Mountaineering

[Henke]

Anyone here into mountaineering?
I've been into adventures and challanges of all kinds for a long time. However, I've not been extremely interested in mountaineering. I could understand why people would risk everything to do it in some ways, but never felt the urge myself.
For the last year or so I've started to become more and more obsessed with it though. I want to start climbing for real.
I have an older brother who's a bit into alpine trekking and climbing, so that's great. This autumn, we'll be taking on Swedens highest peak, Kebnekaise together. At 6,900 feet, I figure it's a pretty good starter mountain

After having talked to lots of mountaineering guys, studied stuff on-line and books, watched documentaries and so on I'm really longing to get out there. I'm sure I can cope with it both physically and mentally. I haven't got a lot of experience with high-altitudes though, but I figure it'll be all right as long as you start of with small mountains and progress from there.

This is probably a good way to go about it:

Kebnekaise - Sweden - 6,900 feet (Highest mountain in Sweden)
Galdhöpiggen - Norway - 8,101 feet (Highest in Scandinavia)
Teide - Tenerife - 12,195 feet (Worlds third highest volcano)
Mont Blanc - France/Italy - 15,774 feet (Highest in Western Europe)
Elbrus - Russia - 18,506 feet (Highest in Europe)
Kilimanjaro - Africa - 19,340 feet (Worlds highest free-standing mountain)
Mount McKinley - Alaska - 20,320 feet (North Americas highest mountain)
Aconcagua - Argentina - 22,841 feet (Highest on the southern hemisphere)
Pumori - Nepal/Tibet - 23,494 feet (The daughter of Everest)
Lhotse - Nepal/China - 27,939 feet (Statistically the safest mountain of the 14 highest)
Mount Everest - Nepal/China - 29,028 feet (Worlds highest mountain)
K2 - Pakistan - 28,251 feet (Arguably the worlds most difficult mountain to summit)

Should we start some kind of betting as to how far down this list I'll go? How many of these will I successefully summit?
Of course, you'd all have to wait a bit to find out the results. I figure I'd give it 25 years or so

So, is anyone else around here into this sort of stuff?

[djm]

Mountaineering is illegal here. The government holds the mountains for the people, so those who claim to be selling mountains are probably confidence artists attempting to commit an act of fraud.

Perhaps we should take a moment here to caution everyone on the board. If someone comes up to you in the street and offers to sell you a mountain, please be aware that it is probably illegal, and that the person is attempting to defraud you of your money. Any on-line offers or sales of mountains on eBay are not to be trusted either.

djm

[lenf]

I think it's a place called Eastern Mountain Sports that used to sell a T-shirt with their motto: Fight Gravity. I used to wear them while in training with a clown troupe. I'm afraid the highest "mountain" I've every climbed was Flattop, near Anchorage, for a solstice festival. You could see Denali from there, though... .

My favorite notion of mountain climbing is an old Far Side cartoon, a guy loaded with ropes and gear just lowering himself into a big hole in the ground as a reporter stands near him with a microphone. The line beneath the cartoon, the "climber's" response to the reporter: "Because it isn't there."

[Tyler]

Mountain climbers have their heads in the clouds....

[Innocent Bystander]

Why do mountaineers rope themselves together?











To stop the sensible ones from going home...

Don't mind me, Henke. I bet you have heard it all before.

[bradhurley]

I've done a lot of what people in the UK and Ireland would call "hill walking," which is sort of "mountaineering-lite"--scaling peaks that can be climbed in a day. But I pretty much only did it in winter, which turned those climbs into more challenging adventures. (I hate climbing mountains in summer...too many bugs, too many people, and too hot!) I've never had to deal with avalanches, but have contended with frostbite, whiteouts, getting lost, climbing down ice-covered mountains with crampons after dark in winter, carrying injured people down off trailless peaks, etc. and it's definitely an adrenaline-booster.

I did most of those hikes in the Adirondacks of New York, the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the Green Mountains of Vermont, although I've also climbed Ben Nevis in Scotland and some smaller mountains in the Cuillins, Hallival peak on the isle of Rhum, and a few others I'm probably forgetting now. If you're looking for adventure, you don't really have to go far -- even a small mountain can be challenging in winter. One of the scariest moments I had was climing Mount Monadnock, supposedly the second-most climbed mountain in the world (after Mt. Fuji in Japan) one winter day about 15 years ago. The day started out cold and clear, but by the time I reached the summit I was in a blizzard, and I was climbing alone (something I never do normally, but since there are always climbers on Monadnock (I've climbed that mountain more than 30 times, including several moonlit hikes on winter nights) I figured if I had trouble someone would come across me. It turned out I was the only one on the mountain that day!). I could hardly see my hand in front of my face, and over the course of the summer vandals had dismantled the cairns that marked the paths back down, so I had to use a compass and bushwhack my way down on rocks that were covered with several inches of ice. I got to my car well after dark. I had food and a survival blanket with me in case I had to spend the night, along with a thermos of hot soup, so I was never really in danger, but one slip on the ice and I probably would have been badly injured...I had crampons but no ropes so had to plan every step very carefully. I could hardly walk for two days afterward!

[EricWingler]

Kilimanjaro - Africa - 19,340 feet (Worlds highest free-standing mountain)

Does this mean that mountains taller than 19,340 feet have supports?

[brewerpaul]

I love hiking in the Adirondacks when I get the chance. I only do day hikes, not the type of mountaineering you're talking about . Still, it sure is beautiful. Here's my favorite: Giant Mt, approx 4600 ft in Keene Valley NY

[peeplj]

I love hiking in the Adirondacks when I get the chance. I only do day hikes, not the type of mountaineering you're talking about . Still, it sure is beautiful. Here's my favorite: Giant Mt, approx 4600 ft in Keene Valley NY

Lovely photograph, and very pretty country.

--James

[Henke]

I don't mind the mountain climber jokes at all. Keep em coming if you've got more. Reminds me of my old racing days when car folks and bike folks would go at it.

Brad, sounds very nice. I think it's probably easy to get caught up with the numbers (elevation, S/F and so on), but in the end it's the experience that counts. I understand why you enjoy winter ascents. I would honestly hate to stand on the summit wearing just a t-shirt, shorts and boots. That would take all the fun out of it. Crowded mountains are absolutely no fun at all eighter and I can't stand bugs.

Eric, I don't know if you figured out the right answer or not, but it means that Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain which is not part of a large mountain range. It sort of stands there all by itself on the tanzanian plains.

And, beautiful picture Paul.

Here are a few pictures from Kebnekaise, the mountain range where Swedens highest peaks are found.


Kaskasapakte (summit - 6703 feet)


Tolpagorni (summit - 5453 feet)


Here's what's called the wolf ridge, the north and south peak of Kebnekaise-mountain itself. The north peak is the peak in the middle of the picture, the south peak is the glacier-covered peak behind it to the left. The north peak is 6880 feet (Swedens highest mountain) and the south peak is about 6916 feet depending on weather and season (it's Swedens highest peak due to the glacier). It does look much smaller than the other mountains in the picture, but the picture is acctually taken from the summit of Tolpagorni (above pic)

All shots are from August, so it's in the hight of summer. It's far up north so there are lots of glaciers in the area. What do you guys think? Beautiful pictures, yes?

[Loren]

Serious mountaineering is far more difficult than it sounds and appears. Best to start with lots of good instruction: rock climbing/rope handling, topographical map reading and navigation, avalanche avoidance, high altitude first aid, self arresting, etc. etc.

A great way to get a taste for what it's really like, and to learn many of the necessary skills to be a safe mountaineer,is to take a month long course like one of the one's listed here: http://www.nols.edu/courses/find/byskil ... kill.shtml



Loren (NOLS graduate, 1978)

[In The Woods]

I love to read about the adventures of mountaineers.

With best regards,

Steve Mack

[DaveM]

I do a lot of climbing in Scotland, all one day stuff. I find myself becoming increasingly more aware of my mortality the older I get.

A sobering reminder to those starting out about the danger (and those who have been doing it so long they take their safety for granted) - Always think safety first. Alway watch where you put your hands on feet, particularly if there's loose rock around. If in doubt, use ropes or turn back. Somebody I know died yesterday, he slipped on a simple but highly exposed pinnacle and fell 100ft to his death.

Dave

[SteveShaw]

I used to think that the Scottish mountains, especially in the north-west, were the most beautiful, along with the hills of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, but then I went to the Picos de Europa in northern Spain.

[Loren]

I do a lot of climbing in Scotland, all one day stuff. I find myself becoming increasingly more aware of my mortality the older I get.

A sobering reminder to those starting out about the danger (and those who have been doing it so long they take their safety for granted) - Always think safety first. Alway watch where you put your hands on feet, particularly if there's loose rock around. If in doubt, use ropes or turn back. Somebody I know died yesterday, he slipped on a simple but highly exposed pinnacle and fell 100ft to his death.

Dave

Sorry to hear about this Dave, unfortunately everyone who is involved in mountaineering, and lives, knows people who have died. Sadly, many folks (particularly those new to the sport) often don't appreciate the risks, until it's too late, and even those who do, are at risk, as one simply can't control everything (like loose rock), the best you can do is get proper training, and then manage your risks.


And as they say, "There are old climbers and there are bold climbers, but there are no old, bold climbers."

Loren