Mountain conquered by teenager
Calum Macintyre is the youngest person to have climbed Ama Dablam, which at 22,525ft (6812m) is five times the height of Ben Nevis. The young mountaineer was raising money for the Teenager Cancer Trust. Calum’s father and sister have both…
The mother of all climbs
Every time I stepped outside my hotel in Zermatt there would be a gaggle of tourists holding up their phones to take a photo. Not of me, annoyingly, but of the big pointy peak rearing up into the heavens. The…
The Faces of Fishtail
I think I was already in love with Machapuchare before I ever visited Nepal. My parents went to Pokhara in 2002, and at the time I was most put out. Since I was a teenager I had had a fascination…
A Guide to Trekking Mount Fitz Roy
With glaciers wrapped around tall dark mountain peaks, and continual wind blowing through fields and forests, Patagonia’s wild landscape may seem daunting and unconquerable. However, trekking Mount Fitz Roy proves to be an exhilarating and perfectly achievable experience for any…
Central Andes Alpine Climbs
One of our favorite trips is our Central Andes Alpine Climbs, a fun, shorter duration 10-day trip on which we climb three classic high altitude peaks in the heart of the Chilean Central Andes. This trip is perfect for those…
Exploring the Cadini di Misurina
After such an epic, wildly-successful first day, we were a little adrift as to what to do for a follow-up. Michele had suggested the Cadini di Misurina — a dense maze of improbably-pointy mountain peaks looming east of town —…
Trekking in the Himalayas: how to do it
Since Nepal’s civil war ended in 2006, the number of trekkers visiting the Everest region has more than doubled to 35,000 a year. At the height of the season, around 60 flights land at Lukla airport each day. The Sherpa…
Snow Climbing Mount Fuji
Climbing Mount Fuji (3776 meters), Japan’s highest and most prominent mountain, can make for lifelong memories. The mountain itself may look more attractive from afar than from close up, but the views on clear days and the experience of climbing…
The Dolomites – Via Ferrata
Located in northern Italy and with a unique mix of Italian and Austrian culture the Dolomites has the highest concentration of via ferrata in the world, boasting some 170 historic routes. The metal wires intespersed with ladders and unlikely suspension…
Climbing in Greece
Once the island of Kalymnos in Greece’s Dodecanese cursed the hand nature had dealt it. Huge rock escarpments line its western coast, overlooking the Aegean. The slopes below, covered in wild oregano, thyme and mint, were good only for goats…
Mount Everest: the view from the top
It feels like the apex of an immense white roof – the point at which three ridges to the top of the world finally meet and you can’t go any higher. Unlike some summits, where mountaineers have to take it…