An Instant of Joy
Legendary South African climber and mountaineer, Andy de Klerk, relates his account of his solo ascent of the Eiger’s infamous North Wall. I took a deep breath as I passed the bronze plaques bolted to the wall just above the bergschrund. Dawn had just broken a thin crack of red on the horizon, and there …
CLIMB! A Guide to High Adventure
Review by Tony Lourens Author: Jacob D NuttallIllustrations: Jacob D NuttallPages: 179 • B&W throughoutDimensions: 15 x 23cmPublisher: Naked Snail Books (self-published via KDP Amazon)Available: Paperback £11.99 and Kindle £4.99ISBN: 978-1739294304 I have read numerous ‘how to’ books on climbing, and in fact have also written one.To be honest, it is hard to be original, …
Jakob Schubert sends Deep Water Soloing’s hardest routes in Mallorca – part 2
The Climbing World Championships in Bern and the great successes Austria’s Jakob Schubert celebrated there have delayed the release of part 2 of the unique DWS premiere in Mallorca a bit, but the impressive images are more worth seeing than ever. Don’t leave the office or the computer today until you have seen this video – cooling down guaranteed!
Black Diamond – Pursuit 30 litre
by Tony Lourens I’m constantly on the lookout for the perfect sized pack, with the right design and features for long multi-pitch rock climbs and single day peak bagging missions, and I think my long search has come to a happy ending. BD’s new 30-litre Pursuit is what I have been looking for, for a …
SA Mountain 86 | Sept-Nov 2023
Read the editorial and check out the contents of the latest issue. With up-to-date news coverage, training articles, gear reviews, celebrity profiles, technical tips covering a wide variety of subjects, event reports, big glossy pics and enthralling articles. Read Online Editorial Does climbing ever leave us? This is an editorial I wrote 10 years ago. …
Honeymooning on Ama Dablam
by Julia Wakeling Bird While debating where we would like to spend our honeymoon, Garrreth excitedly suggested Ama Dablam, a majestic Himalayan mountain. Wholly disbelieving in my ability to climb such an intimidating icy peak, I was not so keen. Just looking at pictures of it terrified me.Very slowly, over time, I came around to …
The Moai – Sacred Site Southeast Tasmania
by Dave Barnes Tasmania is one hell of an Island. Before time was measured, indigenous folk roamed its abundant coast. They called it Lutruwita. More recently, white folk came seeking to build wealth by establishing foreign kingdoms. They called it Van Diemens Land. Today, a smattering of people from every corner of the world call …
Classic Climb – Last Moon
by Paul Fatti Area: Blouberg North Wall, Limpopo ProvinceFirst Ascent: Paul Fatti and Art McGarr, July 1978Route grade: 19Length of route: Approx. 350 metresNumber of pitches: 11Approach: Car to campsite 3 to 4 hours, campsite to climb 1.5 hoursClimbing time: 6 to 8 hours for a party of twoDescent time: 1.5 hoursBest time of year: …
Black Diamond Tradathon 2023
by Garvin Jacobs The 10th edition of the Black Diamond Tradathon finally made its way to the Eastern Cape. Morgan Bay, with its balmy mid-winter days, ample accommodation and incredible sea cliff climbing simply outclassed the other contenders to host this year’s event. Those in the know will tell you it wasn’t an easy choice, …
The North Face Dryzzle Futurelight Jacket (men’s)
by Tony Lourens There are quite a few things that I look for when assessing a rain shell. The most important ones are: it has to be properly waterproof, and it has to be properly breathable. That is a given and no compromise can be entertained. The other almost as important factors are cut and …