Yangmolong, The Second Attempt

After being pinned down in their tents for days by a strong snow and wind storm, the team decided that the conditions were too dangerous for them to continue. The heavy, new snow collapsed one serac above their camp just hours after they were standing below it. The ensuing avalanche from that collapse confirmed that the risk of continuing up the route was too dangerous. Yangmolong remains unclimbed -- for now.

Yangmolong, The First Attempt

Climbing mountains, and particularly attempting first ascents, is about much more than just putting a boot on the summit of a peak.

The journey is indeed what embodies the adventure as a whole—not just the destination or the summit. This short video about our attempt to make a first ascent of Yangmolong encompasses that journey. Yangmolong slipped through our hands but we managed a nice consolation prize with our summit of Dangchezhengla via a new route.

Jon and Asu discuss the death of Liu Xinan

Jon and Asu briefly discuss the life and death of one of China’s rising stars in the climbing world, Liu Xinan. Liu died while attempting a first ascent of Makara (Central Peak) next to Yangmolong. Asu went back to the mountain to recover Liu’s body but was unsuccessful. In the past three years Asu has taken part in many search and recovery missions looking for some of the world’s best climbers who have died in the mountains of western Sichuan, including Christine Boskoff and Charlie Fowler. All of this has had a profound affect on him.

Images from Tibet

In 2007 we crossed the Tibetan Plateau, following the Sichuan-Tibet Highway eastward out of Lhasa. The landscapes is beautiful and at times harsh, but the people have learned to live here, creating a unique bond with this seemingly uninhabitable environment.

These images provide just a snapshot of this wonderful land.