Antoine MARNAT

Hi all,

I am very interested in this project, even if I am now an “oversea-member”.

I will not be able to attend meetings, but maybe we can organize Skype when crucial meetings happen. And I hope to meet many of you on a regular basis (eg. at scottish winter weekends).

I have some experience in foreign (lightway) expeditions, and many idea of what could be done. I would be very happy if we can write a guidebook of a not well-known area. As we would have a relatively short time (2-3 weeks), we definitly need local support. This means win-win exchange.

About destination, here are my thoughs:
– Central Asia: This is an area with meaning to John that went there with a van. I was also in Kirghizstan myself for skitouring. I think it is a great destination, with cheap flights (Kirghizstan has no taxes on airticket to promote tourism) and remote areas with unclimbed peaks. There is an old USSR guidebook in russian that was translated in english not so long ago (and in french very recently). We may choose a valley/mountain range and check it. There is a lot of nice unclimbed peaks … I have an old contact at CBT Arslanbob. No visa, no permit !

– North Africa – Morocco. How I see it, it would be more about tradclimbing, as all significant mountaineering of our level has been done. For sure there is some area around Trafaout Antiatlas with a lot of trad routes to open, but should’nt we leave it to Oxford peoples ? We may also look for an other region. To me it is less interesting -but I am more a mountaineer than a tradclimber.

– North America – Canada. There is for sure a lot of remote places in Canada or Alaska, but I am not sure 2-3 weeks is enough to explore it ? The trip would be more expensive than the other options. But well, my first visit to north america is next week, so I have no clue.

– Iran. For sure, this looks like a perfect option if Marjan is part of it. In the past I checked mostly for skitouring, but there is a lot of amazing mountainranges, with strong local climbers and many walls to explore.

– Turkey has a great rock, and good potential for tradclimbing. Going outside the wellknown spots could drive us to a climbing jewel.

– I would add Ladakh to this list: south of Leh, we could explore all the 6000er ranging east of Stok Kangri, or explore the Kang Yatze range (south of Kang Yatze 1 & 2, there is a lot of -easy- unclimbed 6000er. I was exploring in the area already, and I know I will go again.

You are welcome to visit Austria or Slovenia to discuss it with me, there is some great mountain and beer around 😉

Money transfered !

Hi everyone, count me in for this nice weekend !