I urgently make my way to Thomas Huber’s presentation in Bansko presuming I am late (and worried I may not squeeze in the normally packed hall), when I find him walking back and forth in the lobby. Phew! Apparently, the only one late around here is the one presenting before Thomas. Thus, I talk to him for a…
“Without a nickel to my name Hopped a bus, here I came Could be brave or just insane We’ll have to see”–Another day of sun, La La Land Soundtrack Well, it was not a bus, but a plane and I have some savings. Still, boarding on that plane (on both, as I had a connecting…
Extreme Sports videos and movies have been taking over the internet and stealing our attention. Millions of people throughout the world look at the incredible things extreme athletes come up with and aspire to, one day, experience something similar. There are many authors of such videos out there – from home made gone wild action…
Prof. Dr. Volker Schöffl is a force of nature and a leading specialist on sports medicine, with particular emphasis on climbing. Having written more than a hundred papers on climbing and outdoor medicine, his book “One move too many“ is a must-read for every climber out there. Dr. Schöffl has been the physician of the National…
High altitude sickness also referred to acute mountain sickness (AMS), is the effect of the environment at higher elevations (above 2440 meters) on the body. You don’t have to be attempting an 8000-er to experience this. It is common among skiers, travelers, hikers, and climbers and should be taken very seriously. I have had my…
Oh, all the marvels you may come upon if you only make a little detour from the main road! Such an impulsive turn may lead you to the hidden hippy hot springs in Greece. Close to Nea Peramos and Nea Iraklitsa, an old abandoned public bath and the hot springs surrounding it, have become one…
Perched on fairy-tale-like sandstone peaks, the ancient monasteries of Meteora have turned into one of Greece’s top attractions. The windswept monoliths that rise above the town of Kalabaka are a magnet to both curious tourists and adventurous thrill-seekers. History The word Meteora derives from meteorology and translates into “middle of the sky”, “suspended in the…
Simone Moro is like a noble knight sworn to the axe and the highest altitudes the human inhabits. Spending his childhood in the outdoors, unlike most teenagers (and some adults), at thirteen Simone knew well what he wanted. He went to his dad and declared he would like to become a real climber. And so…
The Bergschrund is the crevasse separating the horizontal of the glacier and the vertical of the mountain. It is the void left after the glacier detaches from the stagnant, loyal to the mountain ice left above. I gaze upon the void that separates the world into two distinct spaces. Down–where when I slip, I fall…
My consciousness is sliding down the blurry edge between awake and dreamy state. An eerie breathing interrupts my passage to the land of dreams. It also gives me the chills. What is it? Surely not Sasho, having troubles breathing at 4474 meters. We are, by now, well acclimatized. Maybe a monster from a dream? Nope.…
