James Stone (Clach Liath)

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Volcanic Seven Summits: Defining the Continents

5th December 2020 by James Stone Leave a Comment

Ojos del Salado - a constant on all lists of the Volcanic Seven Summits

I was inspired to write this blog by an essay written by the late Adam Helman (here). A comment made in my blog on Australia’s highest volcano (here) also gave me a push. Adam Helman’s essay discussed the fact that it is quite possible to define the Seven Summits differently from the traditional Bass (Kosciuszko) and Messner (Carstenz) versions. He identified that (depending on which version of “continent” was adopted) there are 12 mountains that qualify as continental summits. So with thanks to Adam Helman, this blog defines the continents in the manner he adopted and lists the Volcanic Seven Summits (or is it 11?)

Definition by tectonic plate

There are seven continental-sized continental plates, though one is largely under water. Asia and Europe are not separate continents in this respect. Therefore, as Adam Helman pointed out, if you treat the Eurasian plate as one continent Mount Elbrus would have no place on any Seven Summits list because Mount Everest is higher.

In the case of the volcanoes, however, Mount Elbrus just exceeds Mount Damavand in height. So Mount Elbrus retains its place in the list with this definition and Damavand is relegated.

Elbrus - one of the volcanic seven summits.  Or does your definition of Continent exclude it?
Elbrus

The Pacific plate is one of the seven continental plates. Therefore the first of the lists includes Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii on this basis.

So lists I-A and I-B look like this (with list I-B excluding the Pacific plate):

List 1-A.
Name of tectonic plateVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricanKilimanjaro
AntarcticMount Sidley
AustralianMount Giluwe
EurasianMount Elbrus
North AmericanPico de Orizaba
PacificMauna Kea
South AmericanOjos del Salado
List I-B.
Name of tectonic plateVolcanic Six Summits
AfricanKilimanjaro
AntarcticMount Sidley
AustralianMount Giluwe
EurasianMount Elbrus
North AmericanPico de Orizaba
South AmericanOjos del Salado
The Pacific plate is omitted.

Definition by Topographic Prominence

I have blogged about topographical prominence. I agree with Adam Helman that “Prominence is an excellent, objective measure of a mountain’s vertical stature“. Therefore the essay explains that a list on this basis would need to include mountains that had saddles at or near to sea-level and are well separated from one another.

Kilimanjaro summit - one of the Volcanic Seven Summits.  It always appears, whatever your definition of continent
Kilimanjaro summit

This approach changes the traditional separation of Asia and Europe. So the Ural mountains are no longer at the divide. Instead the Kuma–Manych Depression is the basis of the divide. Mount Elbrus then reverts to Asia and Mount Etna becomes the European volcano.

List II-A.
ContinentVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaMount Elbrus
EuropeMount Etna
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
OceaniaMount Giluwe
South AmericaOjos del Salado

Definition by continental outline

This definition recognises that Europe exists as a cultural and political concept, but cannot be justified on geographical grounds. Therefore there are only six volcanoes on this list. Mount Etna disappears and Brumlow Top makes its first appearance because Australia (and not Australasia or Oceania) is now the continent.

Brumlow Top summit - not normally regarded as one of the Volcanic Seven Summits
The rather uninspiring summit of Brumlow Top
List III-A.
Continental outlineVolcanic Six Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaMount Elbrus
AustraliaBrumlow Top
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
South AmericaOjos del Salado

Political definition

The concepts of geology and topography do not constrain this definition. Using the essay’s approach the intriguing and extremely remote Mawson Peak on Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean makes an appearance.

Mawson Peak has only had a couple of ascents. It would undoubtedly be the most difficult peak of all those listed here to climb. Not only is it remote, but it also suffers from terrible weather and is still occasionally active. Obtaining the relevant access permits could also be a problem.

There is an article on the first ascent here.

So there are two lists.

List IV-A.
ContinentVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaMount Damavand
AustraliaMawson Peak
EuropeMount Elbrus
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
South AmericaOjos del Salado
List IV-B.
ContinentVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaMount Damavand
AustralasiaMount Giluwe
EuropeMount Elbrus
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
South AmericaOjos del Salado

The cultural definition

Adam Helman points out that the first of the lists below follows the traditional Kosciuszko definition. He next overlays that first list with a political angle. My lists do the same. The distinction then becomes that between Australia and Australasia.

List V-1.
Cultural ContinentVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaDamavand
AustraliaBrumlow Top
EuropeMount Elbrus
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
South AmericaOjos del Salado
List V-B.
Cultural continent with political overlayVolcanic Seven Summits
AfricaKilimanjaro
AntarcticaMount Sidley
AsiaDamavand
AustralasiaMount Giluwe
EuropeMount Elbrus
North AmericaPico de Orizaba
South AmericaOjos del Salado

Conclusion

Therefore the eleven volcanoes that you have to climb in order to complete all of the lists are:

  • Ojos del Salado
  • Kilimanjaro
  • Pico de Orizaba
  • Mount Sidley
  • Mount Elbrus
  • Damavand
  • Mount Giluwe
  • Mauna Kea
  • Mount Etna
  • Mawson Peak
  • Brumlow Top

The first five appear in all of the lists, so there is no doubting their status. Mauna Kea, Mount Etna and Mawson Peak only make fleeting appearances. The others appear and disappear depending on your view as to what constitutes the continent.

So there you are. The Volcanic Seven Summits: define your continents.

Who will be the first to climb all of them?

For more on the Volcanic Seven Summits, please click this link.

Kilimanjaro

24th February 2014 by James Stone Leave a Comment

In February 2014 I went on a trek organised by Jagged Globe to climb Kilimanjaro.  We had a rather “varied” group.  It included three who were doing the trek for charity, three Chinese ladies, a guy from Ireland and myself plus guide Matt Parkes.  Other than Matt, I had the most walking/mountaineering experience.  Indeed most of the group had little such experience but all did well notwithstanding.

Set out below is the text of a trip report I did for Jagged Globe.  It is also on their website.

A successful trip led by the knowledgeable and laid back Matt Parkes supported by an excellent team of local guides almost came off the rails at the outset thanks to a combination of KLM, Atlantic storms and KLM again.  The eight of us plus Matt were originally joining from 5 different locations but KLM were not able to confirm all flights.  So five of the group plus Matt instead assembled at Heathrow at 4am to check in only to find that KLM had cancelled the early morning flight to Amsterdam because of adverse weather and we therefore missed the onward connection to Kilimanjaro.  After much negotiation with KLM, alternative arrangements were made for the outward leg and we were ready to board the flight to Kilimanjaro 24 hours late.  At that point the two Steves and Carol were refused boarding because KLM had overbooked the flight!

So whilst Matt, I and Ying Ying settled in to our flight, the two Steves and Carol were left to rearrange their flights yet again.  They managed to secure a route via Nairobi which got them to Kilimanjaro about 12 hours after we arrived.

On arrival Matt, I and Ying Ying were taken to the Key’s Hotel where we were able to meet up with Ciaran, Lisa and Celine who had managed to get there without any difficulty.  Given our late arrival a decision was made to extend the trip by one day at the end.

The following morning we went back to the airport to pick up the two Steves and Carol and we whisked them straight off to the start of the trek.  We went through the usual formalities, including load weighing, at Londorossi Gate and set off again to the start of the Lemosho route.  Just when we thought things could not go wrong again, we were first delayed 20 minutes by a broken down truck and then forced to walk an additional hour and a half due to the condition of the road up to the start point.  Kili was receiving some unseasonably wet weather.

So we only arrived at Big Tree camp after dark though not before seeing Colobus monkeys crashing through trees and listening to the noise of insects as dusk fell.  The porters did a great job (as was the case throughout the trip) in setting up the tents and producing a meal even though it was then late in the day.  The two Steves and Carol were reeling from the fact that they had not had a chance to pause for breath since their arrival in Tanzania.

Fortunately the rain had kept off, but that was not the case the next day as we transitioned first from the forest to the heather and then to the moorland and then to the beginnings of the alpine desert of the Shira plateau.  Here, late in the day, we first saw our objective covered in swirling grey clouds and abnormal amounts of snow.  The pattern of rain beginning by mid-morning and continuing until mid to late afternoon was to repeat itself over the next three days as we made our way first to Shira 2 camp and thence to Barranco and Karanga.  And this was supposed to be one of the dry seasons!  We certainly felt that the fates were against us.  The climb up over the ground around Lava tower was particularly unpleasant with driving wet snow in a raw wind.

Day 6 and the move to Barafu camp was undertaken in glorious weather preceded by a beautiful sunset the evening before.  Of course, this should have been our summit day.  I certainly looked up enviously at the summit area of Kili thinking that I should have been up there but for the travel delays.  We arrived for lunch and then spent the afternoon festering and preparing for the exertions of the night to come – and hoping that the weather would hold as clouds rolled in during the afternoon.

We need not have worried.  Away by 11.45pm with the Milky Way arching over us and the Southern Cross prominent, we started in chilly but not freezing temperatures.  As ever the instruction was ‘pole, pole’ as we mixed with the strings of other groups also making their summit attempts, the lights from head torches bobbing above and below us.

Gradually the hours went by interspersed by brief stops for refreshment and to answer the call of nature.  In the dark it was not possible to gauge how far one had gone, or how much more there was left to do.  It became a question of will power.  It became very cold and final layers were donned.  A couple of us suffered from waves of nausea and most others from other effects of the altitude.  Only Carol seemed unaffected.  Eventually a thin red line appeared on the eastern horizon and light filtered into the atmosphere.  Stella Point was just above us, tantalisingly close.  At last it came – what a relief!  Another wave of nausea overcame me – the guides were sympathetic and I was revived by some warm, sickly sweet tea.

The final ascent from Stella Point seemed easy in comparison, for me at least.  Carol was already there at the top with one of the guides as I arrived at 7.50am with Ciaran, “big” Steve and Matt closely followed by “little” Steve.  The rest of the team and guides followed soon afterwards.  So the whole team had made it and the weather was perfect.  Views were stunning.  The crater was filled with snow, the plains were spread out below and Mawenzi and Meru peaks stood proud in the sunshine.  Mountains in Kenya were visible to the north.

The obligatory photos were taken and high fives and hugs dispensed.  All too soon it was time to leave.  I dallied behind some of the others taking photo after photo.  At Stella Point I had to take off several layers of clothing because I would have become too warm carrying on.  The descent was a blast and I was back at Barafu in around 2½ hours together with Ciaran.  But the exertion of the climb took its toll on other members of the group and it was another couple of hours before everyone was back at Barafu.  It soon began to rain again!

Once all had had time to be fed and rested we continued down to Millenium camp in short order.  Ethereal mists swirled around and a feeling of contentment settled over the team.  This camp seemed more pleasant than the somewhat damper Mweka camp that we passed through the following day en route to the park gate.  All slept well in the thicker air.

The final day passed in a blur of activity – the walk to the park gate, the giving of thanks and tips to the guide and porter team, the return to the Key’s Hotel for a shower (bliss), repacking and a final meal together and the departure to the airport.  Carol, Lisa and Celine were off on safari adventures.  For the rest of us, KLM could not spoil our return as we went back with Kenya Airways!

My thanks to the JG team who had to manage the difficulties of getting us to and from Tanzania, to fellow team members and to Matt for his patient support to the team.

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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