MOUNTAINS & VOLCANOES

Many of my trips have been to climb or included climbing various mountains and volcanoes around the world.  Some of these took a couple hours, others a couple weeks.  I didn’t always reach the summit, but usually climbed as far as possible and still have enough energy to get down.


 

Aconcagua – Argentina – 6962 meters
The highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere, and my highest summit to date.  Read the journal.
 


 

Adam’s Peak – Sri Lanka – 2237 meters
A sacred peak to three major religions, I was one of about 50,000 who climbed the steps one full-moon night to see Adam’s footprint at the summit shrine.  Read the journal.
 


 

Mt. Blanc – France – 4807 meters
A blizzard and avalanche prevented me from reaching the summit of Mont Blanc, but it is still one of my most memorable experiences.  Read the journal.

 




 

Cayambe Volcano – Ecuador – 5786 meters
Chimborazo –
Ecuador – 6267 meters
Cotopaxi Volcano –
Ecuador – 5897 meters

This was a great trip with Alpine Ascents, which, although I did not reach any of the three summits, provided acclimatization for Aconcagua three weeks later. 

Read the journal.

CHO OYU – Tibet – 8201 meters

I trained for a year to climb the sixth highest mountain in the world, but had difficulty acclimatizing and never made it past 21,000 feet.  The rest of the Alpine Ascents group climbed as high as 23,000 feet, but were turned around by whether.  Read the journal.

 


 

Mt. Elbrus – Russia – 5642 meters
Elbrus is Europe’s highest mountain, which can be daunting even though we rode a chairlift the first 4,000 meters.  Read the journal.


 

Mt. Etna  – Italy – 3315 meters
The day I arrived in Sicily to climb Mt. Etna it erupted.  Read the journal.

 


 

Mt. Fuji – Japan – 3776 meters
This is a beautiful climb with much tradition.  Read the journal.


 

Mt. Halla – South Korea – 1950 meters
South Korea’s highest peak is one way up and one way down.  Not understanding the language, I went up and down backwards.  Read the journal.

 


 
Kala Patthar - Nepal - 5545 meters
Although a ridge of the much larger Pumori, Kala Patthar affords the best views of Mt. Everest.  Read the Journal.

 

Kilimanjaro – Tanzania – 5963 meters
Africa’s highest peak is a long slow slog along a well-worn path.  Read the journal.


 

Kosciuszko – Australia – 2228 meters
Although not very high, Kosciuszko is Australia’s highest mountain, qualifying it as one of the Seven Summits.  Read the journal.

 

Mauna Kea – USA – 4205 meters
There is a road to the summit of Mauna Kea, but the wind almost prevented me from hiking the last few hundred meters to the top of the most prominent cinder cone.  Read the journal.
 

Mt. McKinley – USA – 6194 meters
Denali was my first major climb.  Had I realized how difficult and dangerous it was, I probably would not have attempted it until I had more experience.  Read the journal.
 

Ojos del Salado – Chili – 6880 meters
Ojos is the second highest mountain in South America.  On my Berg Adventures trip we used it to help acclimatize for Aconcagua.  No one in our group was able to summit.  Read the journal.
 


 
Table Mountain – South Africa - 1087 meters
During the month I spent in Capetown, I climbed Table Mountain several times to help get in shape for Kilimanjaro.  Read the journal.

Mt. Vesuvius – Italy – 1281 meters
Interesting from a historic standpoint with a great view of Pompeii.  Read the journal

 

Mt. Washington – USA – 1917 meters
I’ve climbed Mt. Washington several times, initially as training for my Denali attempt and later as part of hiking the Appalachian Trail.  Read the journal.