Doug Tompkins was my friend for almost 60 years. We first met while climbing in the Shawangunks of New York. He was only 15 and had either dropped out or been kicked out of school. In any case, he probably thought the teachers had nothing importan...
Robert T. Schaller Jr., M.D., died of pneumonia on December 7, 2014, in Kirkland, Washington, surrounded by family. He had delighted in his medical practice and in mountaineering. He was a leading pediatric surgeon in the Seattle area until arthri...
On April 1, Sheila Hollins and I (Mike Zarski) attempted a winter-conditions ascent of Mt. Whitney from Whitney Portal. Because I had injured my ankle the day before, we only reached Trail Crest by afternoon, so we decided to turn back and camp at...
In the evening of October 11, a 20-year-old solo climber was hit in the head by rockfall while rappelling the summit block of this 7,795-foot volcano. This caused her to fall about 15 feet and badly injure a knee. The climber was able to descend t...
On September 27 at 8:25 a.m., 911 received a call from a climber on the west face of Leaning Tower, reporting another climber’s fall. At the time, the injured lead climber was hanging unconscious 10 feet below Guano Ledge, after taking a lead fall...
My most recent expedition to Nepal was filled with great joy and success, but also with immense sorrow and tragedy. When we dance with the extremes of nature we feel incredibly alive, close to the divine. It’s these moments I hold dearest in my he...
In late March, Eythan Sontag and I (both from the U.S.) climbed a new route on the south face of the east summit of Hrútsfjallstindar (“Ram Mountain,” 1,875m) in Vatnajökull National Park. The Hrútsfjalls peaks are situated on a volcanic crater ri...
On August 19, Colin Moorhead and I rolled out of Golden at 6 p.m. for the Bugaboos. Fifty-one hours later we returned, having completed two new multi-pitch routes.Our first line, Minotaur Direct (16 pitches, 5.11+) on Snowpatch Spire’s east face, ...
I first came to know of Pico Cão Grande early in 2015 while searching for a big wall that was unique and unknown—the dream wall, I guess. I stumbled upon the peak one evening while Googling “super hero villain lairs.” Cão Grande was listed as “the...
Enthused by the stories and photos of countryman Domen Kastelic after his first ascent of Chugimago (AAJ 2015), with American Sam Hennessey, a team of four young Slovenians— Ambroz Bajde, Blaz Kramer, Matej Mucic, and Luka Strazar—visited the Rolw...
I’ve been thinking about how to write this report so that you will not be bored. Apart from a small incident with an avalanche, everything went to plan, and we achieved our goal without epics. But I will try to stop you from falling asleep.There h...
In the spring of 2014, Italians Daniele Bernasconi, Giampaolo Corona, and Mario Panzeri attempted the north face and north-northwest pillar of Talung (7,349m). The three arrived at base camp on April 20 and began a siege-style ascent. They made ab...
In the first week of October three Sherpas, who all originate from the Rolwaling Valley, made ascents of three peaks flanking the Drolambau Glacier as a self-contained party. Dawa Gyalje Sherpa, Nima Tenji Sherpa, and Tashi Sherpa are all experien...
From October 22–26, Hansjörg Auer, Alex Blumel, and Gerry Fiegl made the first ascent of the south face of Nilgiri South (6,839m), only the second overall ascent of this mountain. Nilgiri South was climbed in 1978 by a Japanese team that approache...
Added to the permitted list in 2014, Mukot Himal (6,087m) is located in a remote and wild corner of Nepal, nestled into the flank of the rarely seen but phenomenal Dhaulagiri II. KE Adventure Travel organized three groups to attempt the peak durin...
Landing just after dawn at Simikot airstrip with all our baggage was already a great success. Our goal was to climb Ashvin (6,055m) and to explore the Limi Group, a large “blank on the map”with more than 15 peaks over 6,000m. (See AAJ 2015 story f...
On September 30, Mathieu Détrie, Julien Dusserre, Pierre Labbre, and I arrived at our 5,130m base camp below the south side of the Nangpai Gosum peaks. [All three Nangpai Gosum peaks, as designated by the Nepalese government, are still officially ...
We were a team of six students gathered from six different universities, celebrating the 110th anniversary of the Japanese Alpine Club, which supported our expedition. In 2013, I had been a member of the expedition that made the first ascent of Ja...
The southwest ridge of Dhaulagiri (8,167m) descends 3km from the summit to a point where it divides into the south-southwest ridge and southwest pillar. The south-southwest ridge and southwest ridge were climbed in 1978 by Japanese, while the stee...
It took me three years to decide whether to go for a solo attempt on Chobutse (6,686m). I grew up in the Rolwaling Valley, seeing the mountain from my home. Each time I go back it seems so close and attractive, especially the west face, which rema...