Everest has become quite a circus these days. No judgment from me, but seeing the relative chaos makes me think back to quiet days, simple times in the quietude and ephemerality of the mountain, and what's always drawn me there in the first place.

I was reminded today by an old friend, Wibbs Coulson, that it's been 10 years now since Pete McBride and I sat with Wibbs and his friends on the bank at Devprayag (Deva prayāga), shooting for our film Holy (un)Holy River (Amazon or Vimeo). Devprayag is a special place. In the foothills of the Garhwal […]

Well, it wasn’t A-23, but it was the remnants of another massive iceberg, A-38B. It was October 2004, and Dave Hahn, Dierdre Galbraith, and I had just finished leading our nine clients on a Shackleton crossing of South Georgia. We were back on the ship, guide hats replaced by tourist coats, guests of Lindblad Expeditions […]

It was, without doubt, a stunning morning on Mount Everest. Perhaps even perfect. No wind, bright sun, an impossibly blue sky. The only issue was I was in the Khumbu Icefall. Not that the Icefall is all bad - it isn’t. It’s immensely interesting, engaging, from the audible creaks and pops and groans of ice […]