Climbing area closures
According to the Access Fund, numerous climbing area closures go into effect February 1.
Author: Tom Markiewicz
Winter climbing tips
Jack Roberts, climbing guide and author, has some useful “tech tips” on his site. These include secrets to staying warm and keeping winter fun, preparation for long winter alpine days, and Jack’s twelve golden rules for better leading on ice.
View from the summit of Mt. Everest
If you’ve ever wanted to see the view from the summit of Panoramas.dk site. In addition to Mt. Everest, they have panoramic views of Jungfraujoch of Switzerland, Bishop Creek in the High Sierras, and the
The science of ice for climbers
Anyone who has climbed ice knows how fragile and changing the medium can be. For more insight into the science of ice formation, I recommend this article on how ice climbs form, deform, change, and fall right apart. An excerpt from the author, Will McCarthy: Ice is weird stuff, though climbing it might just be […]
Anderl Heckmair, conqueror of Eiger, dies
The SwissInfo web site reports that Anderl Heckmair died today at age 98. Heckmair led the first team up the north face of the Eiger in 1938. Additional reading: Leader of the first ascent of the north face of the Eiger Anderl Heckmair
Rock climbing grade comparision tables
Always useful if you’re a traveling climber, here are a few rock climbing grade comparison tables from a variety of sources: ABC-of-Rock Climbing.com Willerup.com
Stephen Koch’s attempt to snowboard Everest
The latest edition of Outside Magazine online has an article on Stephen Koch’s attempt to snowboard Everest. Interestingly, I saw him give a slide show at the Mt. Washington Valley Ice Festival several years ago. Even then he was commenting on his plans to summit Everest and then descend by snowboard. Unable to summit last […]
More climbing finger injury information
Judging from the number of hits I’m seeing on my previous finger injury posts, it looks like this is a popular topic. Unfortunately, this likely mirrors how common finger injuries are with climbers. I recently found a site dedicated just to climbing injuries of the shoulders, elbows, and fingers called ClimbingInjuries.com. An informative site, what’s […]
Rope knots instruction, comparisons, and ratings
Dave Root has a comprehensive listing of the most useful rope knots for the average person to know on his web site. Especially interesting is an included chart comparing knot strength ratings.
Old bolts being replaced in Joshua Tree National Park
The American Safe Climbing Association (ASCA) is providing hardware to climbers replacing bolts in Joshua Tree. The Hi-Desert Star reports that while rangers approve of the replacement of bolts for existing routes, new routes are not being bolted. The ASCA also provides a list of the routes rebolted.