Only Two for Everest: How a first ascent by Riddiford and Cotter shaped climbing history by Lyn McKinnon

$30.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

The First New Zealand Himalayan Expedition, in 1951, was initiated by Earle Riddiford, who with Ed Cotter and Pasang Dawa Lama made the first ascent of Mukut Parbat, their target peak in the Garhwal Himalaya. Accompanying them on that expedition, though not to that summit, were two other New Zealand cli mbers, Edmund Hillary and George Lowe. In this enthralling narrative, journalist Lyn McKinnon tells the stories of Earle Riddiford and Ed Cotter, two extraordinary New Zealanders whose climbing achievements were forever eclipsed by the exploits of others. She draws on private papers as well as published work, and extensively interviews Cotter himself, and the families of both men, as well as many other contemporary climbers, to set the record straight. ...Show more

Legs on Everest by Mark Inglis

$14.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: good

In May 2006 Mark Inglis made the front page yet again. This time it was for achieving his long-held dream of making it to the summit of Mt Everest. But once again his achievement was not without controversy, as it soon became known that his climbing party had passed a dying man on its way, and continued to the summit. The media frenzy that followed contained extremes of both criticism and support for the double amputee.This is the story of Mark's climb to the top of the world. First published 2006. ...Show more

Dog in the Snow: The Story of the Middle East Ski School by James Riddell

$35.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: near fine

He was an Alsatian called Rex, who lived among the snows of the mountains of Lebanon and Syria. When the author first met him, in November 1941, Rex belonged to a Bishop of the Maronite Church. Rec disliked strangers, but James Riddell proved an exception. The dog became his devoted companion at the new ly-formed ski instruction school which the author was appointed to command. Rex was a great favourite with the troops who came to the school from all regiments and nations - Australians, New Zealanders, Greeks, Gurkhas, and British. This is Rex's story and theirs. Dog in the Snow is an informative book about an almost unknown war-time activity, written with great charm and humour. All who love animals, and particularly those who can understand the fascination of skiing, will delight in the book. ...Show more

Edmund Hillary: A Biography by Michael Gill

$35.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: near fine

This new and important biography of Sir Edmund Hillary, a truly great New Zealander, breaks new ground among previous accounts of his life. The author, Michael Gill, was a close friend of Edmund Hillary's for over 50 years, accompanying him on many expeditions, and becoming heavily involved in his Himal ayan aid work. He was also granted access by Sir Edmund's children to a large archive of private papers and photos that were deposited in the Auckland Museum after his death. Building on personal experience, and this new unpublished material, Michael Gill has written a wonderfully insightful and illuminating biography. He describes the uncertainties of the first 33 years of Edmund Hillary's life, as well as the always-fascinating stories of the early attempts on Mt Everest, all a prelude to the first ascent which brought him instant world-wide fame. But too, this biography reveals, in part through personal letters, the tender and loving relationship he had with his wife Louise. Her importance to him during their 22 years of marriage only underlines the horror of her death, along with that of their youngest daughter, in a plane crash in 1975. Sir Edmund eventually pulled out of the subsequent depression to continue his life's work building schools and hospitals in the Himalayas. Affectionate, but scrupulously fair, Michael Gill has gone further than anyone before to reveal the humanity of this remarkable man. Edmund Hillary's life was shaped by both triumph and tragedy, and while he became famous through his mountaineering achievements, ultimately it was his humility and great compassion for the people of Nepal that has become his enduring legacy. ...Show more

Annapurna: The First Conquest of an 8000- Metre Peak by Maurice Herzog

$12.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

'After being swept off his feet by an avalanche and left dangling by a rope around his neck, Herzog began to pass water, violently and uncontrollably.' Your reaction may be only slightly less extreme as you move from one nail-biting moment to the next in this wonderful 1952 tale of triumph and frostb ite. Outside this is the enthralling account, by the leader of the French expedition, of the first conquest of Annapurna - at that time, and at more than 8000 metres, the highest mountain ever climbed. The 26 plates also provide a remarkable photographic record of the adventure. ...Show more

Unclimbed New Zealand

$30.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: good

Dingle: Discovering the Sense in Adventure by Graeme Dingle

$15.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

Dingle is the autobiography of Graeme Dingle. It is the story of how a scared, painfully skinny boy turns himself into one of New Zealand's greatest adventurers, capable of the hardest climbs in the world. But it is also the story of how a man realises that for his life to truly have meaning, it needs t o include service to others. The book begins with Graeme Dingle's early forays into the North Island ranges and his subsequent development in the Southern Alps into a gifted and driven mountaineer. It then charts many of his remarkable achievements during a lifetime of adventuring. These include being the first to climb all of the European Alps' North Faces (such as the Eiger and the Matterhorn) in one season; the first traverse of New Zealand's Southern Alps (in winter); a range of Himalayan expeditions and a year-long traverse of the Himalayas; and a two-year odyssey to circumnavigate the Arctic. Running alongside this adventuring life has been Dingle's extraordinary commitment to using the outdoors to help the development of young people. This began with him founding the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre in the Central North Island and has culminated with the hugely successful national youth development programme, Project K. Dingle is the story of a great New Zealander, whose inspirational commitment to the welfare of our young people has been matched by a remarkable record as a mountaineer and adventurer. First published October 2005. ...Show more

Between A Rock and A Hard Place by Aron Ralston

$12.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: good

On Saturday, 26 April 2003, Aron Ralston, a 27-year-old outdoorsman and adventurer, set off for a day's hike through a remote part of Utah. Eight miles from his truck, in the middle of a deep and narrow canyon, he was climbing down off a wedged boulder when suddenly the rock came loose. Before he could get out of the way, the falling stone pinned his right hand and wrist against the canyon wall. After forty-five minutes of frantically trying to move the boulder, Aron realized it wouldn't budge. He was stuck. In his backpack, Aron had some climbing equipment, a rope and a multi-tool, but no jacket, and only insignificant amounts of water and food. It wasn't much — certainly not enough to last until help could arrive. He had to get himself out. At first, Aron used the tool's knife to try and chip away at the boulder, but after ten hours he had made only a tiny dent. He then rigged up a pulley system to heave the boulder up off his trapped arm, but the rock was too heavy. On Sunday, his hand already dead, Aron considered cutting off his arm. However, his knife wasn't sharp enough to saw through the bones and he concluded that a serious attempt to sever his arm would be a slow act of suicide. As he eliminated his options, one by one, Aron faced the full horror of his predicament. No one knew where he was; no one was coming to rescue him. Day passed into night and then day again. Hour after hour of dehydration, starvation and sleep-deprivation passed. By the end of the fourth day he had stopped fighting death and even welcomed it as an end to his misery. During that fifth night, the temperature plummeted and Aron was wracked by uncontrollable shivers. He was certain he wouldn't live past midnight and scratched his epitaph into the canyon wall: RIP, Aron, Oct. 78 — Apr. 03. However, hallucinatory visions of his parents, his friends, and even his future son sustained him and he survived that most terrible night. Then, at 10.32 in the morning of 1 May, a moment of epiphany revealed to him the solution to the boulder's riddle: he could use the rock's vice-like hold to break his arm bones, the fist step in setting himself free< Between a Rock and a Hard Place is more than an adventure story. It is a brave, honest and above all inspiring account of one man's valiant effort to survive, and is destined to take its place among adventure classics such as Touching the Void. ...Show more

To the Untouched Mountain: The New Zealand Conquest of Molamenqing, Tibet by Warwick Anderson

$25.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

South Col: One Man's Adventure on the Ascent of Everest 1953 by Wilfrid Noyce

$25.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: good

Journey along the Spine of the Andes by Christopher Portway

$25.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

The Wainwright Letters by Alfred Wainwright; Hunter Davies (ed.)

$25.00 NZD

Category: Mountaineering | Reading Level: very good

Hunter Davies, Wainwright's biographer, has here collected a selection of letters that range from his early years in Blackburn to his position as Borough Treasurer in Kendal, and cover all aspects of his professional and personal life.