British Tahu Ratum Expedition - Update

Head over to the Expedition Blog now where you can find the latest post from Tom, Luke and Hamish who are currently making their way up the Karakorum Highway.

The British Tatu Ratum Blog

Fault Line Living

The Team: Serena Davies, Tamsin Davies and Adam Whitaker

Mountain Equipment are proud to announce our support of Fault Line Living.

Fault Line Living are recipients of the 2010 'Go Beyond' bursary from The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) and Land Rover. FLL is a 15,000 mile expedition and multi-media project exploring the lives of people living on fault lines. During the expedition the team will be talking to schools, scientists, geologists, residents, and city developers to explore what life is like living on a fault line. They will travel from Iceland, through Denmark, Germany, Italy, Greece, Turkey and Iran exploring what it's really like to live in these danger zones, from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

Expedition Stats:

Start date: 31st July 2010

Estimated distance of proposed route: 15,000 miles

Countries visited along the fault line:
UK – Denmark – Iceland – Denmark – Germany – Italy – Greece – Turkey – Iran

The team will be posting much more information in the next few weeks once they are on the road and will be uploading material on a daily basis.

Check the site which launches this week here

and show your support via the Facebook page here

GORE-TEX® Experience Tour

The GORE-TEX® Experience Tour is aimed at young people all over Europe and based around a dedicated Facebook page. Currently there are four opportunities up for grabs – a wilderness trek with TV presenter, author and outdoors writer Cameron McNeish, the chance to be an expedition reporter as world champion ice climber Ines Papert tackles an unclimbed peak in Kirgistan, three days climbing with Robert Jasper in the Alps and finally, make your own Meindl Island MFS walking boots with the experts at Meindl.

To take part, you'll have to fill in an online application on Facebook, once you've done that, there'll be an online vote by other visitors to the page followed by an evaluation of the candidates by a panel of outdoor experts and the professionals.

Those chosen will not only get an amazing experience with top experts in their fields, but also get the chance to blog about their experiences online.

You can apply for any of the experiences, regardless of where you come from, but the UK's contribution is a chance for two 'young and enthusiastic individuals' to take part in a week-long expedition in the Knoydart peninsular - further details below

Cameron McNeish’s Wilderness Trek – remote living in the wilds of Scotland

Wilderness expert - Cameron McNeish

GORE-TEX® Experience Tour is looking for two young and enthusiastic individuals who are fit, tough, keen to learn, open minded and up for a challenge. The successful candidates will be kitted out with Mountain Equipment's GORE-TEX® gear to take part in a week long expedition where they will discover what remote really means. They will work together under the guidance of Britain’s most experienced adventurer – Cameron McNeish – to learn all the skills they need to live in the wilds of Scotland. They will record their experiences on film and on the last 2 days of the multi day trek they will step out on their own – video camera in hand – and make their own diary of their days and nights alone in Knoydart.

The Challenge

The team will head to the most remote part of Britain known as na Garbh-Chrìochan meaning ‘the rough bounds’. This refers to its harsh terrain and remoteness. It’s that remote that it’s only accessible by boat or on foot – its roads aren’t even connected to the main UK highways!


On the trek, under Cameron’s expert guidance, the team will learn all of the skills they need to survive in the wilderness on their own. They will cook their own meals and sleep under the stars. The challenge is not just about learning new skills; it is about appreciating the outside world and learning to understand the landscape and its environment in an entirely new way.

The chosen individuals, once equipped with the knowledge they need, will ‘go solo’ for 2 days in this amazing landscape and record their experiences to share on their return.

For further details and to apply head to the Facebook page

Hathersage Triathlon

I just missed the Hathersage "Hilly" Triathlon last year and have been looking forward to 2010 since. Not so much that I actually did much training, but then I have been heard offering the opinion that one can do a Sprint Triathlon off a decent base fitness, without much specific training.
So time to put it to the test.

The weather was not inspiring but with swimmers starting from 7.15am I was lucky that by the time I started the rain had all but stopped. The Hathersage Lido is great: heated outdoor pools definitely have a lot to be said for them.
After a very civilised swim- no elbows in the face here- I hauled out and jogged down to the first transition. Here I spent an eternity trying to get an ill advised long sleeved base layer and vest combo on.When it was still raining I had made the call that long sleeves would stop the wind chill on the bike, but hadn't realised in my hypoxic state that a. it wasn't raining anymore and b. it is very hard to get two miss matched close fitting layers over a wet body, in a hurry.

Eventually I was on the bike and heading under the railway bridge and out towards Grindleford and Calver. After overtaking a couple of people early on I was out on the road pretty much alone for most of the rest of the ride. A proper cyclist sped past me on Froggat Hill, but apart from that I was alone on the road, more like a time trial than my previous triathlons. The headwind between Burbage and Surprise View wasn't as bad as I had feared and then it was the descent back down to Hathersage.

At T2 I had another slow change, this time taking the long sleeved top off without taking my vest off first! Thought it would be quicker, until I was nearly immobilised by the fabric wrapping around my shoulders and getting caught on my helmet.

Then, only 6km of hills to run between me and stopping. A flat 1st km or so and then a series of climbs and short flats winding between the bracken and trees until I reached "the ski slope". A speed walk up that madly steep section, left at Lawrencefield and then down hill all the way to the finish. Hammering down the wet slopes was as much about staying upright as going faster.

Swim 420m: 9:15
Bike 20km: 49:49
Run 6km: 34:27
Transitions: 3:26!
Overall: 1:37:01

British Tahu Ratum Expedition - Depart later this week

Tom Ripley, Hamish Dunn and Luke Hunt of The British Tahu Ratum Expedition set out later this week to make their attempt at the first ascent of the NW Ridge of Tahu Ratum, in the Hispar Muztagh region of the Karakorum.

Make sure you head over and sign up to their Facebook show your support and keep up to date with all the latest from the expedition.

Road trip continued....

The amount of snow up high all looked a bit too much like hard work to be honest and the idea of climbing sunny, snow free rock was way more appealing, well we were on holiday after all! Coming off the Lagginhorn in the afternoon we picked up the bivi gear we’d stashed when we got off the lift that morning and headed back down the lift to Saas Grund and drove over to Andermatt with a borrowed guide book to the Salbitschijen.

Six years ago Andy Turner and I had gone up to try the long West Ridge. Unfortunately the weather got the better of us that time but I think the quality of the climbing we did do must have erased the memories of the approach. Either that or the old approach to the bivouac hut has got a lot worse over the last few years and scrambling up a very loose gully with lots of rock fall debris in it we were wishing I’d remembered about it. For future reference, although probably 1.5 hours longer I’d definitely approach the bivouac hut via the Salbit hut and the new bridge (which is pretty cool in its own right).

Approaching the Bivouac hut with the South Ridge in profile (photo - Cat Freeman)

GCK, one of the classics on the 2nd tower of the West ridge wasn’t the pure crack climb we had anticipated, instead following a number of bolted slabs between the cracks, but gave 10 pitches of really good quality 3 star climbing none the less. The next day we walked over the new suspension bridge and around to the 600m South ridge which gave pitch after pitch of endless fun climbing on solid sunny granite ending at the very pointy summit of the Salbitschijen.

Final pitch of GKC

On the South Ridge

Looking back down the South Ridge

With Cat busy working in Saas Grund for the next couple of days I hitched over to Chamonix to get one last day of climbing in with Max and Zoe before a few days of catching up with friends in the valley and driving back to the UK. Looking at the number of cars at the lift station and not quite managing to get up in time for the first cable car we headed over to the Red Pillar on the Blatiere hoping the sun drenched warm rock on the South face of the Aiguille du Midi would have drawn most of the crowds.

The shady, and pretty chilly, west facing rock of the Blatiere was virtually deserted so we racked up below L'Eau Rance d'Arabie. The initial slab felt desperate with numb hands and feet, virtually impossible to feel if the rubber of my boots was sticking to the granite smears. Gradually it warmed up and the climbing got better and better the higher we got. Pitch after pitch of perfect cracks. Max led the final off width pitch in light drizzle with rumbles of thunder echoing off all the walls around us. A rapid abseil decent back down the route deposited us back on the ground just before the full afternoon summer storm started.

Zoe on L'Eau Rance d'Arabie

Max on the penulitmate pitch of L'Eau Rance d'Arabie

Road trip Part 1

I’ve just got back from a few weeks of van life travelling around part of the Alps with Cat. With neither of us having explored the Ecrins before we thought that would be as good a place as any to start so after a slow and leisurely drive down through France we arrived in Briancon. With the forecast not looking too great we headed up to quiet village of Ailefroide to get a few days of slab climbing in between the showers.

Heading round to the other side of the Ecrins we found solid mountain granite on the Aiguille du Dibona. The Soreiller hut is a 2.5 hour walk up from the valley and situated directly below the South face of the Aiguille du Dibona. As well as only being, quite literally, a stone’s throw from the start of the climbing it is run by the two most welcoming and friendliest hut guardians I’ve ever met. Choosing the classic of the face we started up the Madier route following the main central weakness. Two thirds of the way up the route we arrived at the ‘Fissure Madier’, since the loss of a chock stone the guide books have given this pitch a fearsome reputation of unprotected 6b off width climbing. Although it was the crux of the route it didn’t (thankfully!) live up to its reputation, with ample gear and a couple of painful foot jams all that was needed to overcome the short off width section before more good holds came into reach. Cat was soon running up the easier ground and standing on the top before the quick decent down the normal route and back around to the hut and a wet walk back down to the valley as the heavens opened.

(photo - Cat Freeman)

(photo - Cat Freeman)

Unfortunately the heavens didn’t want to close after we got down so with the weather crapping out for the foreseeable future across the whole of the Alps it seemed like there were two options. Hang around in the rain or head to the Provence (via Orpierre) for some relaxed climbing in the sun and obligatory afternoons of wine tasting? Not a hard choice really....



Eventually we persuaded ourselves to leave the laid back atmosphere of the Provence and give the mountains a second chance. Arriving in Saas Grund only to find people hadn’t been exaggerating about how much snow there still was up high. Stepping off the Hohsaas lift with various plans we soon ended up at plan C and salvaged the day with a nice walk up the normal route on the Lagginhorn above a stunning cloud inversion in the valley below.

In praise of weather

The recent hot sunny weather has been very pleasant with several delightful days spent sat in the garden doing nothing, but you can't beat a bit of weather.

On Sunday morning the wind blowing hard outside and mixed skies had me really keen to get out. I was housebound all morning and we were committed to be sociable in the afternoon, but on our way Huddersfield we stopped at the Buckstones for a quick blast.

The wind was howling up the valley and over the boulders at the crest with a force I haven't heard in a while. It was obviously a popular spot for model airplane flyers (collective noun?), but all bar one were huddled behind their vans unwilling to risk their planes to the tumult.

After a quick explore and some easy bouldering I couldn't resist standing on something high with my jacket (Microtherm, perfect for the job), over my head. The wind was strong so deploying the jacket was tricky: get it all ready above head, collapse arms, lean into the wind and at the perfect point snap it open with the noise of a whip crack to catch the wind and hold balance.

The incoming drizzle (is there a word for windblown drizzle? It is really quite different and more impressive than the static kind experienced so often on the streets of Manchester) added to the apocalyptic feel.

Even better: the sun came out again later and the barbecue was great. I do love a bit of sunshine, but life would be terrible if that was all there was.

Kilimanjaro Porter Assistance Project

We’ve just had these photos in from Richard Marsden of The African Walking Company. Working alongside Richard and the work he does with the “Kilimanjaro Porter Assistance Project” we have just donated Mountain Equipment Gore Tex Shells and Down jackets to the porters who work tirelessly on hundreds of expeditions in the region every year.




You can find out more and support the “Kilimanjaro Porter Assistance Project” and the great work they do with Porters and their communitys here

http://www.kiliporters.org/