Category: CRITICAL THINKING
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WHERE NEXT? 6000m FIRST ASCENT EXPEDITIONS
THE LAST TWO SEASONS HAS SEEN A PSEUDO-REVOLUTION IN HIMALAYAN CLIMBING, WITH A MODEST SURGE OF ATTEMPTS OF NON-MAINSTREAM 6000m PEAKS BY MODESTLY SUPPORTED COMMERCIAL TEAMS. SUMMIT SUCCESS IS MIDDLING - WHICH WE THINK IS FINE - AND THE HIGH ALTITUDE TABLOIDS ARE FINDING A RARE DISTRACTION FROM THE REALITY SHOWS THAT 8000m HAVE BECOME.…
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EXPEDITION COFFEE ROASTS. THE RIGHT BUZZ IN THE RIGHT PLACES
FROM 2025 ALL OUR EXPEDITIONS WILL HAVE UNIQUE BEAN ROASTS, EITHER FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS OWN WICKEDEST ESPRESSO IN THE WORLD! BEANS, OR SOMETHING DONE TO THE TEAMS OWN REQUEST. IS THIS THE FINAL DESCENT INTO THE ABYSS OF HIPSTERISM, FIRST-WORLD PROBLEMS AND THE INANE? WE DON'T THINK SO. IT COULD BE IF WE WERE…
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THERM-IC 8K ULTRA WARM MITTS REVIEW.
YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MANY GOOD GLOVES AND THE EXPENSE IS ALWAYS JUSTIFIED, AND ANYTHING THAT REDUCES THE CHANCE OF ENDING UP WITH FROSTBITE IS MONEY WELL SPENT. SAVE YOUR DOLLARS ELSEWHERE (TITANIUM SPOONS ARE FOR SUCKERS), BECAUSE FAILING ON A $15K TRIP BECAUSE YOU SCROOGED ON GLOVES IS JUST DUMB. IF YOU MUST…
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TOM ROSPABE. IMAGES OF AKSAI QIN.
AKSAI QIN IS A REMOTE AND ALIEN FRONTIER ON THE EDGE OF HABITABILITY, WHERE PEOPLE ARE BARELY RELEVANT, ESPECIALLY IN WINTER WHEN THESE IMAGES WERE TAKEN
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NEVER MIND THE ALPINISM, HERE’S OUR OWN REPLIES
IN FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS PERSPECTIVE, 'PUNK ALPINISM' IS JUST ALPINISM, AND WHAT WE DO IS IN AN UNBROKEN LINE THAT GOES BACK TO CLIMBING'S ORIGINS. LIKE PUNK ROCK, THIS STUFF NEVER WAS MEANT FOR THE MASSES, BEING A SUBCULTURE FOR THE EXPERIMENTAL, THE PRAGMATIC AND THE INDIVIDUAL
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THE NORTH FACE SUMMIT SERIES TORRE EGGER BOOTS REVIEW. 6000m INNOVATION.
THAT MANY BOOTS ARE STILL WED TO THE OLD IDEA OF A RIGID CRAMPON ON A RIGID BOOT WHERE EVERYTHING IS LOCKED INTO IMMOVABLE PLACE, HERE - BY MAKING THE RIGID ELEMENT PRECISE - WE HAVE FREELY ARTICULATING ANKLES ON CRAMPONS THAT HAVE NO RIGID BAR AND THAT CLIMB STEEP STUFF AT EXPEDITION LEVELS. WE…
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NEVER MIND THE ALPINISM, HERE’S TWIGHT & ROLLINS
"The punk ideal is self-knowledge and the alpinist uniquely positioned to test the validity of his or her knowledge and capability. Be honest or get dead." - MARK TWIGHT
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THE NORTH FACE + KAWS MOUNTAIN LIGHT PANTS REVIEW. A RETRODELIC REVIVAL
IF YOU REMEMBER THE 1990s YOU WEREN'T THERE, AND THOUGH MUCH OF THE GEAR OF THE ERA IS BEST LEFT TO THE PAST, THE NORTH FACE WENT AHEAD AND REVAMPED SOME OF THEIR 'CLASSIC ERA' DESIGNS TO APPEAL TO TODAYS HIPSTER MARKET AND ACCIDENTLY NAILED IT FOR EXPEDITION CLIMBERS AS WELL
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FIRST DEGREE FROSTBITE. THE IDIOTS GUIDE TO GETTING IT WRONG
THE MAIN ISSUE WITH FIRST DEGREE FROSTBITE IS LEARNING THE LESSON, BECAUSE ONCE EXPOSED THE RISK OF FUTURE INJURY INCREASES. ANALYSIS OF WHAT LEAD TO IT SHOULD BE THOROUGH AND INCISIVE, AND THE LESSONS HEEDED. THE CLIMBER WHO ALLOWS IT TO HAPPEN TWICE NEEDS TO APPRAISE THEIR MINDSET AND FACE THE GAPS IN THEIR BEHAVIOUR,…
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VISAS FOR EXPEDITIONS IN CHINA. DO YOU NEED ONE?
ONCE ISSUED, IMMIGRATION ENTERING CHINA IS EASY, AND THIS SAME VISA WILL SEE YOU THROUGH ANY CHECKPOINTS, HOTEL BOOKING AND PERMIT CHECKS THAT ARE COMMON IN THE SENSITIVE AND REMOTE AREAS WE USUALLY CLIMB IN. CHINA VISAS COVER THE ENTIRE COUNTRY, WHICH MEANS XINJIANG AND TIBET ARE PART OF THAT, NEEDING NO SPECIAL ADDITIONS TO…
