Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Halgurd, First Complete Ski Descent Iraq, Zagros Mountains

In late February, in partnership with Dutch guide Jan Bakker, I led a small team of American skiers on what we believe to be the first complete ski ascent and descent of the highest mountain lying fully in Iraq: Mt. Halgurd (3,606m, 36°44'27.75"...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Stacy Bare


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Bugaboo Spire, North Face, Tutti-Frutti Summer Love Canada, British Columbia, Purcell Mountains, Bugaboo Provincial Park

In early August, Tom Schindfessel (Belgium) and Vlad Capusan (Romania) established a long new route on the north face of Bugaboo Spire. After a couple of warmups on established climbs in the Bugaboos, the duo approached the north face and began cl...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Chris Kalman


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Sue's Spire, West-Southwest Face; Boughfell, Southwest Face Greenland, East Greenland, Stauning Alps

During April, Jesse Dufton, Alastair Everett, Oliver Mentz, Jennifer Roberts, and Molly Thompson (expedition leader) completed a self-supported expedition to the southern Stauning Alps. We aimed to rekindle the link between science and mountaineer...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Jennifer Roberts


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Tabsar Southwest Top, Northeast Ridge Nepal, Shingri Himal

Tabsar (Tobsar) was brought onto the permitted list in 2002. On the HMG-Finn map it is clearly marked as Tabsar (6,065m) at 28°34'51.27"N, 85°3'24.90"E in the Chamari Himal. However, coordinates given in the recent Ministry of Tourism list confusi...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Unaweep Wall, Wintertime Joy Colorado, Unaweep Canyon

On a rainy April day, Curtis Chabot and I carried 1,000’ of static line and a double set of cams up the northwest arête of the Unaweep Wall (possibly establishing a new mountaineer’s route in the process), the largest cliff in Unaweep Canyon with ...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Rob Pizem


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Tha Nagphu, North Ridge; Sharphu I, Attempt Nepal, Ohmi Kangri Himal

Sharphu is a collection of peaks on a north-south ridge to the west of Kambachen, forming the watershed between the Ghunsa and Yangma valleys. Well to the north lie the peaks of Sato (6,176m) and Nupchu (6,044m); to the south is the Nango La, a pa...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Central and Western At Bashi: Pik Rhianydd and Other Ascents Kyrgyzstan, Tien Shan, At Bashi Range

Kyrgyzstan is rich in little-explored mountains. One example is the At Bashi, a beautiful range of snowy summits and technical rocky peaks near and parallel to the Chinese border. The range is more than 100km in length, and the highest peak ...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Mark Aitken and Adrian Nelhams


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Shivling, Northeast and North Faces, Partial New Route India, Western Garhwal, Gangotri

ONCE AGAIN Simon Gietl and I were at the gas station in Toblacher Kreuzung, having a quick coffee before climbing. After the usual “how’s it going,” we discussed whether we each of us had anything planned for the fall. During the day we returned s...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Vittorio Messini


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Blåtinden, Nightwatch Pillar Norway, Lyngen, Uløya Island

In September I sat in my house in Uløya through amazingly stable weather. Finally, I couldn't bear the pressure any more and set out to free solo the southeast pillar of Blåtinden (1,142m, 69°50'39.80"N, 20°36'37.28"E). I climbed the left flank of...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Artur Paszczak


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Machu, Southwest Ridge, Attempt Pakistan, Karakoram, Hispar Muztagh

In June, Aiden Laffey and I attempted Machu (6,630m, 36.234967°N, 75.051874°E) in the Hispar Valley. As far as I could ascertain from the Internet and from talking to the locals, it had not been climbed or attempted before. From Hunza we traveled ...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Peter Thompson


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Rucho, East Face and South Ridge India, Zanskar

IN EARLY 2010, the government of India opened 104 peaks in the Zanskar region. One of these was unnamed “Peak 6,000m,” located above the west bank of the north Hagshu Nala. It is a little north of Lagan (5,750m), which was climbed in 2014 by a Slo...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Yasushi Yamanoi and Sartaj Ghuman


Feature Article AAJ
Beckey and the AAJ A Look Back at Fred Beckey's Unrivaled, Unrepeatable Legacy

NO CLIMBER in the 88-year history of the AAJ has written more reports or had more climbs cited in these pages than Fred Beckey. No one even comes close. Reflecting his extraordinarily long climbing career, the AAJ database holds more than 700 arti...

| Keywords
| Published N/A | Author Dougald MacDonald


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Minotaur Tower, Suburban Blondes, First Free Ascent Utah, Zion National Park

SUBURBAN BLONDES (IV 5.9 C2+) is a relatively obscure aid route up the 850-foot Minotaur Tower, which rises along the broad wall between Angels Landing and Moonlight Buttress. The route, established in April 1979 by desert legend Ron Olevsky and S...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Patrick Kingsbury


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Peak 9,331’, Northeast Face, and New Routes on Mt. Grenville and Galleon Peak Canada, British Columbia, Coast Mountains, Homathko Icefield

I FIRST LAID EYES upon the beautiful northeast face of Peak 9,331’ while walking across the Homathko Icefield in the early summer of 2016. Upon returning to the frontcountry, I was excited to find that the peak had not been climbed. Later that sum...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Max Fisher


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Many First Ascents Near Barbeau Peak Canada, Nunavut, Ellesmere Island, British Empire Range

Brian Friedrich traversing the previously unclimbed east ridge of Griper (2,417m). Photo by Eric GilbertsonBARBEAU PEAK (2,616m) is the highest mountain in the far northern Canadian territory of Nunavut, rising just 550 miles from the North Pole. ...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Eric Gilbertson


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Umiguqjuaq Wall, Marooned at Midnight Canada, Nunavut, Baffin Island, Clyde Inlet

The two of us had been dreaming of an expedition to Baffin Island’s big walls ever since we started climbing together in 2013. We'd ogled photos, trip reports, and the guidebook for the past three years, always kicking the can down the road on...

| Keywords
| Published 2017 | Author Sam England and Ryan Little


Feature Article ANAM
What To Do About Knocked-Out Teeth

If a tooth gets knocked out of position or completely knocked out of one's mouth: Do not scrub, disinfect, or allow the root of a dislodged tooth to dry out.Rinse the tooth with saline or water to remove debris; do not touch the root.Re-im...

| Keywords
| Published N/A | Author The Editors


Feature Article ANAM
Remote 911 Calls

Even if your cell phone is showing no bars, it’s always worth attempting a 911 emergency call in remote areas. All carriers are required to provide free 911 service, and another car- rier might be able to connect your call even if your ca...

| Keywords
| Published N/A | Author The Editors


Accident Reports ANAM
Fatal Tie-in Error in Maple Canyon Utah, Maple Canyon

On July 23, an experienced climber died after falling to the ground from the anchor of a sport climb. We did not receive a firsthand report, but an online analysis from a close friend who was belaying at the time stated that the climber was likely...

| Keywords
| Published 2016 | Author The Editors


Accident Reports ANAM
Shawangunks Annual Summary New York, Mohonk Preserve

In 2016 at the Mohonk Preserve there were 21 climbing-related incidents, including both injury and illness. Sixteen accidents required technical rescues. Seven of the accidents were caused by a belay system failure, while four were caused by inade...

| Keywords
| Published 2016 | Author Andrew Bajardi