James Stone (Clach Liath)

Mountaineering and the Volcanic Seven Summits

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Deception in Antarctica?

13th November 2020 by James Stone Leave a Comment

Skier in Queen Maud Land

Most Brits (certainly older ones) are familiar with the heroic and ultimately fateful endeavours of Captain Robert Falcon Scott and his team. They lost the race to be the first to the South Pole, beaten by less than 5 weeks by Norwegian, Roald Amundsen’s party. In a sense Amundsen and his party set the first of the long-distance polar records.

Nonetheless Scott was hailed as a hero, at least within the UK. A proud nation erected memorials in his honour, and family members and survivors rewarded. In the eyes of British high society Scott and his team represented the values of the British empire – adventure, daring, bravery, verve and leadership. Reality was different. Although his legacy has since been questioned, the fact remains that exploration and feats of endurance are held up as a matter of national and personal honour.

As more and more of the world has been reached, national endeavour now focusses beyond the earth’s atmosphere. Instead it is now individuals who look for eye-catching adventure, none more so than in Polar regions. The “first”, the “youngest”, the “fastest”, the “whatever” person to achieve an objective transfixes the media and helps find content for it. The media rarely explores how noteworthy each objective really is. It rarely discerns the motivation behind the achievement.

A skier in Queen Maud Land
In Queen Maud Land (c) Christoph Höbenreich

I remember reading media reports earlier this year about the achievement of a so-called record – the first unassisted crossing of Antarctica. A race between an American, Colin O’Brady, and a Brit, Henry Rudd, gripped the tabloids. Two years before their “crossing”, another heroic failure by a Brit had occurred. Then, tragically, Henry Worsley died in a Chilean hospital. He had been taken ill whilst attempting a similar route to that of O’Brady and Rudd. He was just 120 miles or so from completing his crossing when ALE had to rescue him and transport him back to South America. So the “record” remained for the taking.

O’Brady beat Rudd and so “won” the race and set a “world first”. His PR machine went into overdrive. The media and his sponsors feted him. He had achieved “An Impossible First”.

That claim very much diminished much more worthy efforts such as that of Borge Ousland. Borge Ousland’s 1997 solo crossing was almost double the distance of O’Brady’s effort as shown by this map.

Comparing routes across Antarctica for polar record purposes

I then remember reading the article by Damian Gildea on the Explorersweb site, an excoriating critique of O’Brady’s claims. It also summarised the history of long distance travel in Antarctica and how people have sought to define their achievements in aid of glory and commercial gain. You will find the article via this link.

More recently experienced polar guides, Christoph Höbenreich and Eric Philips, have tried to make sense of what is going on. They ask the questions “What is still a pioneering achievement? Something never attempted? A risky adventure at the edge of the impossible? An extreme sporting challenge? And which among them are mock adventures?”. In so doing they seek to develop a classification system to describe what these trips actually involve.

They have published a series of blogs entitled “Circus Antarctica” to explore these issues, the first of which is here.

The blogs are well worth reading. You can then make your own assessment. Is the publicity spun by adventurers to polar regions and are their “polar records” really all that they claim to be? In the first of the blogs there is also a link to a good National Geographic article from earlier this year. This article discusses the O’Brady claims.

Mount Sidley ascents – update 2020

1st February 2020 by James Stone Leave a Comment

Following this season’s ALE trip I am updating the list of those who have climbed Mount Sidley with the Mount Sidley ascents 2020. Another 10 people make the list.

The Sidley 2020 team and aircrew
The Sidley 2020 team and aircrew
(c) Andrew Hughes (used with permission)
 DateNameGroupNationality
1.11/01/1990Bill AtkinsonPanter GroupNew Zealand
2.12/01/1990Bill McIntoshPanter GroupUSA
3.12/01/1990Kurt PanterPanter GroupUSA
21/01/1994Bill McIntosh (second ascent)Dunbar/ McIntoshUSA
4.21/01/1994Nelia DunbarDunbar/ McIntoshUSA
5.21/01/1994Thom WilchDunbar/ McIntoshUSA
6.21/01/1994Tony TeelingDunbar/ McIntoshNew Zealand
7.23/01/2011Scott WoolumsALE #1USA
8.23/01/2011Aleks AbramovALE #1Russia
9.23/01/2011Crina “Coco” PopescuALE #1Romania
10.23/01/2011Mario TrimeriALE #1Italy
11.01/01/2012Mike RobertsRoberts GroupNew Zealand
12.01/01/2012Jennifer ErxlebenRoberts GroupUSA
13.01/01/2012Andrew LloydRoberts GroupUSA
14.01/01/2012John Paul O’DonnellRoberts GroupIreland
15.18/01/2013David HamiltonALE #2UK (Scotland)
16.18/01/2013Vyacheslav AdrovALE #2Russia
17.18/01/2013Paul NicholsonALE #2Canada
18.18/01/2013Olga RumyantsevaALE #2Russia
19.18/01/2013Vitaly SimonovichALE #2Russia
20.28/12/2013Dylan TaylorALE #3USA
21.28/12/2013Ilya BykovALE #3Russia
22.28/12/2013Sophie CairnsALE #3UK (England)/Hong Kong
23.28/12/2013Liana Chabdarova ALE #3Russia
24.28/12/2013Andre FilkovALE #3Russia
25.17/01/2014Francois Michel BernardALE #4France
26.17/01/2014Rob SmithALE #4UK (Northern Ireland)
27.17/01/2014John DodelandeALE #4France
28.17/01/2014Philipp Lehner ALE #4Austria
29.17/01/2014Christian de MarliaveALE #4France
30.17/01/2014Joachim MarteALE #4Austria
31.17/01/2014Jean Frederik PaulsenALE #4Sweden
32.17/01/2014Alexander SvaetichinALE #4Sweden
17/01/2014Scott Woolums (second ascent)ALE #4USA
33.14/01/2017Tre-C DumasALE #5USA
34.14/01/2017Christoph HoebenreichALE #5Austria
35.14/01/2017Dan BullALE #5Australia
36.14/01/2017Jarryd CommerfordALE #5USA/UK (England)
37.14/01/2017Michael GuggolzALE #5Germany
38.14/01/2017Robbi MalandreniotisALE #5UK (England)/Greece
39.14/01/2017James StoneALE #5UK (England)
40.14/01/2018Nate OppALE #6USA
41.14/01/2018Cheryl BartALE #6Australia
42.14/01/2018Nikki BartALE #6Australia
43.14/01/2018Theodore FairhurstALE #6Canada
44.14/01/2018Katie SarahALE #6Australia
45.15/01/2019Fred AlldredgeALE #7USA
46.15/01/2019Maria Paz (Pachi) IbarraALE #7Chile
47.15/01/2019Vladislav LachkarevALE #7Russia
48.15/01/2019Satyarup SiddhantaALE #7India
49.15/01/2019Sándor (Sanya) TóthALE #7Hungary
50.18/01/2020Andrew ChapmanALE #8UK (England)
51.18/01/2020Josh Hoeschen ALE #8USA
52.18/01/2020Vaughan de la HarpeALE #8South Africa
53.18/01/2020Andrew HughesALE #8USA
54.18/01/2020Arthur MarsdenALE #8South Africa
55.18/01/2020Oleg MezentsevALE #8Russia
56.18/01/2020Donald O’ConnorALE #8South Africa
57.18/01/2020David RoskelleyALE #8USA
58.18/01/2020Roxanne VogelALE #8USA
59.18/01/2020Rob WilliamsALE #8South Africa

Note that all dates are logged by reference to UTC (Universal Time Coordinated) where I know the precise summit time. Accordingly elsewhere you may find climbs recorded on different dates. This applies in particular to ALE trips #7 and #8. ALE uses Chilean time which is at UTC -3 hours.

I also list in alphabetical order, first the guides and then the other team members. So this list should not be read as showing who reached the summit first.*

Fewer than 60 people make the list. However this climb is becoming ever more popular with next season’s ALE trip already subject to a waiting list. Do not be surprised if ALE make the decision to run an additional one next year. This reflects the ever growing popularity of the V7S challenge.

This year’s team was led by American guide, Josh Hoeschen, and British guide, Andy Chapman, with eight participants including a four-strong South African contingent. A total of 10 plus aircrew is probably about the largest number the Basler aircraft can manage.

In addition there were three Americans and a Russian. One of the Americans was Roxanne Vogel who, earlier this year, completed the rather remarkable feat of leaving home, climbing Everest and returning home all within 14 days. Adventure-journal published an article about this.

Of the eight clients, five were also Seven Summiters – so a strong team.

High camp on Mount Sidley
Sidley high camp
(c) Dave Roskelley (used with permission)
Final summit push on Mount Sidley
Final summit push
(c) Dave Roskelley (used with permission)
Crater rim on Mount Sidley
The Sidley crater rim
(c) Andrew Hughes (used with permission)

By way of reminder, further background information on Mount Sidley and the Volcanic Seven Summits can be found in this blog.

I will post my list of those who I am aware have climbed the Volcanic Seven Summits in a week or so. Four names will be added. As ever if there is anyone who I have missed I am happy to correct the list.

* I would also say that it does not really matter and it is the getting down that counts….

Mount Sidley summit

19th January 2020 by James Stone Leave a Comment

Congratulations to the 2019/2020 Mount Sidley team who made the summit at around 22.30 UTC on 18th January.

I do not have much in the way of detail at the moment so I will update this blog as and when I do. But from what I can tell the team had good conditions. So the long wait at base camp was worth it.

The team arrived back at top camp at around 01.30 UTC on 19th January. So it was a fairly speedy descent after the almost 8 hours it took to climb the mountain.

Update – 20th January 2020

Andrew Hughes reports “We are all back safely in Union Glacier. What an unbelievable mountain experience Sidley presents all willing to venture to it and explore its heights. ”

The weather they experienced looked fabulous.

Mount sidley crater rim
Sidley crater rim
(c) Andrew Hughes – used with permission

It was around a 10 hour 30 minutes round trip on summit day.

I will post a full list of summiters and update my list of Volcanic Seven Summit completers in the course of the next week or so.

In the meantime here is a picture of this season’s team and the flight crew.

Mount Sidley team and flight crew with the mountain behind them
(c) Andrew Hughes – used with permission

For the previous blog on this trip see here.

Mount Sidley 2019/2020 season – Part 5

18th January 2020 by James Stone Leave a Comment

After 4½ days by the Basler at base camp, the team for the Mount Sidley 2019/2020 season has finally been able to commence its ascent of the mountain.

I have been in touch with Andrew Hughes and he tells me that:

“At long last the weather gods graced us with minimal winds, mostly blue skies, and sunshine after we woke this morning in a thick impenetrable fog.

We left around 3 pm and completed four legs of an hour a piece till we came upon a level perch to place our high camp. Everyone now has delighted in their dehydrated dinners and is tucking in for the night as we have a mammoth day tomorrow to reach the summit with around 4,600 feet of elevation to gain.”

He has kindly sent me this photo of one of the rope teams with the Basler in the background set against the vastness of the Antarctic ice sheet.

The Mount Sidley 2019/2020 leaves the Basler for its climb of the mountain
The Sidley climb begins
(c) Andrew Hughes – used with permission

The top camp being used by this team is in a different location from that used by the previous two teams who started their climbs from the ice sheet. But with the broad open slopes, there is no standard route up the mountain. Therefore there is scope for exploring different approaches to the climb.

Mount Sidley top camp
Sidley top camp
(c) Andrew Hughes – used with permission

1,402m or 4,600ft of climbing to the summit will make it quite a long summit day. Let’s hope that the weather holds good.

If I receive any further photos from this first part of the climb I will post them here.

You can find the previous blog on this trip here.

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Welcome

Thank you for taking the trouble to read this blog.  You can find out more about me by clicking on the “About Me” tab above.

The blog started out just as a mix of mountain climbing and other travel reports interspersed with a few random musings prompted by a trip that I made to Mexico and South America in November and December 2014.  You can find details of that trip using the Tags and the Archive below.

It has since developed into a bit of a resource on the Volcanic Seven Summits or the V7S.  For this the best place to start is probably here.  Comments are welcome!

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  • Volcanic Seven Summits: Defining the Continents
  • Entering the Marilyn Hall of Fame
  • Deception in Antarctica?
  • Will you Dare to Reach?
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