CRITICAL THINKING

OFTEN WE HARKEN BACK TO THE ERA OF THE 80s BECAUSE IT WAS A TIME WHEN HIGH ALTITUDE CLIMBING WAS STILL RADICAL AND FUELLED BY STRONG IDEAS. BEFORE BEING DILUTED BY THOUSANDS OF TOURISTS, BASECAMPS AT THAT TIME WERE PRESSURE COOKERS OF DIFFERENT NATIONALITIES, CROSS-POLLINATING IDEAS AND LANGUAGES AND WITH IT WAYS AND REASONS TO CLIMB. HISTORY MAKES IT CLEAR THIS CONTRIBUTED TO ARGUABLY THE BIGGEST ADVANCES ALPINISM HAS SEEN, MORE SO CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT MANY TEAMS BARELY SHARED ANY COMMON LANGUAGE. WE CAN’T RETURN TO THAT, NOR SHOULD WE WANT TO, BUT WE CAN BRIDGE THE SHORTFALLS OF TRANSLATION WITH THE AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGY OF TODAY.

IT IS CLEAR THAT MEDIA CHANNELS HIGH ALTITUDE CLIMBING INTO DIFFERENT GROUPS, WHERE THE FORMAT DECIDES WHAT GETS ATTENTION. INSTAGRAM WORKS WELL FOR EVEREST AND K2 BECAUSE THEY LIVE IN THE POPULAR IMAGINATION, BUT AN OBSCURE 7000m PEAK IN CENTRAL ASIA EXCITES A WHOLE OTHER CROWD WHO LIKE SIFTING THROUGH GOOGLE EARTH AND JOURNALS. BOTH DEMAND A DIFFERENT USE OF TIME, MOTIVATION, RESOURCES AND REWARDS TO GET INTO MOTION, THAT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING DICTATES THE OUTCOME.

THIS IS THE BOOK FOR ANY CLIMBER WHO WANTS GET INTO THE ASPECTS OF EXPEDITIONS BEHIND THE CLIMBING, AND INTO THE FUNDAMENTAL LANDSCAPE WHERE CLIMBING TAKES PLACE. IF MCLUHAN WAS RIGHT SAYING THE MEDIUM IS THE MESSAGE, THEN FOLLOWING THE SAME FORMATS TO THE SAME PLACES NEVER WILL PROGRESS ALPINISM, YET NO OTHER BOOK DOCUMENTS HOW TO GET IN AND REFORM THAT. TWIGHT MAY WELL GO INTO THE DETAILS OF ACTUAL CLIMBING, BUT HE SAID NOTHING ABOUT FINDING SOMEWHERE NEW TO DO IT. MO ANTHIONE’S AND DOUG SCOTT’S EXPLOITS SEE GREAT DESCRIPTIONS IN FEEDING THE RAT, FOR SURE, BUT NOTHING GETS SAID ABOUT HOW AND WHY THEY CHOSE THE PLACES THEY WENT TO – OR DIDN’T.

ACTUAL DETAILS WILL HAVE TO WAIT TILL AFTER WINTER, BUT WHAT WE WANTED WAS A SHELTER THAT WOULD COVER 3 CLIMBERS, THAT WEIGHED UNDER 300g, COULD COPE WITH HIMALAYAN STORMS, WAS VISIBLE FROM 5km AWAY, THAT RIGS EASILY AND IS IDIOT-PROOF TO HANDLE, AND COULD BE USED AS A SNOW HAMMOCK BOTH AS ITSELF AND AS INTEGRATED AS THE SHELTER. WE MADE MONEY NO OBJECT, WANTED AS FEW MOVING PARTS AS POSSIBLE, THAT SHARPIES COULD BE USED ON IT, INSISTED ON SOME NEW MATERIALS WE HAVE ARRANGED, AND A WHOLE BUNCH OF MINUTEA WE WEREN’T OPEN TO NEGOTIATE ON.

AND F%#K DID THEY DELIVER.

AS ALWAYS, NONE OF THIS MEANS ANYTHING WITHOUT REAL WORLD USE AND GOING THROUGH THE GRINDER OF RAW EXPERIENCE. ALPINISM HAS DIFFERENT EXPRESSIONS AND DIFFERS BETWEEN HOW IT READS ON PAPER AND HOW IT PLAYS OUT, AND THOUGH WE MAY NOT BE SURE WHAT IT’S DEFINED BY, WE KNOW WHAT IT ISN’T.

FOR HIGH ALTITUDE COOKING & MELTING A LOT OF NOISE IS MADE ABOUT THE STOVE, WHICH THOUGH IMPERATIVE IS ONLY HALF THE SYSTEM. THE BEST STOVE UNDER WRONG POT WILL STILL SEE UNBURNED GAS WASTING AWAY, AND A SYSTEM BURNING INEFFICENTLY WITH YOUR PRECIOUS FUEL.

ABSENCE OF TRADITION WE SEE AS THE BEST WAY FORWARD IN ALPINE CLIMBING, BY SHRUGGING OFF INDUSTRIES AND COMMENTATORS THAT ARE ALL TOO WILLING TO DO THE THINKING FOR YOU. WE THINK THE GREAT TRADITION OF CLIMBING HAS ACTUALLY BEEN THE TRADITION TO CAST OFF THE TRADITIONS OF BEFORE, AND THAT THAT TAKES LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS FOR THE INNOVATION TO PLAY OUT.

DUE TO THE TRADE WAR BETWEEN THE US AND CHINA, AMONG OTHER THINGS THEY HAVE ADDED CHINA TO THE BLACKLIST THAT ALSO INCLUDES THE USUAL SUSPECTS LIKE IRAN, NORTH KOREA AND CUBA AND STRANGELY, INDIA (BUT INTERESTINGLY NOT RUSSIA….). THIS MEANS IF YOUR BEACON OR ALERT DEVICE USES IRIDIUM IT WON’T WORK WHICH IS A MAJOR PLANNING ELEMENT IN ANY TRIP. THOUGH FULL SAT PHONES HAVE BEEN OUTLAWED IN CHINA FOR DECADES, PINGING AND ALERT SYSTEMS HAVE GOT BY IN A SORT OF GREY AREA.

WE PRESENT WHAT WE ALWAYS HAVE, WHICH IS TO PUSH INTO THE FUTURE COMBINING THE BEST OF THE WHAT’S GONE BEFORE AND WHAT’S GOING ON RIGHT NOW. WE SEE EXPEDITION CLIMBING AS A LIVING, BREATHING THING WITH IT’S BEST DAYS AHEAD OF US, AND THE PROBLEMS OF THE INDUSTRY BEING THE SIGNS IT’S TIME TO SHAKE SHIT UP AND LEAVE IT BEHIND.

IN CHINA ‘MOUNTAINS’ IS A VAST THING, ENCOMPASSING AS MUCH AS THE REST OF ASIAS MOUNTAINS PUT TOGETHER. IT GEOGRAPHCALLY COVERS HALF A DOZEN PROVINCES, DOZENS OF ETHNIC GROUPS AND THOUSANDS OF OBJECTIVES, AND TAKES US TO THE BORDERS OF NINE OTHER COUNTRIES. THIS IS NO SMALL OR NICHE THING, AND OUR LITTLE COMPANY COVERS AN AREA ROUGHLY THE SIZE OF EUROPE, MAKING FOR A HUGE PLAYGROUND WITHIN WHICH TO CLIMB