Video: Climbing Link Sar - A Remote Peak in Pakistan

Last summer, climbers Andy Houseman and Jon Griffith traveled to the Karakoram in Pakistan to attempt a 7041 meter (23,100 ft) unclimbed peak known as Link Sar. The mountain gave them the biggest challenge of their life, testing their resolve and considerable skills along the way. You can see how this expedition unfolded in this fantastic video that comes our way courtesy of The North Face.

Video: Meet the Man Behind the Most Grueling Footrace on Earth

The Barkley Marathons is considered one of the toughest races on the planet. How tough you ask? Consider this. Since the race's inception back in 1986 only 14 people have managed to actually finish it. This video introduces us to Gary "Laz" Cantrell, the man who created this grueling endurance challenge that sends runners out on an incredibly demanding course where they have to complete 5 laps of a 20-mile (32 km) route in under 60 hours. Find out more about the race and Laz himself in this video profile.

How Kilian Jornet Plans to Set a Speed Record on Everest

One of the expeditions to Everest that we'll be watching very closely this year is Kilian Jornet's attempt to set a new speed record on Everest. As an amazing mountain runner, Kilian has already set records for fast ascents of Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn, Denali, and Aconcagua, but now he's taking his considerable skills to the Himalaya where he hopes to go to the summit of the tallest mountain on the planet in record time.

Recently the Spaniard sat down with Men's Journal to talk about his upcoming adventure. In that interview, Kilian talked about what he learned last year on Everest when the April 25 earthquake hit Nepal, bringing an abrupt end to the climbing seasons. He also talks about his biggest concerns for his upcoming return to the mountain, the gear he'll take with him on the summit attempt, and more.

Probably of the most interest to readers is Kilian's game plan for the upcoming expedition. He'll be climbing from the North Side of the mountain in Tibet, and hopes to ascend via either the Horbein or Norton couloir depending on conditions. He'll scout out the route ahead of time, and spend some time acclimatizing before making the attempt, with altitude and safety being amongst his biggest concerns.  As you would expect, he'll be going as fast and light as possible, and make the ascent without bottled oxygen.

As of this writing, Kilian has not left for the Himalaya yet, so it is unclear when he'll set out for Everest. Speculation has him traveling to Tibet this spring to attempt his climb, but in the Men's Journal interview Jornet says that he will be going at the end of the summer, which would indicate he's planning a fall attempt on the speed record. According to his social media, the ultrarunner is still in Europe, but he still has plenty of time to set out for the mountain and get ready for a late season summit attempt. We'll just have to keep an eye on his plans to see what happens. A lot of people have been waiting for Kilian to take a shot at the Big Hill, and hopefully we'll see him go for it soon.

Winter Climbs 2017: Txikon and Company in Camp 2 on Everest

With Lonnie Dupre abandoning his attempt to summit Mt. Hunter in Alaska this winter, we have one less expedition to follow this season. Still, there are major climbs taking place on Everest and Manaslu that should keep us occupied over the next two months, which is exactly the amount of time remaining until winter comes to an end. That may seem like a long time, but with winter weather often keeping teams stuck in Base Camp for extended periods, those days and weeks can disappear in a hurry. But for now, at least one team is making good progress towards their goal.

It has been about a week since we last had an update from Elisabeth Revol regarding her winter expedition to Manaslu. At the time, she had just arrived in Base Camp and was reporting heavy snow falling on the mountain, with 2.5 meters (8.2 ft) of snow falling in the first half of January alone. But since then there has been no further updates on her team's progress, so we can only presume that things are proceeding, but how well the expedition is unfolding remains a bit of a mystery for now. Hopefully we'll hear something soon.

On the other hand, Alex Txikon has done a good job of keeping us up to date on the progress of his small team on Everest. After completing a route through the Khumbu Icefall last week, the group made its way up to Camp 1 for an acclimatization rotation. After securing a campsite there, and depositing some gear, Alex and his climbing partners – Carlos Rubio and Nurbu Sherpa – descended back to BC for a rest.


Fortunately for them, the weather has been fairly cooperative so far however, so it wasn't too long before they were headed back up the mountain. Yesterday we received word that they had established Camp 2 at 6400 meters (20,997 ft) and have spent the night there as part of the ongoing acclimatization process.

It is possible that if the weather holds, the team will stay at that spot for another night or two, before once again returning to Base Camp. This is all according to plan, and much like an Everest expedition that would take place at any other time of the year. The difference being if the weather does make a shift, Alex and company will probably see incredibly cold temperatures and heavy snow start to fall. How they react to that change in weather, and jus how severe the conditions are, will play a major role in the eventual outcome of the expedition.

Txikon is hoping to summit without the use of supplemental oxygen, something that has happened only one other time during the winter months. If he can pull it off, it will be no small feat, as temperatures will likely be around -60ºF/-51ºC at the top of the mountain when a summit bid finally does come. It is impossible to judge when that might happen, although if they manage to stay on their current schedule, we could see an attempt in about two weeks time. The weather will ultimately dictate the schedule however, so don't count on that happening just yet.

We'll continue to keep an eye on Everest and watch Alex's progress closely. So far, he has to be pretty pleased with how things are proceeding.

Winter Climbs 2016: Soap Opera Continues on Nanga Parbat as International Team Breaks Down Again

There still isn't a lot of news to report from Nanga Parbat. The weather remains awful, and as a result the remaining teams are stuck in Base Camp, waiting for an opportunity to go up. Over the weekend, 15 cm (6 inches) of new snow fell on the mountain, which only adds to the recent accumulations that will make breaking trail challenging once again.

But the ongoing saga of the dispute between Alex Txikon and Daniele Nardi seems to have taken another turn. First, we heard that a rift had come between the two men, and that they would no longer be working together on the attempt to complete the first winter ascent of the mountain. Then, a few days later, we were told that the entire story was blown out of proportion, and that they were continuing to work together. Now comes word once again that Alex and Daniele have gone their separate ways, and it seems that there is bad blood indeed.

Stefan Nestler has been watching the events on Nanga Parbat play out all season long, and posting updates to his Adventure Sports Blog. Over the weekend he shared yet more news from the mountain, not the least of which was a quote from Alex that said “Although tried to give more than one chance to this cooperation, it was finally impossible," indicating that he and Daniele have indeed split.

We know that Txikon and his partner Ali Sadapara are continuing to work with Simone Moro and Tamara Lunger. What Nardi's plans are remain unclear at this time, but as far as I can tell at this point, he is still in BC and possibly planning to make a solo attempt on the summit. We'll just have to wait to see how that unfolds.


Meanwhile, in that same blog post, Nestler shared an interview with Lunger who talks about what the team is doing in Base Camp to stay fit and ready to make a summit push. She also touches on trying to stay patient, why her and Simone's plans have changed, and the conditions they expect to see along the route to the summit.

Lunger is also asked about the rift between Alex and Daniele and simply says "I am, or rather, those who are still here are suffering from these disagreements. A particular person has played a dirty game and now has to live with the consequences."

So, while there has been no progress made towards the summit of the mountain, it seems safe to say that there is plenty of drama taking place. Hopefully the four-some that remain working together will get a chance to summit yet this year. For now though, they continue to play the waiting game in BC.

Video: Skiing the Hardrock 100

The Hardrock 100 is considered one of the toughest ultramarathons on Earth. Held each summer in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, it challenges endurance athletes to cover 100 very tough miles (160 km) as quickly as they can. It is a difficult trail to run, even in the best of conditions, and no one has ever attempted to cross it in the winter. That is, until now. In this short documentary film we join ultrarunner Jason Schlarb as he attempts that very thing. In brutal conditions he sets off to test himself on the Hardrock trail in January, when swirling winds, deep snow, and cold temperatures are at their worst. Does he make it? You'll just have to watch the video below to find out.

Skiing the Hardrock 100 from Schlarb-Wolf Productions on Vimeo.

Video: Stand-Up Paddling the Length of the Mississippi River

A few weeks back I posted a story about British adventurer Kev Brady, who was just about to embark on a 1200 km (800 mile) journey by stand-up paddleboard along the length of the longest river in Sri Lanka and up its coastline, which is expected to take 4 months to complete. But, it turns out that this isn't the only long distance SUP expedition that Kev has undertaken. Back in 2013 and 2014, he also paddled the length of the Mississippi River too, covering some 3781 km (2350 miles) in the process. The video below chronicles that journey, taking us source-to-sea on one of the longest rivers in the world. Quite an adventure indeed.