1912, it would have been hard for them to imagine there could be any consolation in such bad luck. But sometimes the mountain is trying to tell you something, and when that happens it’s always worth listening.

First ascent of Aconcagua: a story of self-inflicted altitude sickness

February 27, 2013 History aconcagua, altitude sickness, andes, argentina, chimborazo, edward fitzgerald, edward whymper, first ascents, history of mountaineering, matthias zurbriggen, mountain literature, seven summits 5 Comments

When the Swiss guide Matthias Zurbriggen stood on the highest point in South America in 1897, as far as anyone knew it was the highest place man had ever been, but he stood there alone. His expedition leader Edward Fitzgerald had been left behind with altitude sickness at 6000m.

The King of Aconcagua

March 28, 2012 Reviews and tributes aconcagua, adventure travel, andes, argentina, augusto ortega, aventuras patagonicas, guided climbing, mountain guides, seven summits, trekking 0 Comment

Having the right guide can mean the difference between success and failure, particularly on a mountain like Aconcagua, where many guides don’t appreciate the great expense – financial, emotional and physical – that clients are putting into the climb, and

4 pairs of mountaineering boots

March 14, 2012 Opinion and advice aconcagua, everest, gasherbrum, gear reviews, la sportiva olympus mons, mera peak, millet everest, mountaineering boots, muztag ata, old post, phil crampton, scarpa omega, scarpa phantom

Mountaineering can be an expensive hobby, particularly if you end up buying the same things again and again. I’ve just bought my fourth pair of mountaineering boots in preparation for Everest next month, not because I need four pairs of