Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Rock — Protection Pulled Out New Hampshire, North Conway, Cathedral Ledge, Barber Wall

On Sunday, May 28, at 6:30 p.m., Matt Allen (24) was leading Retaliation (3 pitches, 5.9) on the Barber Wall. He took a fall while leading pitch two, pulling out a cam and two lower pieces of gear. His resulting fall was 50 feet and near fall fact...

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| Published 2023 | Author Sgt. Alex Lopashanski of the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department and Dave Custer


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Ice New Hampshire, North Conway, Cathedral Ledge

On Sunday, January 28, at noon, Ryan Cooper (21) fell about 30 feet while leading pitch one of the classic Repentance ice climb (3 pitches, WI5) at Cathedral Ledge. His fell was stopped by an ice screw and his belayer. Upon impact, his crampon sna...

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| Published 2023 | Author Lt. Bradley Morse, New Hampshire Fish and Game Dept


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Rock While Following — Rope Stretch Nevada, Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Pine Creek Canyon, Mescalito

When Jeff Gerner fell while following a long pitch in Red Rock, rope stretch generated enough speed and distance to cause a displaced ankle fracture when his foot clipped a small ledge. The rugged terrain necessitated a helicopter extraction. Ph...

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| Published 2023 | Author Brett Sampson


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Storm Point, South Face, Chilly Dogs Wyoming, Teton Range

Brandon Wanthal leading pitch four during the first ascent of Chilly Dogs. Photo: Chase Krumholz. On July 4, Chase Krumholz and I established a 1,000’ rock climb on the south face of Storm Point. The route lies about 300’ east of the popular ...

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| Published 2024 | Author Brandon Wanthal


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Hallelujah (Peak 12,594), Yes Lawd Wyoming, Bighorn Mountains

Late in the day on August 29, Chris Hirsch and I began the grueling 13-mile hike from Bighorn Reservoir into the Sawtooth Lakes valley. We arrived in the valley around 1 p.m. on August 30 and began to scope objectives. Minding the limitations dict...

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| Published 2024 | Author Matt Scherer


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Cody, The Palisades, Africa Son Wyoming, Absaroka Range

Africa Son. Photo: Zach Lentsch The Palisades are a row of tall limestone fins on the southwest flank of Rattlesnake Mountain, visible from the Buffalo Bill Reservoir on Highway 14, heading west out of Cody. Many years ago (probably in the la...

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| Published 2024 | Author David Gauvin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Storm Dome, Northeast Face, Pika Paradise Idaho, Salmon River Mountains

In September 2023, I returned to Storm Dome, eight miles into the backcountry outside of McCall, Idaho, after having established two long free routes there in 2021 and 2022 (see AAJ 2023). Accompanied first by my wife, Erin, and later by several f...

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| Published 2024 | Author Michal Matyjaskik


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Sinopah Mountain, East Face Montana, Lewis Range, Glacier National Park

The east face of Sinopah Mountain.  The east face of Sinopah Mountain. Photo by Seth Anderson Collection.Finding quality rock in Glacier National Park is a challenge, yet the plentiful steep faces provide endless potential for adventure climb...

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| Published 2024 | Author Seth Anderson


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Flinsch Peak, North Face, Loaded for Bear Montana, Lewis Range, Glacier National Park

Loaded for Bear (IV 5.8) on north face of Flinsch Peak. Photo by NPS / Jacob W. Frank. It started with a photo taken on a gray day during an overnight ski trip in March 2021. A friend and I had skinned into Old Man Lake. While the skiing wasn...

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| Published 2024 | Author David Steele


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Tokositna Glacier Area, Begguya, Attempt on Southeast Spur, and The Water Tower, First Ascent Alaska, Central Alaska Range

The ridge at the eastern edge of the cirque below Begguya’s Southeast Spur. Ben Dewey and Chris Dewey made the first ascent of the 9,957’, snow-pyramid-capped summit at the left, which they named the Water Tower. They believe all the other summi...

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| Published 2024 | Author Ben Dewey


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Shipnoor, West Face India, Maharashtra, Sahyadri Range

The large, basalt west face of Shipnoor (a.k.a. Shipnur), near Ghatghar village (19°32'38.50"N, 73°38'11.18"E) in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra State, had never been climbed until January 2025. In January 2024, four members of the Giripr...

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| Published 2025 | Author Samiran Kolhe


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Lalung I, East Ridge, and Other Routes India, Zanskar

Our all-female expedition of Ana Baumgartner, Urša Kešar, Patricija Verdev, and I (all from Slovenia) headed southwest from near the Pensi La with 18 porters on August 26 to climb in the Lalung Valley. We had thought that our base camp would be a...

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| Published 2024 | Author Anja Petek


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Peak 3,850, Messy Dreamers Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai, Karavshin, Ak-Su Valley

Camilla Reggio and I met on the Eagle Team of the Italian Alpine Club (CAI) and immediately became friends, connected by our huge passion for the mountains. We decided to plan our first expedition together and ended up in Kyrgyzstan, with the inte...

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| Published 2024 | Author Alessandra Prato


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Peak 4,810, Samurai Way Kyrgyzstan, Pamir Alai, Turkestan Range, Karavshin, Kara-Su Valley

In July 2024, Anton Kashevnik and Ivan Temerev (both from Russia) completed a new route on the northwest face of Peak 4,810m. Graded Russian 6B (approx. ED+), the climb spans 1,300m of sustained technical difficulty, threading between the Sakharov...

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| Published 2024 | Author Anna Piunova


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Ashat Valley, 7 O'Clock Sharp Kyrgystan, Pamir Alai, Turkestan Range

The British quartet of Theo Elmer, Sam Harvie, Oliver Hill, and Patrick Hill trekked to the Ashat Valley from the Ak-su Valley after climbing several routes there, including the famed Perestroika Crack (800m, 5.12-) on Slesova Peak. After a five-d...

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| Published 2024 | Author Patrick Hill


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Sky Blue Lake Basin, Four New Routes California, Sierra Nevada, Sequoia National Park

Japhy Dhungana and Rainbow Weinstock soloing the final ridge to the summit of the Miter after making the first ascent of The Pen is Miter than the Sword (600’, 5.10). Photo by Zach Lovell. From July 16 to 24, Japhy Dhungana, Rainbow Weins...

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| Published 2024 | Author Zach Lovell


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Mt. Hitchcock, Shadow of a Doubt California, Sierra Nevada, Sequoia National Park

In June, Honz Mikhalek and I approached remote Mt. Hitchcock (13,186’) from Whitney Portal, hiking up and over the Sierra Crest to Guitar Lake basin, where we set up camp. The line of Shadow of a Doubt (8 pitches, 5.10) on Mt. Hitchcock. Pho...

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| Published 2024 | Author Shaun Reed


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Keeler Needle, East Face, Keelhaul California, Sierra Nevada, Eastern Sierra

For five packed seasons, from 2018 to 2022, my main mate, Chase Leary, and I established hard multipitch first ascents on some of the best climbing formations in the High Sierra. In the northern Sierra, we looted the Incredible Hulk, establishing ...

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| Published 2024 | Author Andy Puhvel


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Mt. Hunter, East Face, Diamond Arête, One Way Out Alaska, Central Alaska Range

The east face of Mt. Hunter, showing the original Diamond Arête (yellow line, Donini-Tackle, 1985) and One Way Out (red line, Gardner-Hennessey-Smith, 2024). The 2024 climbers intended to continue straight up the rock wall to gain the upper arêt...

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| Published 2024 | Author Sam Hennessey


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Begguya, North Buttress, In the Shadow of the Wall Alaska, Central Alaska Range

Cody Winckler climbing a sustained M7 crack to bypass a snow mushroom on the first day of his and Dane Steadman’s first attempt on In the Shadow of the Wall (1,200m, AI6 M7). Photo: Dane Steadman. The last 100m had been the wildest alpine cli...

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| Published 2024 | Author Dane Steadman