Sport climbers marvel at the clean limestone of Ceüse, boulderers fantasize of the grippy goodness of Fontainebleau, and alpinists dream of going to high mountains in the most-remote corners of the planet. Unfortunately for those of us in the last group, our dreams can involve some serious logistical complications. But hey, it just keeps out the riffraff. Proper planning for a serious trip involves anywhere from six to 10 months, and you really don’t want to miss an important step. This is far from a guide on how to plan your expedition, but it’ll at least get those important items in the back of your mind for when the time comes. Check out Climbing: Expedition Planning by Clyde Soles and Phil Powers for thorough, step-by-step details on how to put together your big trip. If you have any friends who have been on expeditions, buy them some beer, and milk them for tips.
Partners: Unless you plan on doing a vision-quest-style solo expedition like my friend Kyle Dempster did when he went to Pakistan, you need at least one partner. Who you invite on your trip is the most important decision you’ll make during the planning stage. History books are full of expeditions that failed because a team full of world-class climbers simply didn’t get along. No matter how talented someone is as a climber, you have to make sure your styles work well together. Go on some smaller climbs together and see if you do things the same way. See if you fight over music on the car ride or if the other person’s anchors scare you. Even the smallest things become big deals on extended trips.
The Goal: It may seem obvious, but it really helps to have a specific goal before you start any other steps. You may come up with a goal and invite a partner, or get a partner and choose a goal, but nailing down the specifics of your trip will determine how you train, what you bring, and the logistics involved. It also helps to have something to think of when you’re doing lunges or running hills. You’ll also want a couple backup goals in the same range, in case you get there to find your primary objective has succumbed to global warming. I had exactly this problem when I went to Peru in 2006, and the ability to quickly re-focus on another peak helped immensely.
Training: Do not neglect your training. There are tons of books, websites, and opinions on the subject, so I won’t get into specifics, but most training cycles start with base work about eight to 10 months before your fitness peaks, so get started early and stay after it. The type of route you plan to do will determine your training. Do your research, pick what works the best for your specific needs, and train like your life depends on it.
Travel: If you don’t have a passport, put in your papers tomorrow. Seriously. These things take time. Mine arrived three days before my first trip to South America, and I was sweating bullets wondering if my plane ticket and training would be for nothing. Book your flight well in advance and make sure you have enough time at layovers to make connections. Understand that ultra-cheap tickets allow for nearly zero flexibility, so it may be worth a few extra bucks to be able to make changes if the need arises. Call the airline and get the latest info on luggage restrictions, so you know exactly how much extra you’ll be paying when you walk up to the luggage counter and flop three enormous duffels on the scale. When the day arrives, get to the airport nice and early. You don’t want to start a two-month trip by running through the concourse, but that’s the way many end up anyway.
Gear: The gear you take depends on a variety of things, including the region, the weather, the technical demands of the mountain range, personal preference, and on and on. Get everyone together early and start making lists. Mark the group gear and assign items to people to buy. Then make sure they get ordered early. On a recent trip to the Northwest Territories, three of our four members worked at gear shops, and we were still putting stuff together the day before departure. It also helps to have an idea of how you’ll split up the group gear when you get back and how you’ll reimburse anyone if you use his or her personal gear as group gear and something happens to it.
Food: Planning meals for a month or longer isn’t easy, especially when you consider the fact that everyone should be eating between 4,000 and 6,000 calories a day and it all has to be cooked on a camp stove. Make sure everyone likes the foods you bring, and bring plenty of different types. You don’t want to wait until base camp to find out that you have 10 days worth of dehydrated meals that taste like crap. Make sure you have plenty of fuel to do all the cooking and to boil water if necessary, and take into consideration that food for on the route falls into a different category than camp food. Make sure your on-route food can be cooked with nothing more than boiled water. That way you can just reconstitute your daily grub in each person’s individual bowl. You want to keep the food out of the pot, or the water you boil will taste like last night’s dinner.
Life In Camp: I’m a huge proponent of fast-and-light climbing, but not when it comes to your base camp. Camp is where you’re able to rest, relax, and recharge before getting up on the mountain, so it needs to be as plush as you can make it. How much camp gear you bring depends on how you get the gear there. Depending on the region, you may use a plane, porters, burros, or your own two legs, so you can’t bring the kitchen sink on every trip, but I recommend bringing all the luxuries you can. If it’s manageable, bring a tent for each member if there are more than two of you. A little personal space goes a long way on a big trip. A large group/cook tent is a really nice thing to have as well. Bring cards, chess, and other games that your group likes. They’ll be worth their weight in gold when you have to wait out a long storm. Chairs, tables, MP3 players, solar chargers … it’s all game if you’re going to be in the same camp for a month or longer.
Climb: That climb is what it’s all about, but that’s way beyond the scope of this article. Train hard, make sure your technical skills are dialed, and you’ll be glad you did it all when you’re up on the business.
Coming Home: Don’t come back from a long trip and go to work the next day unless you absolutely have to. Most people go straight back to work and have a hard time dealing with the fact that they’re now forced to actually care about spreadsheets when they’re used to making important decisions with real and immediate consequences. Take some time to get used to being back in civilization. Sleep in, drink beer, watch movies, and basically be lazy for a while. A couple days spent readjusting will be well worth it.
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Tags: climbing, expeditions
Where is that picture with the blue lake, snowcapped peaks, and backpacker on the trail from? Looks pretty amazing!
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I believe that would be the Cirque of the Unclimbables in Canada’s Northwest Territories:
http://backcountrybeacon.com/2009/04/fair-means/
Adam, is that right?
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Sorry Justin. It’s the Laguna Paron in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru. The peaks in the background are Pirimide and Chacararaju Oeste.
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Ahh. I was looking at the wrong photo. The first one with the seaplane is from the Cirque, no?
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Yeah, that one’s from the Cirque.
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