Welcome
If you hike, climb, trek, ski, run, bike or snowshoe above 8,000 feet, this is the book for you. Here's what I've done for you in this book:
- I've read and digested all of the recent scientific research on high altitude physiology,
- I've read over 130 books by high altitude adventurers and extracted the wisdom and useful techniques,
- and I've applied the lessons I've learned from 30 years of high altitude travel.
I've taken all of this information and laid out the science and art of high altitude in a way that is accessible, interesting, and accurate.
How to use the book
Please click the "About the book" tab above for some suggestions of the different ways in which this book can be used.
My recent misadventures and the book
Given my experiences on Mount Everest in 2009, you might ask why you should take advice from a guy who manages to get both frostbite and hypothermia on Mount Everest? Keep in mind that you're actually taking advice from the hundreds of scientists who conducted the research I've cited and from 100 or so high-altitude travelers who've passed their wisdom on to us through their writings. I just assembled it.
Some of the best information and advice in my book comes from climbers who perished or were seriously injured in the mountains. In over 30 years of climbing, including six Himalayan expeditions, my descent of Everest was the only time that I've required assistance from another party. I think that's a pretty good safety record overall.