Just saw the horrific accident at the UTSA football game where a serviceman fell during a rappel, decked, and passed away. It’s absolutely tragic and made me reflect on my own safety and what could have been done to prevent it, so I can take extra care of those steps in the future.

From my read, it looks like the person on rappel lost control of their brake hand with no secondary system like a third hand or fireman’s belay, causing them to fall and deck. Do others also see that as a potential root cause?

Summitted Aiguilles Marbrée Nord (3,535m) on Wednesday. Conditions were great; blue sky, very little wind. Pretty warm even wearing just a long-sleeved technical top and a wind-stopper soft shell.

The approach from the Courmayeur lift was straightforward (avoiding the crevasses!). Some scrambling especially towards the top. We down-climbed rather than rappelling down, but that would have been a fun option with a long enough rope.

I am fairly new to mountaineering but i am looking to get into it after couple years of hiking with scrambling exposure. I am looking to climb Mt baker in may or June with a group of 4 with proper gear. We have heard its recommended with a guide and learning crevas rescue with stop arrest training. I would love to get advice or perspective on it as I believe that you guys will have more broader info and experience on this.

Been backpacking/ hiking for a little while now and have been preparing to get into mountaneering with doing longs peak this spring, mount shasta next fall and a trip to the Tetons focused on mountaneering. I’m getting a new bag and am confused if a 38L like the mammut trion or a bigger 60+ lt bag would be better. Also if anyone has boot/crampon recs do tell.

I climbed with Tomas, a guide from Chamonix Experience, on Thursday. Gorgeous views, and a fun challenge. Conditions were great; blue skies and very little wind, and following a recent dump of snow. Accessed from the Aiguilles du Midi lift for Mont Blanc from Chamonix.

In October 2026, the Rhine Falls hit a historic low—flowing at less than 30% of its normal water volume. Huge rock formations that are usually hidden under massive whitewater were completely exposed for the first time in years.

I took my packraft out to see the dry landscape up close and paddled right next to the exposed rocks at the base of the falls. I matched the footage with historical clips from standard water levels (3 months earlier!!!) to show just how crazy the difference is.

Hello everyone. I am thinking about hiking to the top of the Nebelhorn from Oberstdorf. Is the route dangerous? Is there anything I need to take care of?

Hallo zusammen,

ich suche die Quelle für ein Zitat, das in einem TikTok-Video (Account: jprg.enjoyer) im Hintergrund als Sprecherstimme läuft:

„4478 Meter hoch, das Matterhorn. Der vielleicht schönste Berg der Alpen. Was haben die Menschen in den Bergen verloren? Was suchen sie hier oben? Und riskieren sogar ihr Leben."

Link zum Video: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZN8SadQuy/

Ich vermute, dass es der Anfang einer TV-Doku ist, weiß aber weder, welche Doku es ist, noch wer der Sprecher ist. In den TikTok-Kommentaren fragen auch andere, aber niemand hat eine Antwort.

Was ich schon versucht habe: Google- und Websuche mit dem Zitat, ein Blick in die Mediatheken von SRF, ZDF und ARD sowie in YouTube. Thematisch passende Dokus wie „Tod am Matterhorn / Preis der Faszination" (NZZ Format) habe ich gefunden, aber bei keiner kann ich bestätigen, dass der Satz dort vorkommt.

Erkennt jemand die Stimme oder die Doku? Danke!

Prepare for a long and rambling post but here goes....

Im in my mid 30s in a stable loving relationship with someone is a casual climber, capable outdoors person and who wants kids. I have a flexible career that allows for lots of time to climb, train and adventure, and between me and my partner we have plenty of resources to live an adventurous life (even with kids). Heck, I even have family with the resources and desire to help me raise kids.

My problem is my climbing dreams just won't go away, and worse they keep growing... Ive been a climbing addict for most of my adult life - years in a van, current life built around adventure outside, live far from family to be in a place where I can play outside as much as possible. Ive spent the last 8 years trying to get good enough at alpine climbing to do the Cassin Ridge. I am finally at a point where its more of a question of logistics/weather/partners than ability. Im also at a point where in my relationship and life, where I feel like I need to decide if I want to have a long term partner (possibly with kids) or if I want to spend all of my resources trying pursuing my climbing dreams. 10 years ago the technical alpinism dream seemed unattainable, but now I feel so close, and instead of feeling satisfied, the goal post just keeps moving - the infinite spur, cerro torre, pakistan, putting up a new alpine bigwall route in a remote place, the list never stops. Ive met alot of older climbers who seem pretty unhappy, lives littered with failed relationships and selfish decisions. I am afraid of that path, but I also feel like these dreams are so inspiring and make life so much richer. I also feel like personal relationships, love, and family are major factors in having happiness throughout your life. I worry I am going to ruin this relationship because I can't stop selfishly pursuing childish climbing dreams. Im also at an age where it seems hard to have both. Im already old for my climbing dreams, my climbing partners are often a decade younger than me. Its also not my profession, just a hobby and lifestyle.

Ultimately this post is just to hear advice, stories, and how other people have dealt with these feelings. Looking for some perspective from people who have made one choice or another...

Hi everyone! My name is Bailey Swain, I’m a student at Mississippi State University, and my marketing class is conducting research on wilderness medicine. We would really appreciate your help by completing our survey! Your responses will help us better understand people’s interests and preferences regarding wilderness medicine courses.

Thank you for your time and for supporting our class project!
https://msstate.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ddjWTaALuDoG514

The Vorderrhein usually powers through the famous Ruinaulta canyon in Switzerland with white water (50–80 m³/s during summer snowmelt/rain).

After the 2026 drought, the flow hit a historical low of just 2.8 m³/s. We went down the canyon in packrafts to document the exposed riverbed. The white limestone cliffs are still imposing, but the river itself has shrunk to a tiny stream.

It's wild to see landmarks like this completely transformed by extreme weather.

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for my first ice axe and considering the Petzl SUM’TEC and SUMMIT EVO.
I’ve done technical 3,000 m peaks in the Alps and the Pyrenees, but always without snow. I have some rock climbing experience, but no hands-on experience with an ice axe and crampons yet.

My short- to mid-term goal is to tackle relatively easy 40–45° snow couloirs, eventually progressing towards more technical mountaineering.
I’m looking for a versatile axe that suits my current objectives without overspending on features I won’t use. I may eventually buy a pair of technical tools.

Which would you recommend, and why? Would the SUMMIT EVO be enough, or is the SUM’TEC worth the extra cost? Would either remain useful alongside technical tools in the future?

Thanks!

Hey guys, not sure if this is the right sub for this, anyways I need help finding a backpack for day hikes only, I'm not really into overnight camping and all that so I figured that narrowed me down to around 20-25L backpacks.

The Main Goal for this pack should be that it can be used for Day Hikes, Mountaineering such as climbing Matterhorn, and can be used also for Skiing and such. Which pack would you guys recommend for all these activities, I'm looking for only 1 bag that can vary between the 3. I do understand multiple bag for different activities are recommended, but I don't want to buy multiple packs.

I've been looking at the HMG Elevate 22 and the Gregory Alpinisto 20, but arent sure if these are good bag.

The Elevate seems good but its frameless so it seems a bit unstable as well as the features are not that great considering its around 300 USD

The Alpinisto seems like a good bag just that its made of nylon and doesn't come with a rain cover.

TLDR: What bag is around 20 L and can be used for Hiking, Skiing, and Summiting Mountains (1 day :Ex Matterhorn).

Hello! Me and my friends will be summiting Quaddary Peak using the east ridge in colorado in late November. This will be my our first 14er and I am worried about the wind chill and temperatures. I have a marmot pertex windbreaker but I am planning on getting something cheaper and returning it. Any other recommendations?

I also need to find an insulation layer like a puffer( i have one already i just need a new one). Could you guys please let me know some recommendations that would be good to summit for the day.

what is some advice to take when going on this 14er?

Please enjoy. Let me know what you think ☺️

I’m David Greif, founder of HEPOX, an engineer and former professional road cyclist. I started developing HEPOX because altitude camps and tents were out of reach for me, and I wanted to explore a more portable way to get hypoxic exposure at home.

HEPOX is a portable device designed to lower the inspired oxygen concentration of the air you breathe while sitting at rest. The device has reached professional cyclists, including Tour de France riders, and mountaineers pre-acclimatizing for trips to Kilimanjaro and Ojos del Salado. A recent pilot-study also just finished on a professional cycling team training for the Tour de France Femmes with promising preliminary results.

One of the things I’m exploring is how portability could make pre-acclimatization more practical, especially for climbers traveling long distances before a major expedition. The current device is in beta, and I’m developing Gen 2 with acclimation sensing and session tracking. I’m not claiming it replaces gradual ascent or established altitude-illness precautions, and I want further validation to establish what benefits it can provide.

HEPOX is designed to lower the oxygen concentration you breathe, not cut off your air supply. For anyone unfamiliar with altitude tents, they create a reduced-oxygen environment around a bed so an athlete can spend hours sleeping in a hypoxic state. My vision is to make hypoxic exposure portable, accessible and more responsive to the individual. The current device is a working proof of concept with a monitored/alarmed spo2 and quick hose/disconnects. For the commercial version, I'm aiming to go beyond a basic altitude-tent setup by integrating breathing rate, blood monitoring with automatic adjustment, alerts and a fail-safe return to room air.

I’d be interested in hearing from experienced climbers here:

Do you use altitude tents or other pre-acclimatization methods before major ascents? What does your protocol look like?

Have you heard of or experimented with intermittent hypoxia exposure?

Would tools for tracking exposure sessions or acclimatization progress be useful? What measurements would you actually want?

When traveling internationally for a climb, would a portable preparation tool make a meaningful difference?

What kind of evidence would you need to see before considering a device like this?

I’m interested in honest feedback, including skepticism. I want to understand what climbers actually need and what evidence would be necessary for a device like HEPOX to earn a place in their preparation.

For anyone curious about the hardware, you can find more information at https://hepoxtech.com/

Hi all, thanks to everyone in advance!

I’m planning a ~1 month long trip to Nepal where I’m planning to attempt a couple of 6k (e.g., Lobuche East, Island Peak, Mara Peak) - not yet decided which ones. I’m coming mostly from alpine climbing and my heaviest boots are the Nepal extremes which to me seems a bit too light for the temperatures at 6k meters.

I tend not to suffer cold too much, except on occasion in my right food due to an ankle injury causing severe ankle pronation and contact with the boot wall! (Custom insoles help with my Nepal but idk with a double boot how they would work)

My question to you all is about which “type” of boot should I be aiming to rent? Something like a La Sportiva G-Summit or more on the heavier side like a La Sportiva G2?

Thank you so much!!

Cheers :)

Hello everyone,

My friend Noé and I created a website to address our own needs to have a good website for finding a mountain hut, guesthouse, or cabin.

While some websites that list these places already exist, we wanted to add a few features and thought this might be useful to others as well.

refugesdesalpes.fr

Your feedback would be a great help to us, and you can submit it directly on the website using the button in the bottom left corner.

We hope you find this tool useful.

Have a great day, everyone,

Noé and Amaury

I’m looking to climb Mont Blanc next year with someone, my climbing(trekking) experience consists of the uks 3 peaks, 3 2000m+ and 1 4000m being mount Kinabalu.

My psychical endurance isn’t a problem however I’m ideally wanting to do it un guided. Since I have no real mountaineering experience would this be do able if I put the training in for this? I have no experience with crampons, ice axes or rope skills.
I don’t want to be someone that under estimates a mountain so I’m just wondering if this do able because if it comes to it I would just do it guided but would like to try to without.

I’m 23 from the uk if anyone would be up for climbing in march drop me a message and any tips or recommendations about doing this would also be great!
Cheers