Tetnuldi (4,858m, 43°01′52″N, 42°59′35″E), in the Svaneti region, is considered one of the most beautiful, pyramid-shaped mountains of the Caucasus. Situated south of the main frontier ridge, it offers a spectacular panorama, especially of the hig...
Climbing a new line up the most iconic peak of the Caucasus—Ushba (south peak, 4,710m; north, 4,690m)—is a dream for many alpinists. The mountain is famous for being harsh, complex, and dangerous. I remember moments as a teenager cautiously search...
In recent years I have been living between France and the USA, not really spending much time in my native New Zealand. My wife, Julie, is French, and our loose plan was to settle in France when our young son, Sam, started school. At the end of...
Relative to other areas in the Winds, the Cirque of the Moon has seen few climbing parties since the first recorded routes were established in 1978. We were drawn to the promise of seclusion and opportunity to attempt the first free ascent of on...
I first became interested in Little Tahoma Peak (11,130’), a satellite peak on the east side of Mt. Rainier, while talking with Matt Christensen, my stepfather, about his first ascent of the west ridge with Paul Cook in 1980. We found it interesti...
On August 3, Jamey Sellew, Ben Spannuth, and I set off from the Big Sandy trailhead to take a look at the unclimbed southwest face of a formation named Little El Capitan (12,825’). This was my fourth trip into the range, and the previous year I ...
The plan to do a new route on the northeast face of Mt. Hooker first formed in August 2019. That month, my closest friend, Nolan Smythe, and I hiked out from Hooker having done the second free ascent of Original Sin (Birdwell-Huey, 2017; see AAJ...
On the west end of Nagunt Mesa in Kolob Canyons is a prominent subpeak known as Nugget Mesa. The origins of this name stem from a 2000 AAJ report by the late Scott Cosgrove, and it may or may not have been a simple misspelling. Regardless, the n...
In November of 2019 Lane Mathis, Collin Turbert, and I set out to attempt a first ascent of a new route on Nagunt Mesa in Kolob Canyon. After hiking three fully loaded bags almost three miles over rough terrain, including some fifth class, we foun...
On September 29, in early winter conditions, Matias Francis and I climbed what we believe to be a new route on the north face of Peak 10,259' (45.981151, -113.441929) in the Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness. After seeing some recent pictures of the ...
In the spring, Mike Dunn and Matt Ward climbed two new routes in the Canaan Mountain Wilderness, south of Zion National Park. Resurrection of General John Wayne (10 pitches, V 5.9 A3) is located on the southern end of the sprawling west flank of...
Mt. Owen (12,928’) is the second-highest peak in the Teton Range, but it sees minimal ski mountaineering action due to its relatively remote location in the winter and extremely technical nature. The north aspect, most specifically the Northeast...
The Cirque of the Sun is a small hanging valley just south of the Monolith cirque and just north of the Cirque of the Moon. In recent years, several new routes have been done on a large west-and north-facing formation, dubbed Resolute Buttress by ...
The North Norwegian Buttress, part of the northeast face of Mt. Index, showing (1) Jötnar (2,000’, 16 pitches, VI 5.9 A3+), (2) Doorish Route (Pete Doorish, 1980s), and (3) Voodoo Proj (VI 5.10 R A4, Williams-Karner-Strong-Thorpe, 2002). Photo ...
In February 2020, Jacob Dickhausen, Andrew Park, Pasquale Verrastro, and I headed up Spring Canyon, a seldom-visited portion of Zion National Park, east of the Altar of Sacrifice and behind the old Zion History Museum. After hours of bushwhacking ...
An adventure is inherently subjective. Weather, season, linking multiple objectives, and your team's fitness all combine to change the way an adventure plays out and how big you need to go to scratch the itch. This summer, with travel not being an...
In September, Alex Marine and I climbed a line up the pillar that forms the lower northeast ridge of the east subsummit of A Peak (8,634’) in the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness of northwest Montana. We’d been intrigued by the recent impressive ice...
On December 11, I left my home in Red Lodge at noon and took my snow machine to just before the Glacier Lake Trailhead in the Main Fork of Rock Creek. I was intent on scoping an ice line previously climbed by Aaron Mulkey (Splitsville (1,000’, M6)...
On October 3, Ben Hoiness, Dustin Kisner, and I climbed a long new route on the west face of Silver Run Peak (12,542’), about four miles up the West Fork Trail on Rock Creek. Ben and I had attempted the line four years prior and bailed after findi...
In May, Ky Hart and I climbed a probable new route on the north face of Horstmann Peak (10,475’). This huge, striking face, which can be seen from Stanley, is what initially drew us to the area. After hiking in, 750’ of gradually steepening snow...