Accident Reports ANAM
Scrambling Fall in Sir Donald Group – Loose Hold Canada, British Columbia, Glacier National Park, Sulzer Tower

At the end of August, a party of three climbers attempted a lightweight traverse of the peaks that bound the headwaters of the Illecillewaet River, including Mt. Sir Donald. This is a 37-kilometer trip with nearly 6,000 meters of vertical gain and...

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| Published 2016


Accident Reports ANAM
Stranded on Mt. Tupper – Inadequate Equipment Canada, British Columbia, Glacier National Park, Mt. Tupper

On June 20, as a pair of climbers was ascending the south buttress of Mt. Tupper, wet, snowy conditions slowed their progress in the upper third of the route. The climbers did not bring ice axes and crampons for traversing the final snowy ledges t...

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| Published 2016


Accident Reports ANAM
Fatal Fall on Mt. Tupper – Loose Rock, Climbing Unroped Canada, British Columbia, Glacier National Park, Mt. Tupper

On July 25, while ascending the classic west ridge of Mt. Tupper, an unroped climber pulled on a loose block along the ridge top and fell down the south face. His two climbing partners witnessed him falling with the large block, then cartwheeling ...

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| Published 2016


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Pik Semenova Tian-Shanski, Northwest Face Kyrgyzstan, Tien Shan, Kyrgyz Ala-too, Ala Archa National Park

Route 3 is the 2015 Aitken-Potockiy Route. See photos below for other routes.  The Ala Archa is a popular and easily accessible mountain group, lying only 40km south of Bishkek, and contains some of the best alpine, ro...

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| Published 2015 | Author Mark Aitken


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Oxford Glacier, Island Peak, East Face and South Ridge; Snow Dome, North Ridge; Panorama Peak, South Ridge Greenland, East Greenland, Stauning Alps

The Stauning Alps of northeast Greenland are bounded to north by the King Oscar Fjord, to the east by the Skel Valley, to the west by the Alpefjord, and to the south by the Nordvest Fjord, the northwest branch of Scoresby Sund. While the northern ...

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| Published 2013 | Author Mark Aitken


Accident Reports ANAM
Essentials: Deep Water Soloing Safety Steps for a Fun New Sport

In deep water soloing (DWS), the danger of a fall is lessened, but the potential for injury is not eliminated. At least three DWS fatalities have been reported in Europe. POTENTIAL INJURY TYPES Drowning. Sudden immersion in cold water raises the r...

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| Published 2016 | Author R. Bryan Simon and Seth C. Hawkins


Accident Reports ANAM
Lowering Error – Clipped Wrong Rope Into Anchor New Mexico, Diablo Canyon, Sun Devil Wall

On January 18, at approximately 2 p.m., Climber 1 fell from the top anchors of pitch two of Appendicitis (5.10a) on the Sun Devil Wall. She fell approximately 170 feet to the ground. Trained medical professionals were climbing nearby and immediate...

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| Published 2016 | Author Heather Volz


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Western Hajar, Various New Routes Oman

Italian climbers Manrico Dell’Agnola, Daniele Canale, Tommaso Lamantia, Giovanni Pagnoncelli, and Marcello Sanguineti spent the first half of January 2017 in Oman, visiting the Western Hajar mountains and climbing several new routes. At Jebel Fokh...

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| Published 2017 | Author Marcello Sanguineti


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Jebel Misht, Wer Wir Waren and Mitten ins Herz Oman

In January and February of 2017, Philip Flämig and I climbed some big new lines on the beautiful and impressive limestone of the Western Hajar mountains. First we climbed Wer Wir Waren (460m climbing distance, 8 pitches, F6b) on one of the untouch...

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| Published 2017 | Author Jens Richter


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Yalla Shabab Jordan, Wadi Rum

In November, British climbers Dan McManus and Calum Muskett bolted and climbed a difficult four-pitch line up a previously unclimbed face in Barra Canyon. The new route, Yalla Shabab (8a), went in four pitches: 7a+, 8a, 7c+, 7b+, the last three al...

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| Published 2016


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Jebel Rum, Sultan Ul-Mujahadin Jordan, Wadi Rum

A very difficult new free route on the east face of Jebel Rum (1,754m) was redpointed in February 2017. In 2014, climbers Eliav Nissan (Israel-USA) and Elad Omer (Israel) began work on the 14-pitch, roughly 1,800’ route. Over two winters and seemi...

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| Published 2017 | Author Madaleine Sorkin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Titanic: A First Free Ascent on Torre Egger Argentina, Southern Patagonia, Chaltén Massif

In mid-September, I arrived in El Chaltén to meet up with my friend Marc-André Andre Leclerc. Our goal was twofold: to climb Torre Egger and to film Marc-Andre as he re-enacted the mind-blowing solo of the peak that he’d accomplished just a week b...

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| Published 2016 | Author Austin Siadak


In Memoriam AAJ
Scott Cosgrove, 1964 – 2016

When you’re 20 years old, living in Yosemite and climbing every day, the Earth seems to spin a bit slower. Time seems stretched out and relaxed as you rope up with a friend on another big day. In 1984 I tied in with Scott Cosgrove for our first bi...

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| Published 2016 | Author Kurt Smith


In Memoriam AAJ
Nicholas Clinch, 1930 – 2016

Nicholas Bayard Clinch III was born in Evanston, Illinois, on November 9, 1930. Nick grew up mainly in Dallas, with high school years at the New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, influenced by his father’s and grandfather’s careers in the mili...

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| Published 2016 | Author Tom Hornbein


In Memoriam AAJ
Lowell Thomas Jr., 1923 – 2016

Lowell Thomas Jr., an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Mountaineering Club of Alaska and longtime AAC member, passed away in Anchorage on October 1. His long life was filled with extraordinary adventures and accomplishments. He was born in London, ...

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| Published 2016 | Author Tom Meacham


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Kyle Dempster, 1983 – 2016

  It’s been months since Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson disappeared while attempting a new route on the Ogre II (Baintha Brakk II) in the Karakoram. The Utah climbing community is still reeling; two of our most promising climbers—but, more imp...

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| Published 2016 | Author Nikki Smith


In Memoriam AAJ
Jim Detterline, 1956 – 2016

For months I have been mired in sadness after learning of the untimely and shocking death of my good friend Jim Detterline. Jim was best known as the legendary Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) climbing ranger who climbed 14,259-foot Longs Peak ...

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| Published 2016 | Author Lisa Foster


In Memoriam AAJ
Woodward “Woody” Kingman, 1925 – 2016

Woodward “Woody” Kingman died from stroke complications at age 91 on December 29, 2016, near his home in Belvedere, California.Woody is well remembered as a gentle and strong, principled man whose generosity of spirit and unfailing optimism earned...

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| Published 2016 | Author Claire McAuliffe Kingman


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Tatra Ridge: Team Speed Record Poland, High Tatras

Between July 21 and 25, Polish alpinists Artur Paszczak and Adam Pieprzycki made what is likely the fastest crossing of the complete Tatra Ridge by a roped pair. The two took 106 hours 38 minutes to travel from Zdziarska to Hucianska Pass, across ...

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| Published 2016 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Chaukhi Range, First Complete Traverse, Solo Georgia, Caucasus, Chaukhi Range

In July 2015, after climbing a new route on Asatiani with Giorgi Tepnadze, I was surprised by a fine morning on July 15 and hurriedly packed a rucksack for a long traverse. (I carried 7mm and 9mm ropes, some gear, a little bit of kitchen and bivou...

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| Published 2015 | Author Archil Badriashvili