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Andres Marin on Pitch 4 of Eternal Flame on Nameless Tower. [Photo] Anna Pfaff

Andres Marin makes a fast solo of Great Trango Tower after two other ascents with David Allfrey and Anna Pfaff

Andres Marin recently capped a successful trip to Pakistan with teammates Anna Pfaff and David Allfrey by soloing the American Route on Great Trango Tower (6286m)–base camp (ca. 4000m) to base camp in less than 12 hours–on August 22 after he had climbed that route and Eternal Flame on Nameless Tower (6239m) with his partners between August 12-18. In short, Marin tagged three summits over 6000 meters in the span of 10 days.

Honouring High Places: The Mountain Life of Junko Tabei by Junko Tabei and Helen Y. Rolfe, translated by Yumiko Hiraki and Rieko Holtved. Rocky Mountain Books, 2017. Hardcover, 396 pages, $32.

“Honouring High Places”: A Lifetime of Exploring “Unforgiving Terrain”

“Honouring High Places”–the final book authored by Junko Tabei, who died in 2016 at age 77 and was the first woman to summit Chomolungma (Everest)–is now available and is a finalist for a Banff Book award. Alpinist Assistant Editor Katherine Indermaur writes of the book: “Though there are many lessons to take away from Tabei’s life, perhaps the most important is not just how and what she climbed, but also how and what she accomplished as a mountaineer when she wasn’t climbing….”

A view of Nanda Devi (7816m) from snow camp on Devistan I (6678m) at about 6100 meters. [Photo] Suman Dubey collection

An interview with Suman Dubey about his memories of the 1961 Indian expedition to Nanda Devi

With Alpinist 63 and Part II of the Nanda Devi Mountain Profile now on newsstands, we bring you this interview with Suman Dubey, who became a member of the 1961 Indian expedition to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary in India’s Garhwal Himalaya when he was an undergraduate student in Delhi. Nanda Devi is a sacred peak significant to locals for embodying Hindu Goddess Nanda, and a difficult one for mountaineers due to its being surrounded by a ring of high peaks that make up the Sanctuary’s border.

Stories from Alpinist 59 and 60 are on the long-list for consideration for Best Mountaineering Article at the 2018 Banff Mountain Book Competition.

Two Alpinist stories are finalists for a Banff Mountain Book Competition article award

The annual Banff Mountain Book Competition recently announced the nominees long-listed for recognition in several categories–out of the four articles under consideration for Best Mountaineering Article, two are from Alpinist: Alison Criscitiello’s story from Alpinist 59, titled “Contraindications,” and James Edward Mills’ story from Alpinist 60, “The Force of the Soul: Hugues Beauzile.”

[Photo] Derek Franz collection

Safety Means More than a Good Belay

American Alpine Club President Deanne Buck and Club CEO Phil Powers share their perspective as to why the results of a recent survey about sexual harassment and sexual assault within climbing communities should be taken seriously by everyone.

Tom Frost leads Pitch 29 during the first ascent of the Salathe Wall on El Capitan in 1961. Frost, Chuck Pratt and Royal Robbins completed the climb over nine and a half days. [Photo] Royal Robbins, Tom Frost collection

The passing of two legends: Tom Frost and Jeff Lowe

Yesterday, August 24, was a fateful day for the climbing world, as two of America’s greatest climbing legends and icons passed away–Tom Frost and Jeff Lowe. Frost died of cancer at a hospice center in Oakdale, California, and Lowe died several hours later in Colorado after suffering from a prolonged illness that has been described as an “unknown neurodegenerative process” similar to MS and ALS. Frost was 81 and Lowe was 67. Both men were visionaries and innovators who impacted the philosophy, techniques and standards of difficulty during their respective generations.

Tom Livingstone leading on Latok I during his successful ascent from the north side in which he and Ales Cesen and Luka Strazar climbed three-quarters of the North Ridge before traversing right to reach the south face where they continued to the top. [Photo] Ales Cesen/Luka Strazar

Tom Livingstone recounts the experience of climbing Latok I

Tom Livingstone, Ales Cesen and Luka Strazar recently became the first climbers to summit Latok I (7145m) from the north side, climbing most of the fabled North Ridge before traversing to the south side of the mountain where they continued to the top. Upon returning home, Livingstone shared details about their ascent and what it was like to watch from base camp as the helicopter rescue for Alexander Gukov unfolded. Meanwhile, statements from Gukov after the rescue indicate that he and Sergey Glazunov likely reached a new high point on the North Ridge.