Top Mountaineering Expeditions For Beginners

Outside Magazine's Adventure Adviser has a great post today answering the question: "What are the best beginner-level mountaineering expeditions across the world that a regular, fit trekker can attempt?" Seems like a natural question for fans of the outdoors who are looking to get into high altitude mountaineering for the first time.

And what does the Adviser recommend? His "very subjective" list of the top five mountains for beginners to cut their teeth on.

1. Mount Baker, Washington (10,781 feet)
2. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (19,340 feet)
3. Mount Khuiten, Mongolia (14,350 feet)
4. Mount Elbrus, Russia (18,500 feet)
5. Aconcagua, Argentina (22,840 feet)

Quite a good list, as you have a strong start to the Seven Summits and a couple of other challenging, yet scenic and spectacular climbs. None of these incredibly technical, and the biggest obstacle would be dealing with altitude, but they'll give you some skills that you can take on other climbs, and a taste of what it feels like to get up into the thinner air.

What do you think? Anything that should be added to the list? I was thinking about the 18,491-foot tall Orizaba in Mexico as a possible addition and obviously something like Rainier, at 14,411 feet, which is a popular mountain for potential climbers to cut their teeth.

Any other suggestions?

Climbing For Kids

Steve Sergeant from The Wildebeat posted about Climbing For Kids in the comments section on the Summit For Someone post I made last week, and I've been meaning to follow up on it ever since.

Much like Summit For Someone this is another organization that organizes climbs to raise money for at-risk youth. Sponsored by Bay Area Wilderness Training the Climbing For Kids Organization will send you out some impressive climbs including Rainier, Whitney, Hood, Shasta, and even Mt. Orizaba in Mexico.

The amount of fundraising you'll have to do to join the climbs varies by each mountain, but generally falls into the $3200-$3800 range, with the exception of Orizaba, which clocks in at $7500. For your efforts, you'll get to join one heck of a great adventure and get the satisfaction of knowing that you helped raise money for underprivileged at-risk youth. Oh, and did I mention you'll also get to go home with $1500 worth of gear?

This is another great cause, and one that is well worth your time. If you were already considering one of these climbs in the near future, why not join the group? The gear alone is well worth it.

Special Thanks to Steve for sending this my way. And be sure to check out his WildeBeat Podcast. It's excellent stuff with great tips for backcountry exploration and timely topics ranging from the environment, changing policies in our national parks, and a host of others. I highly recommend it.

Alan Summits Orizaba!

Yesterday morning Alan Arnette released the latest audio dispatch from Mt. Orizaba in Mexico with the excellent news that he had summitted the mountain.

In the dispatch, Alan notes that the final push took only five hours, but was still quite steep and challenging. Orizaba stands 18,695 feet, making in the third tallest mountain in North America, trailing only Denali and Mt. Logan. It is an extinct volcano with a large and impressive crater, and stunning views of the Gulf of Mexico to the East and surrounding mountain ranges to the West.

For Alan, this is his final big climb before heading to Everest this Spring, and it comes just weeks after he topped out on Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America. In this dispatch he comments that the next time we hear his voice, it will be from Everest, as he continues his Road Back to Everest and his efforts to raise money for the Cure Alzheimer's Fund.

I want to extend congratulations to Alan and the rest of the members of his team for bagging another peak. Now just one more to go!

Alan's Off To Mexico

Alan Arnette has barely gotten home from a successful summit on Aconcagua and now he's off to Mexico to climb Orizaba, an 18,880 foot volcano. His latest dispatch announces that he has arrived in Mexico City, and soon he'll be heading out to Tlachichuca, the gateway city to the mountain. If everything goes according to plan, he and his team, will be making their summit bid on Saturday, January 27th.

As you know from reading my post on Alan's adventures, this is the next climb in his Road Back To Everest: Memories Are Everything project. It's the final major tune-up before he returns to the Himalaya in the Spring as he continues his efforts to climb to raise awareness and money for the Cure Alzheimer's Fund. Alan has also announced that he'll be speaking at several fund raising events for that organization in March. You'll be able to catch him in Santa Clara and Palo Alto on March 4th and 5th, and then again at Neptune Mountaineering in Boulder, Colorado on March 13th. He'll be making a presentation with pictures from his various climbs and drumming up support for this very important cause. So, if you're in those areas, be sure to drop by and introduce yourself. I know Alan would love to meet everyone.

Good luck in Mexico Alan. Don't drink the water! ;)

Updates From Alan Arnette!

Alan Arnette has posted some great new updates to his website regarding his ongoing efforts to return to Everest in the Spring of 2008 as he continues to raise awareness for the Cure Alzheimer's Fund.

First up, Alan has posted a recap of his recent Shisha Pangma climb. Shisha is the 14th highest mountain in the World, and the "shortest" of the 8000m peaks, but as Alan states in his post climb notes, that doesn't mean it's not one amazing challenge. Anyone who followed the Fall season on Shisha already knows that the mountain, and the Himalaya in general, were plagued with bad weather this year, with unusually high amounts of snow. Only two climbers managed to summit the mountain, but Alan considers his trip a success none the less, with some great training and preparation for Everest.

Next up for Alan on his Road Back To Everest: Memories Are Everything tour is Mt. Orizaba is Mexico. At 18,800 feet, Orizaba is the third highest mountain in North America, and he'll go there in January with friends for another training climb. However, that won't be the last climb he'll make before returning to Everest, as Alan has announced that he'll be climbing Aconcagua again in January as well. He summitted back in 2005, but will return to Argentina again to further his preparations for the Spring. Aconcagua is 22,841 feet tall and is the tallest mountain in the World outside of the Himalaya.

Finally, Alan is also on the verge of announcing a joint project with the Cure Alzheimer's Fund, himself, and several schools that will allow teachers to use his Everest climb as a tool in the classroom. The official details haven't been released just yet, but if you're an educator looking for the opportunity to have your students interact with an Everest climber, you may want to contact Alan ASAP.

The Shisha recap is an excellent read, and Alan always does a good job of describing his adventures. I'm looking forward to reading about the Orizaba and Aconcagua climbs in a few months as well. Keep up the great work Alan. We'll be with you all the way to the summit of Everest.

Alan Arnette: The Road Back To Everest!

Throughout the 2007 Everest Climbing Season I have often recommended that you head over to Alan Arnette's Everest 2007 Page for the latest news, information, and insights. Alan has been on a number of high altitude climbs all over the World, including Everest, and he always has an interesting perspective to share and knowledge of what's happening on the mountain.

Today Alan has made a big annoucement, and he want's to share it with all of us. He intends to return to Everest and go for the summit once more, but this time he's climbing for a cause. You can read all about Alan's Road Back To Everest by clicking here. This is going to be a very personal climb for Alan, as he will be going back to raise money and awareness for Alzheimer's Disease, a devastating condition that his 81 year old mother suffers from.

Alan is still working out the details of how he will conduct fund raising, and he's still looking for someone to donate his proceeds too. He says he is looking for a "promising research project or Doctor and target the funding in a specific and measurable manner" which seems like a perfect apporach for this kind of project. If you know some project or doctor that might fit the description, be sure to send Alan a note as to your suggestions. I'm sure he would appreciate it.

He has set an ambitious climbing schedule to get himself ready for his Everest climb that's for sure. He'll be looking to bag 14 Colorado 14'ers, along with heading to Denali in June, Shisha Pangma later in the year, and Orizaba, an 18,880 foot volcano in Mexico in January of 2008, before heading to Everest next Spring season.

On a personal note, I lost my grandfather to this horrible disease, and it is not something that is easy to watch happen to someone you love. I would follow Alan's preparations for Everest over the coming months with interest anyway, but with this cause, it is certainly something that I'll follow even more closely. This is a personal issue for many of us, and it's something that hits close to home when you've experienced it first hand.

So, Alan, you have nothing but the best of wishes from me. The Adventure Blog will be following your preparations over the coming months and I'll be with you in spirit as you go up Denali, those 14'ers, Shisha, and off to Mexico for Orizaba. And when Everest comes around next year, we'll all be with you. You'll carry the hopes of many people with you. You had better buy a bigger pack.