CRITICAL THINKING

SANITY IS OVERRATED, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN IT SHOULDN’T BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY. NOT ALL ASPECTS OF A PSYCHE RETOOLED BY EXPEDITION CLIMBING ARE HEALTHY, AND MENTAL STATE NEEDS TO BE OBSERVED TO REMAIN PROPORTIONATE AND SYMMETRICAL WITH OFTEN DANGEROUS ENVIRONMENTS. THE OLD POP PSYCHOLOGISTS AFFIRMATION THAT YOU ARE NOT CRAZY IF YOU THINK YOU MIGHT BE IS MEANINGLESS IN ALPINISM, WHERE YOU HAVE ALREADY OVERSTEPPED SO MANY RED FLAGS OF WHAT NORMAL SANITY ALLOWS

OUR GEAR COMES FROM THE BEST IN THE INDUSTRY, COMPANIES THAT PUSH WHAT MATERIALS AND CONSTRUCTION METHODS CAN DO. WE PRESENT THEM WITH ENDLESS BIZARRE AND RADICAL IDEAS TO SOLVE PARTS OF OUR TRIPS, BUT SOMETIMES WE FIND THE LIMITS OF WHAT THEY WILL DO, THEY FIND THE LIMITS OF THEIR PATIENCE WITH US, AND A CONSERVATIVE CLIMBING SCENE – WELL WE FOUND THE LIMITS WITH THAT 20 YEARS AGO. WE CONSIDER ALL THIS A GOOD THING AND A SIGN THAT WE HAVE TO INNOVATE.

WE KNOW THERE ARE A ZILLION CLIMBING BOOKS OUT THERE, BUT THESE ARE THE ONES THAT APPLY TO WHAT WE DO IN CHARACTER AND LOCATION IN BOTH TIME AND GEOGRAPHY. YOU WON’T FIND TOUCHING THE VOID, THE SAVAGE MOUNTAIN OR ANYTHING BY JON KRAKAUER, ANDY KIRKPATRICK OR HERZOG BECAUSE THEY LACK HALF OF WHAT OUR TRIPS ARE CONCERNED WITH, BUT YOU WILL FIND BOOKS THAT LINK THE HISTORY OF CLIMBING WRITING THROUGH MANY CULTURAL EPOCHS, AND BOOKS THAT INFORM ABOUT AN AREA OFTEN LEFT OUT OF POPULAR THINKING.

WE GET SOME STRANGE EMAILS – THE WEIRDER THE BETTER WE SAY – AND COUNT SEEING “ARE YOU SATANISTS?” IN THE SUBJECT BAR AS BEING RIGHT UP THERE, ALONG WITH EMAILS FROM THE BAND IRON MAIDEN AND THREATS OF LEGAL ACTION FROM AN INDUSTRY WHOSE BAD PRACTICES WE WON’T BE SILENT ON. NOW IT’S NOT UP TO US TO DIVULGE THE NATURE THE ENQUIRY (IT’S NOT WHAT YOU EXPECT), BUT IT RAISED THE RESPECTABLE QUESTION OF WHAT EXACTLY FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS BELIEVES AND ADVOCATES.

FOR US, AT ALTITUDE, PAIRED WITH A HYBRID BOOT THIS IS A BIG DEAL, WHERE TAKING 100g OFF EACH FOOT IS REAL MONEY. THE OLD MILITARY CLICHE THAT ‘A POUND ON YOUR FEET IS WORTH TEN ON YOUR BACK’ MAY OR MAY NOT BE REALISTIC, BUT IF EVEN HALF TRUE THE HARFANG TECHS HAVE THEIR PLACE AS THE NEXT GENERATION OF HIGH ALTITUDE CRAMPONS.

TO YOUNGER CLIMBERS THIS STUFF IS ARCHEOLOGY, RELICS AT BEST, RETRO BOOMER MORE OFTEN. AS IT SHOULD BE. WE OURSELVES KNEW THE ERA, FLOATING AROUND THE PAKISTANI KARAKORAM THE SAME TIME AS THIS, AND REMEMBER FULL WELL THIS EXACT SAME GEAR. OUR POINT IS THINGS HAVE MOVED ON, BUT THAT EVEN THEN HOUSE AND ANDERSON WERE WAY AHEAD OF THE NORMS, AND FEW OTHER ALPINISTS DID AS MUCH WITH SO LITTLE AS THESE TWO. YES IT’S RETRO AND FUNNY TO SEE NOW, BUT WHO AMONG TODAYS EMERGING ALPINISTS WOULD HAVE THE AUDACITY TO COMMIT TO THE RUPAL FACE WITH SUCH A TINY BAG OF BITS? (SOUND OF CRICKETS CHIRPING).

155 DAYS THAT INCLUDES 9 WEEKS IN REMOTE MOUNTAINS, 7 OF THEM AROUND 5000m, 2 WEEKS MID-WINTER IN THE MONGOLIAN GOBI DESERT, 65 NIGHTS IN TENTS AND BIVYS, 7 +5000m PURE ALPINE OBJECTIVES, 97 ESPRESSOS DRUNK, 4 PAIRS OF CRAMPONS WORN OUT, 4300kms DRIVEN, 22 HOTSPRINGS VISITED, 5 TOE NAILS FALLEN OUT AND 43 NEW ROUTES UP TO 7665m RECCED FOR THE FUTURE

IT WAS A GOOD SEASON.

A HIGHCAMPS ESSENCE IS TO BE LIVABLE AND ACTUALLY ON THE ROUTE. UNLIKE A TRADITIONAL CAMP ON A BIG ROUTE WHICH IS ONLY A PLACE TO STAY BETWEEN STAGES OF CLIMBING, A HIGHCAMP NEEDS TO BE SOMEWHERE YOU LIVE ONCE HAVING LEFT THE BASE. THIS MEANS SPACE TO HANG OUT, ACCESS TO BOTH WATER AND THE ROUTE, SHELTER FROM BAD CONDITIONS AND HIGH ENOUGH TO MAINTAIN ACCLIMATION. GOOD HIGHCAMPS MEAN NO RETURNING TO THE BASE, HAVING EVERYTHING NEEDED AS LONG AS THE CLIMB IS ON.

FROM AN EXPEDITION POINT OF VIEW ie MATCHING UP YOUR PLAN WITH YOUR ABILITY, NOTHING TICKS MORE BOXES THAN INTIMATELY KNOWING YOUR ASCENT RATE. NOTE THE WORD ‘INTIMATELY’. THIS MEANS KNOWING THE NUMBERS, DEVELOPING THE ABILITY, USING WHAT YOU KNOW AND EXTRAPOLATING IT ALL TO YOUR OBJECTIVES.

THE BULK OF OUR EXPEDITIONS HAPPEN DURING SOME DEFINITION OF WINTER, FOR NO REASON OTHER THAN IT IS WHAT WORKS. HAVING NO PART IN THE GREATER INDUSTRY THAT SERVES HIGH ALTITUDE CLIMBING, WE ARE NOT SUBJECT TO THE MASS ORGANIZATION OF RESOURCES THAT SET THE SEASONS JUST AS IT DOES FARMING AND WATER SLIDE PARKS. INDEED WE SEE A SIGN OF A FUTURISTIC POSITION AS ONE THAT STEPS AWAY FROM TRADITIONAL SEASONS, BREAKING THE HOLD THAT THEY HAVE ON THINGS LIKE MANUAL LABOR, SUPPLY & DEMAND AND LOGISTICS.