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Books > Sport & Leisure > Sports & outdoor recreation > Active outdoor pursuits > Climbing & mountaineering
From somewhere out in the vast whiteness of the blizzard we hear a cry for help. Instinctively the three of us turn and head across the mountainside. We find two men and a woman, huddled together in the snow, unable to descend the steep icy slope between them and safety. The woman asks if we are experienced in conditions like this. My friends and I have tackled a few winter hills in the Lake District and bumbled up easy rock climbs, but we have never been in a full Scottish winter snowstorm. I laugh and assure her that this is nothing to mountaineers like us. Soon our hills will be empty and one day the last hillwalker will disappear over the horizon. In the 21st century we are losing our connection with the wild, a connection that may never be regained. The Last Hillwalker by bestselling author John D. Burns is a personal story of falling in and out of love with the hills. More than that, it is about rediscovering a deeply felt need in all of us to connect with wild places.
Mt Parnon (Parnonas) in a series of waterproof and tear-resistant hiking maps at scales varying from 1:50,000 to 1:10,000, with a UTM grid for GPS users. Contour interval varies depending on the scale, on most maps it is 20m. Relief shading, spot heights, springs, seasonal streams and, in most titles, landscape/land-use variations, e.g. forests, orchards, or vineyards provide additional information on the terrain. Place names are given in both Greek and Latin script. Local footpaths, hostels and mountain huts are clearly marked. For road users intermediate driving distances and petrol stations are shown. Symbols highlight places of interest, including archaeological sites, churches and monasteries, etc. The maps have a UTM grid and margin ticks for latitude and longitude. Map legend includes English. In this title: a double-sided map, extending from Sparta to the eastern coast. Contours are at 10m intervals. The map has a 1km UTM grid and an index of local villages.
This is the inspirational, motivational story of climber Nick Allen, who went from wheelchair-bound with multiple sclerosis to life in the mountains through sheer determination and grit. This book follows Nicks first faltering steps back into the back country and his decision to set up a trust so other MS sufferers can have outdoor experiences. And it follows his astounding adventure: trekking to base camp at Everest, and at considerable risk to his health conquering the Himalayan peak, Imja Tse.
The Greek island of Samothraki is known for its natural beauty : turquoise waters and breathtaking landscapes, and for its mythology. This 2008 guide unveils yet another facet of the island, its magnificent canyons. English, Greek, French and German text.
Waterproof and tear resistant. Trails marked and illustrated with pictures
The comprehensive guide to the place that brought sport climbing to
North America--
The Sherpas were dead, two more victims of an attempt to scale Mt. Everest. Members of a French climbing expedition, sensitive perhaps about leaving the bodies where they could not be recovered, rolled them off a steep mountain face. One body, however, crashed to a stop near Sherpas on a separate expedition far below. They stared at the frozen corpse, stunned. They said nothing, but an American climber observing the scene interpreted their thoughts: Nobody would throw the body of a white climber off Mt. Everest. For more than a century, climbers from around the world have journ-eyed to test themselves on Everest's treacherous slopes, enlisting the expert aid of the Sherpas who live in the area. Drawing on years of field research in the Himalayas, renowned anthropologist Sherry Ortner presents a compelling account of the evolving relationship between the mountaineers and the Sherpas, a relationship of mutual dependence and cultural conflict played out in an environment of mortal risk. Ortner explores this relationship partly through gripping accounts of expeditions--often in the climbers' own words--ranging from nineteenth-century forays by the British through the historic ascent of Hillary and Tenzing to the disasters described in Jon Krakauer's "Into Thin Air." She reveals the climbers, or "sahibs," to use the Sherpas' phrase, as countercultural romantics, seeking to transcend the vulgarity and materialism of modernity through the rigor and beauty of mountaineering. She shows how climbers' behavior toward the Sherpas has ranged from kindness to cruelty, from cultural sensitivity to derision. Ortner traces the political and economic factors that led the Sherpas to join expeditions and examines the impact of climbing on their traditional culture, religion, and identity. She examines Sherpas' attitude toward death, the implications of the shared masculinity of Sherpas and sahibs, and the relationship between Sherpas and the increasing number of women climbers. Ortner also tackles debates about whether the Sherpas have been "spoiled" by mountaineering and whether climbing itself has been spoiled by commercialism.
Higher than Everest paints an uncompromising portrait of Tendi Sherpa, who has successfully climbed twenty-one mountains over 8,000m, including fourteen ascents of Everest. This young father, part of the elite group of Nepalese guides, embodies the new generation of Sherpas who are taking their destiny into their own hands. In the numerous conferences he holds throughout the world, he never hesitates to denounce the amateurism and obsession of certain people determined to climb Everest, as well as the over-crowding of the sacred Himalayan mountains. As a child, the man who would go on to save many lives on the Roof of the World once dreamed of becoming a monk, and from his years at the monastery, he still retains a deep attachment to Buddhism and its many rituals. Resolutely looking towards the future, but also concerned about respecting the environment and traditions, Tendi regularly returns to the secluded valley of Khembalung, the land of his ancestors, never forgetting where it is he has come from.
Mt Kyllini (Ziria) area of the northern Peloponnese on a light, waterproof and tear-resistant, contoured and GPS compatible map 1:30,000 from Anavasi, overprinted with recommended hiking trails. Coverage, with an overlap between the sides, extends from the coast of the Gulf of Corinth between Messineika / Kamari in the east and Palaria Platanou in the west, inland across the Mt Kyllini to just beyond Lake Stimfalia. All place names are in both Greek and Latin alphabet. The map has contours at 20m intervals plus altitude colouring and spot heights. Within the Mt Kyllini area an overprint highlights hiking trails indicating their waymarking signage, with the accompanying legend showing their length, walking time and change in altitude. Other local paths indicate wide or narrow and well defined or faint trails. Symbols show mountain refuges, gorges suitable for canyoning, historic sites and interesting locations, etc. Road network indicates roads in good or poor condition, and shows distances on main routes. The map has a 1km UTM grid. An index, printed on the detachable map cover, lists both Greek and Latin versions of village names. Map legend includes English.
Longlisted for the 2020 William Hill Sports Book of the Year 'A gripping history' THE ECONOMIST 'The World Beneath Their Feet contains plenty of rollicking stories' THE TIMES 'Gripping' THE SUNDAY TIMES 'So far as adventure stories go, this book is tops.' Winston Groom, author of Forrest Gump '[Ellsworth] recasts the era as a great Himalayan race...[and] it works brilliantly...his account of the 1953 ascent of Everest...feels unusually fresh' THE SUNDAY TIMES 'Like if Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air met Lauren Hillenbrand's Unbroken ... an inviting and engrossing read' SPORTS ILLUSTRATED One of the most compelling international dramas of the 20th century and an unforgettable saga of survival, technological innovation, and breathtaking human physical achievement-all set against the backdrop of a world headed toward war. While tension steadily rose between European powers in the 1930s, a different kind of battle was raging across the Himalayas. Contingents from Great Britain, Nazi Germany, and the United States had set up rival camps at the base of the mountains, all hoping to become recognized as the fastest, strongest, and bravest climbers in the world. Carried on across nearly the entire sweep of the Himalayas, this contest involved not only the greatest mountain climbers of the era, but statesmen and millionaires, world-class athletes and bona fide eccentrics, scientists and generals, obscure villagers and national heroes. Centered in the 1930s, with one brief, shining postwar coda, the contest was a struggle between hidebound traditionalists and unknown innovators, one that featured new techniques and equipment, unbelievable courage and physical achievement, and unparalleled valor. And death. One Himalayan peak alone, Nanga Parbat in Kashmir, claimed twenty-five lives in less than three years. Climbing the Himalayas was the Greatest Generation's moonshot--one shrouded in the onset of war, interrupted by it, and then fully accomplished. A gritty, fascinating history that promises to enrapture fans of Hampton Side, Jon Krakauer, and Laura Hillenbrand, The World Beneath Their Feet brings this forgotten story back to life.
Shortlisted for the 2017 Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature. 'How much risk is worth taking for so beautiful a prize?' The Magician's Glass by award-winning writer Ed Douglas is a collection of eight recent essays on some of the biggest stories and best-known personalities in the world of climbing. In the title essay, he writes about failure on Annapurna III in 1981, one of the boldest attempts in Himalayan mountaineering on one of the most beautiful lines - a line that remains unclimbed to this day. Douglas writes about bitter controversies, like that surrounding Ueli Steck's disputed solo ascent of the south face of Annapurna, the fate of Toni Egger on Cerro Torre in 1959 - when Cesare Maestri claimed the pair had made the first ascent, and the rise and fall of Slovenian ace Tomaz Humar. There are profiles of two stars of the 1980s: the much-loved German Kurt Albert, the father of the 'redpoint', and the enigmatic rock star Patrick Edlinger, a national hero in his native France who lost his way. In Crazy Wisdom, Douglas offers fresh perspectives on the impact mountaineering has on local communities and the role climbers play in the developing world. The final essay explores the relationship between art and alpinism as a way of understanding why it is that people climb mountains.
A study of how Nanga Parbat, the ninth-highest peak on earth, became the German "mountain of the mind." Never has a mountain occupied the German imagination longer and more thoroughly than Nanga Parbat (8,125m), the world's ninth-highest peak, located in the extreme western part of the Himalaya chain in present-day Pakistan. Repeatedly referred to in the 1930s as the German "mountain of destiny," over a period of roughly two decades from 1932 to 1953 Nanga Parbat became not only the destination of six German mountaineering expeditions, but also the quintessential German "mountain of the mind" onto whose slopes German mountaineers, mountaineering officials, politicians, writers, and filmmakers projected some of the most pressing social, political, and cultural concerns of their times.This book is a detailed study of that process: of the initial motivations of post-First World War mountaineers for attempting to scale one of the tallest mountains in the world, of the appropriation of this epic mountaineering challenge by National Socialism, of the reappropriation of the Nanga Parbat project during the early years of the German Federal Republic. And most important - since to date such an approach is almost completely absent from existingstudies of Himalaya mountaineering of this era - it is a study of the means and mechanisms, the texts and contexts employed for communicating these high-altitude mountaineering exploits to the German public and thereby inscribingNanga Parbat into the German imagination. Harald Hoebusch is Associate Professor of German and Associate Chair of the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures at the University of Kentucky.
Full of eccentric characters, Killing Dragons is the story of the first British mountaineers to tackle the Alpine summits of Switzerland during the late eighteenth century. Originally the explorers of this area were poorly equipped, wearing ordinary shoes and no protective clothing. The British arrived intent on reaching every Alpine summit, and 'mountaineering' was born. The title refers to the mythical creatures said to inhabit these peaks: 'Here be dragons,' said the old maps ...
The Ultimate Mountain Trivia Quiz Challenge combines Ralph Storer’s extensive knowledge of mountains with his talent for writing quiz books. As the author of The Ultimate Guide to the Munros, Volumes 1-5, Storer is undeniably an expert in his field. His knowledge and understanding of the Scottish landscape makes this collection of questions a formidable one, even to the most educated reader. Storer’s quiz rounds are far-ranging and diverse, with truly something for everyone. Readers will encounter questions on Gaelic names, literature, history and statistics, making this unique book a thoroughly interesting and informative collection.
For generations of adventurers, from Mallory to Hilary, Norgay to Krakauer, Mount Everest and the world's greatest peaks have provided the ultimate testing ground. But as the public's fascination with mountaineering reaches an all time high, the question remains - why climb? In High Exposure, legendary rock climber, mountaineer and film-maker David Breashears answers with a captivating and intimate look at his life, during which he has scaled many of the world's highest peaks, including two successful ascents of Everest.
What are the rules of etiquette in a bothy full of strangers? How cold, exactly, can a Scottish summer get? And how many cans of beer can a man carry whilst fording a swollen river? Second Man on the Rope tackles all these questions and more, a celebrating Scotland’s mountains come sun, sleet or snow, through the stories of a great climbing partnership. Ranging from the Cairngorms to Glencoe, from Nevis to Knoydart and from the Cuillin to the Cobbler, this book weaves the story of a friendship amongst witty – and often alarming – tales of mountaineering mishaps. These richly entertaining tales will delight all who love the Scottish hills – be they mountaineers, day-outers, Munro-baggers (like the author) or merely armchair ramblers. Written with a wealth of knowledge, this mountaineering classic is a warm and witty celebration of friendship, forged over many years, between the author and his ‘first man’ – Davie. Together they form one of the great double acts of climbing literature. They face with humour and fortitude all that the mountains can pit against them – winter avalanches, raging rivers, rats in bothies and Brummies in baseball boots.
In September 1938 A. Wainwright made a solitary walk through the Pennines. The following year he wrote up an account of this walk, which was eventually published as A Pennine Journey in 1986. This pictorial guide, written by members of the Wainwright Society, is a re-creation of his walk adapted for today's roads and rights-of-way, taking a route that Wainwright might have chosen if he was planning it today.
A New York Times and Wall Street Journal Nonfiction Bestseller! - What happened that night on Dead Mountain?The mystery of Dead Mountain: In February 1959, a group of nine experienced hikers in the Russian Ural Mountains died mysteriously on an elevation known as Dead Mountain. Eerie aspects of the mountain climbing incident-unexplained violent injuries, signs that they cut open and fled the tent without proper clothing or shoes, a strange final photograph taken by one of the hikers, and elevated levels of radiation found on some of their clothes-have led to decades of speculation over the true stories and what really happened. As gripping and bizarre as Hunt for the Skin Walker: This New York Times bestseller, Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident, is a gripping work of literary nonfiction that delves into the untold story of Dead Mountain through unprecedented access to the hikers' own journals and photographs, rarely seen government records, dozens of interviews, and the author's retracing of the hikers' fateful journey in the Russian winter. You'll love this real-life tale: Dead Mountain is a fascinating portrait of young adventurers in the Soviet era, and a skillful interweaving of the hikers' narrative, the investigators' efforts, and the author's investigations. Here for the first time is a historical nonfiction bestseller with the real story of what happened that night on Dead Mountain.
Climbing - Philosophy for Everyone presents a collection of intellectually stimulating new essays that address the philosophical issues relating to risk, ethics, and other aspects of climbing that are of interest to everyone from novice climbers to seasoned mountaineers. * Represents the first collection of essays to exclusively address the many philosophical aspects of climbing * Includes essays that challenge commonly accepted views of climbing and climbing ethics * Written accessibly, this book will appeal to everyone from novice climbers to seasoned mountaineers * Includes a foreword written by Hans Florine * Shortlisted for the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature, 2010 |
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