Category: Logistics
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Carstensz Pyramid Gear List
To climb Carstensz Pyramid right now the only option is trekking. Six days up to base camp from Sugapa Village to the Carstensz Pyramid summit at nearly 4900 meters. Then four days to return to the village. There could be a few days of weather to contend with at base camp. You’ll need enough gear…
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Carstensz Itinerary
Carstensz Pyramid is the highest point of the continent of Oceania. Oceania is the continent used to get Carstensz into the Seven Summits for the Messner list. For the Bass list you would use Kosciousko on Australia. This is a much simpler alternative in almost every way. Orthographic map of the Australasian part of Oceania:…
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Orizaba Mountain Clothing for Upper Body
When Todd and I climbed Orizaba on May 5 2013 it was a pretty warm day with very good conditions. The mountain clothing we were able to wear that day probably won’t reflect average conditions. Previously I discussed the mountain clothing I wore on my lower body during our summit attempt. This time I will…
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Orizaba – The Highest Mountain in Mexico: clothing below the belt
Orizaba, at approximately 18,500′ is the highest mountain in Mexico. I went to climb it with my friend Todd Gilles in March of 2013. It was quite warm, and after only one night at base camp, in our little tent, we went on an acclimatization hike starting at about 10:30 AM. Quite late. We ended…
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Aconcagua Logistics Flights and Visa
The key to Aconcagua logistics is planning before you go. Flying to Mendoza Argentina is relatively painless. I went before in March of 2010 during the earthquake in Chile that closed the Santiago airport. LAN (the airline) was really accommodating to get me back to the states. If you book with American, you’ll most likely…
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Apply for a Russian Visa – August 2012
Things have changed a bit in the last couple years. You sent in your App and Document Package via Fedex to a Russian Consulate with a Certified Check or Money Order, waited some period of time, then it appeared on your desk via a return Fedex envelope. Last year, possibly with the intent of the…
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Elbrus FAQ – Elevations
While preparing for Elbrus, I made a quick Cheat Card to haul with me. I printed it up and laminated it, much like time splits for a marathon, except marker on the forearm won’t work under layers. Here is what I have, in case you’re interested in planning your own trip to Elbrus from the…
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Stuffing a Backpack – Solo Overnight on Snow
I was going on an overnight on Mount Timpanogos and had originally planned on following snow to the top (read the story at the link on this blog). I think hiking and camping solo is an excellent way to work out kinks in your gear and camping skills. You can learn a lot about how…
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Striking Camp – packing up to go home
Did a training overnighter on Timpanogos (a Utah County mountain 11,749′ tall near Provo, UT). Slept on a flat area below an series of avalanche runouts from the cliffs below Pika Cirque. For kicks I did this timelapse video as I took the tent down. Enjoy … I took down the Sierra Designs Baku single-wall…