Pamir Mountains. The yearly Soviet International Mountaineering Camps have become more and more popular. Last summer climbers from 18 countries participated, 45 climbers from Switzerland, 42 from the USA and 34 from Bulgaria. High quality routes a...
Monte Sarmiento, Tierra del Fuego. An Italian expedition under leadership of 74-year-old Padre Alberto M. de Agostini climbed Monte Sarmiento, the highest point in Tierra del Fuego and the goal of Sir Martin Conway, in 1898, and of Padre de Agosti...
Pik Pobedy Massif Traverse, Tien Shan. Continuing the training for the great Kangchenjunga traverse, planned for the spring of 1989, in August a Soviet team completed the whole traverse of the Pik Pobedy massif. The 26-member party was divided int...
Dorje Lhakpa, Winter Attempt and Tragedy. Before this season, all climbs on Dorje Lhakpa (6966 meters, 22,854 feet) had been made on its west ridge, and seven of the ten previous ascents had been successful. Greg Collum and I planned to make an at...
I first saw Janak in 2000, when I led an expedition of 10 young alpinists to the Himalaya. One of our goals was Janak Chuli, but, having arrived in Nepal, we discovered the mountain was still not on the list of allowed peaks. After Andrej Markovic...
Lost Lhasa: Heinrich Harrer’s Tibet. Heinrich Harrer. Abrams, New York, 1992. 200 pages, 200 black-and-white illustrations. $39.95.Heinrich Harrer was an impatient young man. As he put it: “I was highly ambitious; I often thought that if you can b...
Protected on all sides by Shey Phoksundo National Park, the Kanjiroba massif is wild and rarely visited. No trails or trekking itineraries go near it, but many summits are open for climbers, and currently permits are free. The route from Surket to...
Oregon, Mt. Hood—On June 20, there was a regularly scheduled Explorer Scout Climb of the South side of Mt. Hood. Co-leaders were John McCloskey and Amos Smelser, both Mazamas. The party consisted of 32 boys and 16 adults. Four of the boys stayed a...
Lobuje West, southwest face, Korean Direct. A six-man Korean team comprising Kang Sung-woo (leader), Ahn Chi-young, Gwon Jung-hyo, Lee Tae-gyun, Eddy Park-Jun, and I made the first ascent of 6,145m West Lobuje’s southwest face on April 16. The wea...
Mount McKinley, Wickersham Wall, Second Ascent of the Canadian Route. On May 5, Rick Wyatt, Evelyn Lees, Kelly McKean and I departed from the Kahiltna Landing Base, bound for the north of McKinley to attempt an alpine- style ascent of the Canadian...
CEREBRAL AND PULMONARY EDEMAYukon Territory, Mt. Logan, East RidgeOn July 16, 1980, Kluane Park Headquarters received word that one member of a four-man party required evacuation from the 12,500-foot level on the east ridge. Michael Kowalski had d...
On May 12 Malcolm Daly (43) and Jim Donini (57) of Boulder, Colorado flew onto the Tokositna Glacier at 7,500 feet to attempt a new route on Mount Hunter (14,573 feet). The Colorado team spotted a potential route on Thunder Mountain (10,970 feet)—...
Ama Dablam, northeast face to north ridge, new route attempt. A Corean Alpine Club expedition led by Cho Yu-dong, with Cha Gyeong-ryeol, Choi Dong-ryeol, Choi Young-sik, Jang Byeongwook, Kim Dong-gyu, Park Seok-hee, and Yang Byeong-ok, reached bas...
Hell’s GateNear Kenyas largest city, huge hexagonal columns provide lonely jamming and loads of potentialAlex FiksmanRising from the Rift Valley floor less than 100 kilometers from Nairobi is one of Kenya’s most spectacular climbing areas, Hell’s ...
Deep South Section. The Deep South Section had an active inaugural year, with our members taking a stance in the climbing and conservation communities throughout the southeast. Our Section covers Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, and Louisia...
Manaslu, Ascent and Tragedy. Japanese Masatsugu Konishi gained the summit of Manaslu on September 30 with two teammates from their party of five Japanese climbers and five climbing Sherpas. They had made a late start for the summit because of stro...
Triumph and Tragedy: the Life of Edward Whymper. Emil Henry. Matador (U.K.), 2011. 428 pages. B&W Sketches taken from Whymper’s published works. Hardcover. $29.95There are two justifications for a new account of a historical figure marbleized ...
Ursa Major, Midnight Watch, New Route. Ben DeMenech, John Millar, and I explored Gibbs Fjord near Clyde River on Baffin Island in May. With the help of our Inuit friends, Ilkoo and Jake of Quillikkut Outfitters, the trip in was an easy 12 hours. W...
On Thin Ice: Alpine Climbs in the Americas, Asia and the Himalaya.Mick Fowler. Foreword by Chris Bonington. London: Bâton Wicks, 2005. Hardcover. 24 pages of color photographs; 18 MAPS/DIAGRAMS. 224 PAGES. £18.99. $45-00.This, Fowlers second book ...
East McMillan Spire, Come over to the Dark Side. Under fine weather Erik Johnson and I spent two days approaching East McMillan Spire, and then one tentbound in the rain. On day four the skies cleared as we traversed the remnants of the McMillan C...