r/Mountaineering

The Great Himalayan Trail is a massive trekking route that runs across Nepal from east to west. It is not one single trail but a combination of old trekking routes, mountain paths, valleys and high passes. The full route is around 1,750 km long and can take about four to five months to complete. Along the way, trekkers pass through some of the biggest and most remote parts of the Nepal Himalayas.

The journey starts in the east around the Kanchenjunga region and passes through Kanchenjunga Base Camp before heading toward Makalu Base Camp. The route crosses several high passes, including Nango La and Lumbha Sambha. Things get much harder around the Makalu region, where the trail crosses Sherpani Col at about 6,155 metres, West Col at around 6,143 metres and Amphu Labsta at roughly 5,845 metres. These sections involve glaciers, steep snow and ice, crevasses and fixed ropes, so this part is closer to mountaineering than normal trekking.

After crossing the high passes in the east, the route moves toward the Everest and Rolwaling regions. It then reaches Tashi Labsta, a 5,760-metre pass between the Rolwaling and Khumbu valleys. From there it continues through Langtang and the Ruby Valley before crossing Tilman's Pass at more than 5,300 metres. The route keeps going up and down between high mountains and lower valleys, so there is very little time when the trek feels easy.

Further west, the trail enters the Manaslu and Annapurna regions. It crosses Larkya La at around 5,140 metres, with the Manaslu range towering above, and later reaches Thorong La at 5,416 metres. After descending toward Muktinath, the route does not end like a normal trek. Instead, it continues into the much more remote parts of western Nepal.

One of the most isolated sections is Dolpo. The trail crosses a number of high and relatively little-known passes, including Jungben La, Niwas La, Chan La, Jyanta La and Nagdala, several of which are above 5,000 metres. There are fewer settlements here and long stretches where trekkers are completely surrounded by mountains. Finding the route and getting from one remote village to the next can be as challenging as the climbs themselves.

The final part takes the route through far-western Nepal, including Kagmara La and the area around Rara Lake. From there it continues toward the Yari Valley and eventually reaches Hilsa on the Tibetan border. By this stage, a trekker has spent months walking through some of the most remote terrain in the Himalayas, crossing countless valleys, passes and glaciers.

What makes the Great Himalayan Trail so difficult is the combination of distance, altitude and isolation. Some sections are normal mountain trails, while others require crampons, ropes, glacier travel and proper mountaineering experience. It brings together the Kanchenjunga, Makalu, Everest, Manaslu, Annapurna and other major Himalayan regions into one enormous journey across Nepal, making it one of the longest and most demanding trekking expeditions in the world.

https://explorersweb.com/the-great-himalaya-trail-part-i-a-full-traverse-of-nepal/

https://explorersweb.com/the-great-himalayan-traverse-part-ii-rolwaling-to-the-tibetan-border/

A weekend trip up to Mt Barff in Mt Aspiring National Park, New Zealand.

Day one saw us to up to Liverpool Hut. On day two we started at 4am, walking up the snow/icy slopes towards Mt Barff. There is a small unmarked track that leads to the stream that gets you up the slopes.

When we got back to the South East ridge, we followed this to about 2100m before sidling across the south face of the summit, to the South West ridge. From this SW ridge, we climbed up to the top of Mt Barff.

At the summit we waited for about hour, then started walking back down to 2100m, only to find the slopes still too icy for skiing. We ended up doing like five turns before putting our crampons back on. It was a day of walking up and down with our skis...

Still an amazing trip and worth every step 🙌

Hello my dearest friends and archeological enthusiast,

today I hope to give you an insight into a rare piece of human history. Into a archeological site that is neither well-excavated nor robbed. Maybe the distant location or the scorching sun are the factors that let you see this beautiful piece of the ancient world.

If you ever are in Hurghada and you don’t mind a 3 hour car ride from the Egyptian coast of the Red Sea deep into the mountains you might be up for the challenge. The Red Sea Mountains are very special and interesting, especially because of how rarely tourists enter the region. Getting a permit and paying a Bedouin to guide you is the easy part of the journey, opposed to the excruciatingly difficult hikes and climbs that wait for you if you want to visit the place where ancient times are still visible.

If you don’t know what place I’m talking about, it’s Mons Porphyrites or in its current name Gebel Abu Dukhan. I will split this post in 2 sections based on the different interests of people reading them: 1. The History of the site 2. The hike itself.

1. Gebel Abu Dukhan used to be the only legitimate source of imperial purple porphyrite used for special purposes. The purple stone was used almost exclusively by the emperors for special purposes like sarcophagi (Constantine’s Mother Helena), columns, statues. Even Byzantine emperor-heirs were called “porphyrogennetos", born in the purple, after the porphyry-lined room in the palace where they came into the world. The quarry was discovered in the early 1st century AD and was worked for roughly 400 years. Huge blocks were cut high up in the mountains, slid down steep ramps that you can still see today, and then dragged about 150 km across the desert along the Via Porphyrites to the Nile at Qena. From there they went by boat to Alexandria and on to Rome. At the site you can still find the remains of a fort, workers' houses, a temple of Serapis, and half-worked blocks lying exactly where they were abandoned almost 1,600 years ago. The archeological site is well preserved and very untouched. Even today archaeologists come to work on the vast site. There are about 5 main complexes to be noticed. At first when entering the mountain range you can see an old platform for a stable. There the blocks officially left the quarry-region and headed out of the valley into the desert. After about an hour of driving you find a water-well with a few old ruins around them. Before reaching the main and third complex you see many sites where potential houses or working places could have been. At the main complex you find a large Roman fort on an elevated position, many ruins of old Roman houses and a temple, as named earlier the temple of Serapis. The forth site is very small. It’s just one building, that is already in an elevated position about 600m above sea level. It’s there because from the position of the main complex the summit of the mountain and consequently the main quarry aren’t visible, so archaeologists have concluded, that this probably is a light tower, that was meant to alarm the fort/town if something happened on the summit and the other way around. The last site is a rather large village laying about 100m from the summit. You can count about 20 houses along the main pathway to the summit (it’s not really a pathway see hike section). Finally when you reach the top you see the huge blocks of the royal stone. Along the way you can find many things including pottery and pottery shards, porphyrite (a lot of it but please don’t take any), writing in stone even coins can be and were found at the site. I recommend it a lot for all Roman fans if you have any questions let me know down below :)

2. The Hike:
   Calling this a hike is like calling Nero a good emperor. It’s not a hike and if you have never done any scrambling and small hiking this might not be for you. It took us about 4 hours with some breaks and about 20 minutes of photographing time on the summit. To reach the real summit however expect to do some free climbing on a 5 high wall so definitely ask your Bedouin guide for help. Remember that there is no phone service, no mountain rescue and no shelter along the way or even in a proximity. It takes 3 hours by car to drive there. So this is a risky situation, where you are at the mercy of your own abilities. This climb is hard and requires a lot of fighting on the way and dealing with constantly moving stones under your feet. If you take 5 litres of water and some bananas you should do it though. Even though this mountain isn’t very high I’d still say it’s a challenging hike and definitely harder of what you mostly get in Europe (even on higher mountains.) hate me as much as you want, but I first ask you to climb a big pile of pebbles that are constantly moving in 39 degree heat and a 18kg pack because your girlfriend “forgot” her backpack.

Hope you had fun reading and if you ever decide to go too I wish you a nice trip :) v

On July 3, 1953, Austrian mountaineer Hermann Buhl set out alone from Camp V at 6,900 meters during the German-Austrian expedition to Nanga Parbat. He reached the Silver Saddle at 7,450 meters around sunrise and then crossed the enormous plateau above it, which severely drained his strength in the intense heat and still air. After stopping for tea, Buhl made a crucial decision: he abandoned his backpack on the plateau to make himself lighter and continued toward the summit. His companion Otto Kempter, who had followed behind, eventually realized he could not keep up and turned back.

At around 7,800 meters, Buhl reached the col below the summit, with the technically hardest 300 meters still ahead. After an internal struggle, he decided to continue and took Pervitin, a methamphetamine-based stimulant given to him during the expedition. He reached the shoulder at around 6 p.m. and, an hour later, at approximately 7 p.m., became the first person to reach the summit of Nanga Parbat alone and without supplemental oxygen. He spent a short time on the summit taking photographs and planted his ice axe with flags. But by then the sun was setting, and Buhl immediately began his descent.

The descent started and Darkness caught Buhl high on the mountain, and above 8,000 meters his crampon suddenly came loose. He barely managed to catch it, but lost the strap and had to improvise a repair. Eventually, he reached a tiny rocky platform where there was nowhere to sit. With night having fallen, Buhl was forced to spend the next several hours standing and holding himself against the rock. He had no water, no sleeping bag, and little protection from the cold, while his warmer clothing remained in the rucksack he had abandoned far below. From roughly 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. , he remained there in the death zone, unable to properly sleep or rest. The night was remarkably calm and clear, however, and this may have been crucial to his survival. He simply had to remain balanced against the rock and wait for daylight.

When dawn finally came, Buhl resumed his descent, repeatedly stopping to repair his damaged crampon. By now, extreme fatigue, thirst, hunger and frostbite were taking a severe toll. His mind began to play tricks on him, and he experienced perceptual illusions and a dangerous state of apathy. At times he believed other climbers were moving alongside him and advising him in the thin Himalayan air. He eventually staggered across the plateau and found the rucksack he had abandoned earlier. Inside were three more Pervitin tablets, which he took to give himself enough strength to continue. After an ordeal lasting roughly 41 hours from the moment he had first left Camp V, Buhl finally staggered back into camp at 7 p.m. on July 4. His companions had feared he was dead. He had survived the first solo ascent of Nanga Parbat without supplemental oxygen.

https://evilstylequeen.blogspot.com/2018/11/the-neverending-pilgrimage-of-hermann.html

https://www.expeditions-unlimited.com/en/blog/himalayas/1953-hermann-buhl-solo-nanga-parbat-without-oxygen

I have, what I believe, is a proper accessible breakthrough (versions of this exist in academia for research)

What are you looking at? Well this is a comparison of two satelite images and one real time* render

Why does this matter? Winter satelite imagery is incredibly sparse, satellites get a good comp maybe once per month if you’re lucky (and costs THOUSANDS for just a few km) and sometimes outright shit due to cloud cover and snow glare so I built a pipeline that uses real time weather stations + hindcast (not a prediction it uses data from the past, in this case 5 hours old), and then recalibrates with real satellite photos so it can self improve over time.

What’s the gain and what’s my question? While satellite data is maybe once a month if your provider forks the money this is updated HOURLY for a 80% cover accuracy or 24hrs for 97% cover and depth accuracy.

What would you, a backcountry sportsperson need to know/see to be able to trust this as opposed to satellite imagery?

(This is not an ai generated image, it is a geographical and meteorological model)

Summited Ben Nevis! It was a long slog, but definitely worth it for the views at the top.

I’m an ultra runner, and one of my biggest achievements so far has been completing the UTS 100M in Wales, which I absolutely loved. So it was nice to finally summit my first Scottish mountain.

I’m now looking to start heading abroad and getting into some more technical climbs and higher summits, but I also want to be sensible about it and build up gradually.
For those with more experience, does anyone have any recommendations for good mountains or climbs to work towards? Ideally looking for something that would be a good step up from Ben Nevis without jumping straight into anything too serious.

Denali expedition preparation course. February 7-13, 2027 in the La Sal mountains near Moab, Utah.

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