The following titles are all now available from Vertebrate Publishing:
The Shining Mountain by Peter Boardman
“It is wonderful to see Pete and Joe’s voices still out there, loud and clear.”
Dick's Table
The Mountain Heritage Trust were delighted that this collection came to the Trust, items of which will be included in appropriate, future events/exhibitions when telling the stories of eminent mountaineers and their achievements. Pete’s collection of items joins other important collections within the Trust such as Chris Bonington, Joe Brown, Doug Scott, John Hunt, and many other pioneering climbers. It also complements the collection of Joe Tasker with whom Pete did some notable climbs, and who sadly was lost with Pete on Mount Everest in 1982. It is in Pete and Joe’s name that the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature is set up in commemoration of their lives and literary legacy.
An important piece of the collection was the aforementioned ‘slide table’, which the family have always believed was made by Dick Renshaw, another climber from the same era. The table, which Pete always referred to as “Dick’s table” was used for sorting Pete’s slides. These slides demonstrated Pete’s photographic ability used throughout his published books and the lectures that he gave. The slide collection itself will help in telling the stories of Pete’s climbing career, which paved the way from first attempts at previously unclimbed routes, through to the fatal attempt on Everest’s North East Ridge.
The slide table is in pride of place in the Mountain Heritage Trust office at Blencathra and will be available for researchers and users of the vast slide collections that the Trust holds.
The plaque was made for the table to commemorate Pete reads - “Made by Dick Renshaw who gave this table to Pete Boardman. Much used by Pete when selecting images for shows and publications”. Donated by Pete’s family in 2018”.
Ms Terry Tasker
Boardman Tasker Trustee
A Good Read - Helen Mort & Mo Omar - BBC Sounds
Helen Mort, past BT Judge, chooses CLIMBERS by 1989 BT Award Winner M.J Harrison on BBC's A Good Read.
Listen here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000rw3d
“I pass through his novels feeling a mixture of wonder, calmness and disturbance.”
“This is a wonderful and very strange novel, that in an odd way is not really about climbing. Yet it goes right to the heart of the sport and why people do it. We have all met these characters!”
Savage Arena & The Shining Mountain available from Vertebrate Publishing
After a long absence two of the greatest ever mountaineering books are now back in single volume print.
The Shining Mountain by Peter Boardman (coming soon)
“It is wonderful to see Pete and Joe’s voices still out there, loud and clear.”
40 YEARS AGO: 1981
The team on the summit of Kongur (7,719m)
L to R: Alan Rouse, Pete Boardman, Chris Bonington and Joe Tasker.
© Chris Bonington Picture Library
In November 1980, Joe set off for Everest as part of an Expedition organised by Al Rouse, to try and make a winter ascent of the mountains West Ridge. It was an all-star team including The Burgess Twins, Paul Nunn, Brian Hall, John Porter and Pete Thexton.
The climbers encountered very harsh weather conditions; gale force winds and freezing temperatures, that quickly took a toll on the team and gradually almost everyone was either exhausted or ill. Joe together with Adrian Burgess did reach 24,000ft on the route but by that time virtually the whole team was exhausted and a general retreat was made. Joe describes vividly the brutal, cold conditions on this expedition in his book “Everest the Cruel Way”.
In “The Burgess Book of Lies”, Adrian Burgess describes being on the mountain with Joe:
“Joe had so much willpower. Just to camp out at those elevations was horrendous, let alone put in a day’s work. He was a very modest person in my company; later when he wrote about his experiences in his book ‘Everest the Cruel Way’ he often chided himself for his laziness. He once wrote about staring across to the North Ridge – scene of early British attempts on Everest – and feeling honoured to be part of the history of the mountains in the company of Mallory and Irvine, who had disappeared somewhere high on the mountain. A strange twist of fate finally bonded him to the mountain when he too, disappeared the very next year, on the North Northeast Ridge, with his fate also unknown. I’m proud to have shared a few moments with him.”
The expedition took a huge physical toll on the team members, and Joe returned having lost a great deal of weight. Al Rouse had lost two stone and when the two of them went to Kongur later that year, neither had fully recovered physically.
While Joe was away on Everest, Pete and Hilary were visiting the Ganesh Himal, where Pete was leading a trekking group. Pete’s Mum also went on the trip described by Hilary as a “wonderful experience but very cold with fresh snow in places, and very challenging for walkers.” After this trip Pete was working at ISM (International School of Mountaineering), while Hilary worked in a local hospital. Hilary recalls the early months of 1981 with much enjoyment of learning to ski off piste, and doing long ski mountaineering trips in the Alps. “It’s amazing we weren’t killed then as our skiing had little finesse!”
After the reconnaissance trip to China the previous year with Al Rouse and Michael Ward, Chris Bonington was eager to return and attempt an ascent of Kongur. The team consisted of Chris himself, Al Rouse, Pete and Joe, Jim Curran, Michael Ward and Charlie Clarke. A very good description of this expedition was written by Jim Curran in his biography of Chris and part of it is reproduced here:
“The climb itself was a protracted affair, hampered by constant spells of bad weather with high winds and, being so much further north of the Karakoram/Himalaya ranges, bitter cold. The first attempt foundered on a knife-edged ridge leading to the summit pyramid, the difficulty of which had indeed been grossly underestimated, even ignored, during the recce. When eventually success came it was only after spending four nights stormbound at the far end of the knife edged ridge, bivouacked into tiny one-man slots that became known as snow coffins. Running out of food and gas, most teams would have given up, but when the weather cleared they pushed on to the top, where they had yet another bivouac while they ensued that they really had reached the highest of three possible summits before a long and dangerous descent.
Peter Boardman dislodged a rock abseiling down from the summit, which hit him a glancing blow on the head and knocked him out. He was only saved from sliding off the end of the rope by his glove jamming the rope in the karabiner brake system he was using to abseil with.
Michael Ward and I waited in support at Advance Base and had nearly given them up for lost before we spotted four, minute dots on a snowline high above. On their return late that evening Mike and I were the first to hear their story. Chris thought that the climbing on the summit day was very reminiscent of the North Face of The Matterhorn, even of the Eiger in winter. I couldn’t help but be moved by the state of exhaustion they were all in. Chris’s face and beard were caked with icicles and frozen snot. Al’s voice was reduced to the merest whisper and Joe Tasker was alarmingly thin and pinched. Only Pete, despite his blood-caked hair, seemed still to be strong and have something left in reserve. He had obviously been the strongest throughout the whole expedition and had done a lot of the trail-breaking. Al and to a certain extent Joe, hadn’t performed very well; both had been on a winter expedition to the West Ridge of Everest only a few months earlier and had returned emaciated and very tired. Al had led this protracted and unsuccessful venture and I wondered if he had ever really recovered. Chris himself, at forty-seven, had performed extremely well, conserving his energy and pacing himself well. Considering that only a few weeks previously we were worried, not just that he wouldn’t be able to climb, but that his life itself could be in danger, it was an astonishing performance, particularly to spend so much time above 7000 metres where physical determination is rapid.
The ascent of Kongur has never really had the acclaim it deserved, partly for the reasons mentioned earlier but also because it was perceived as being a traditional expedition, which was actually very unfair as the medical objectives were totally separate from the climbing. In fact very few peaks the height of Kongur have been climbed alpine-style at the first attempt by such a small team; the nearest comparison would be Broad Peak (8047 metres), climbed by the Austrians Schmuck, Winterstreller, Diemberger and Buhl, though even this outstanding ascent wasn’t the first attempt. Kongur was, without splitting hairs, as genuine an alpine style ascent as one could wish for, even the route taken on the second attempt was different, sot here was very little ground covered twice.”
Joe set his camera up on the summit of Kongur to take a photograph of the four of them. I have always felt how poignant this photograph is, for within five years, only Chris remained alive.
Steve Dean
Further reading if you are interested…
Kongur, China’s Elusive Summit’ by Chris Bonington
Here, There and Everywhere by Jim Curran
Everest the Cruel Way by Joe Tasker
The Burgess Book of Lies by Adrian & Alan Burgess
K2 Congrats!
Photograph: Handout from Nimsdai PR
The Boardman Tasker Charitable Trust is delighted to send hearty congratulations to Nirmal Purja and the team of Nepali climbers who have just made the first successful winter ascent of K2.
To quote The Observer:
“The Sherpas reached the summit at 5pm local time, waiting until the whole team was assembled before singing the Nepalese national anthem and descending. K2 was the last 8,000m peak without a winter ascent after Nanga Parbat was climbed in 2016.”
Doug Scott would have been delighted by this Nepal triumph, as would Pete and Joe.
Read The Observer article here.
Clean Everest
Clean Everest is an annual initiative involving 50 Tibetan mountain guides, 100 Chinese and foreign volunteers climbers, collecting tons of high altitude waste and 50 yaks carrying them down.
The clean mountain charter was created in cooperation with Lhasa Mountain School, following first 100% Tibetan expedition in 2013. It is composed of 4 parts including Protection of Water, Waste treatment, Protection of Fauna and flora and Education.
“Pete and Joe would have thoroughly approved and supported this initiative, Clean Everest, they were both very aware of their own impact on the Everest region with the increasing numbers of expeditions and tourists in the region. People have always gone there to experience the beauty of the highest peak and looked up, but many ignored what they left behind as they continued their journey away from the mountain. This film clip really brings home the extent of the damage done and the corrective measures now in place, hopefully to be replicated in other honeypot areas of the Himalayas.”
Hilary Rhodes
Kanchenjunga 1979
© Ken Wilson’s archive
Doug Scott, Georges Bettembourg, Joe and Pete photographed a week after they had climbed Kanchenjunga, the third highest mountain in the world in 1979.
Along with Changabang the ascent of this mountain was probably Pete and Joe’s finest mountaineering achievement. The mountain had only been climbed twice before, and never from the north. Their climb to the south summit was very committing and achieved in fine style. The mountain was first climbed in 1955 by Joe Brown and George Band followed the next day by the 2nd ascent by Norman Hardie and Tony Streather. In all the time since 1955 and their arrival in 1979, it was only climbed once.
You might like to read more about the Kanchenjunga South Summit climb with the article, with paragraph by Doug Scott here.
Messages from Stephen Venables & the shortlisted authors
Stephen Venables (interviewer)
I am no fan of virtual reality. Myself, I prefer reality. So I was deeply sceptical about doing remote interviews on Zoom. But I have to admit that the final result was actually quite good. It obviously helped to have five such interesting authors, who were all as eloquent on screen as they are on the page, and it helped enormously to have techno-guru Henry Iddon doing such a skilful job of filming and editing, between Norfolk, London, Bristol, Kendal and Spain. After a rather sticky start, I found myself starting actually to enjoy the interviews. True, I missed the more rapid fire back-and-forth that you get live on stage – and of course I missed having the usual audience of loyal Boardman Tasker friends and supporters there in the room – but despite all that we got some good conversations going. (But note to self – don’t do so much talking!) Purist mountaineers might question the widening parameters of ‘mountain literature’ represented on the shortlist, but for me this was the huge scope and variety of subject matter that made the reading – and the interviewing – so rewarding. I also helped, of course, that each of the five books was beautifully written. So congratulations to all of them, and to the organisers of the Boardman Tasker Award, which after nearly forty years continues to go from strength to strength.
With best wishes,
Stephen
Patrick Baker - The Unremembered Places
What a privilege it has been to be short-listed for the Boardman Tasker. For as long as I can remember I have followed the award knowing that the short list always delivers an eclectic range of writing that challenges and deepens our perceptions of mountains and high places. As a writer and a mountaineer, it is the ultimate honour to be included on the list and be part of the wonderful legacy of writing inspired by Pete and Joe. To be nominated for the award this year, alongside some truly amazing books, has also been a genuinely humbling experience.
Emily Chappell - Where There’s a Will
Thank you for including me, someone who doesn’t fit into the traditional bracket of ‘mountain writing’. I was deeply honoured to be a part of the Boardman Tasker Short Listed Authors and Award event at Digital KMF and have been deeply touched by the kind words that everyone has said about Where There’s A Will.
I very much hope I’ll be able to come to Kendal in future years. It really is one of the best mountain festivals there is.
Peter Foster - The Uncrowned King of Mont Blanc
To have been short-listed for the Boardman Tasker Award was flattering and an honour, but more importantly, I felt the judges had accorded deserved recognition to my subject, Graham Brown. Like him or loathe him – and there are plenty who did – his remarkable achievements in science and mountaineering have gone unappreciated for too long.
Peter Goulding - SlateHead
Getting shortlisted for BT was amazing, t really validated the fact that I had been writing my book for five years, not really knowing whether anyone else would think it was any good. I’ve been a big fan of some of the BT winners over the years, like Andy Cave, M.John Harrison and Paul Pritchard, and it was good to be up there with them, or nearly! I can’t imagine ever being shortlisted again, I have told my story as best I could and I can’t see my having the time or the energy to put into another book about climbing. I am so pleased my book was recognised.
Jessica J.Lee - Two Trees Make a Forest
2020 Winner of the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature
I was completely overjoyed for Two Trees Make a Forest to be shortlisted—and then go on to win—the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature. When I set out to write the book, I wasn’t entirely sure where the book would fit in terms of genre: was it nature writing, biography, travel or something else entirely? The term ‘mountain literature’ thus feels a fitting umbrella for this strange book, and I am honoured for it to be recognised in memory of Pete and Joe.
The attentive readings of the judges felt truly attuned to the nuances of the book: as an author, I felt not only read but seen, and for this I’m very grateful. For this story to now find a wider readership among those who love mountain environments and to allow more readers who have historically felt underrepresented in such literature to see themselves on the page…..well, that is an author’s dream.
Thank you!
Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature 2020 @ Kendal Mountain Festival Online
Because of the Covid 19 Pandemic and the consequent restrictions, The Boardman Tasker Short Listed Authors event and the 2020 Award announcement was somewhat different this year. Instead of a Live Show on the Malt Room stage at the Brewery Arts centre, the event this year was online, compressed into a lively and interesting two-hour show, with an All Star Cast, filmed by Henry Iddon, Kendal Mountain Festival Arts & Culture Officer. The event is available to watch here until 31 December.
Henry Iddon filming Martin Wragg
Andy Perkins, KMF, opened the show with his usual positive élan, from a French bouldering site, followed by BT Chairman, Martin Wragg, introducing the five shortlisted books, from the Peak. Again, the interviews of the five BT Shortlisted Authors were carried out, with skill and humour by Stephen Venables, remotely from his home in Spain.
Patrick Baker
The first author on was Patrick Baker, from Edinburgh, with his book ‘The Unremembered Places’. This lyrical exploration of hidden places and often forgotten tales in Scotland, put forward the case for a greater examination of wild histories beyond the most well trodden narratives of adventure. This beautiful book opens up a whole new viewpoint of Wild Scotland.
Emily Chappell
The second author was Emily Chappell with her book ‘Where There’s a Will’.
A book of skill-full prose that sharply captures the physical and mental intensity of ultra distance cycling. It examines the author’s own struggles with depression and grief and the demands of this activity in increasingly wild country.
Peter Foster
The third author talking with Stephen from the KMF Studio was Peter Foster, author of ‘The Uncrowned King of Mont Blanc’, a biography of T.Graham Brown, the Scottish Mountaineer whose contributions to the history of climbing on Mont Blanc and his complex professional life as a doctor made for compelling reading. Always an enigma, his fine biography of Brown throws light on a most important period of Alpine history.
Peter Goulding
Peter Goulding, filmed at his Norfolk home, author of the fourth book ‘Slatehead’. This is an in-depth history and over view of the climbing in the Dinorwig slate quarries of North Wales. At times an observation on obsession and on the persistence of wildness in unexpected parts of a post-industrial location, the book reveals a deep personal affection for a unique climbing area.
Jessica J. Lee
The final conversation, the only one on Zoom, from London was with Jessica J.Lee, author of ‘Two Trees Make a Forest’. This is a poetic and deeply moving account of Taiwan’s mountains, waters and forests. Commenting on the book Katie Ives, 2020 BT Chair of Judges concluded:
“Lee’s book is one that expands the topography of adventure, pushing at the very limits of storytelling. Her journey takes place through overlapping landscapes of summits, mountain legends, political conflict, exile, natural disasters, memories, imagination, immigration and longing----like multiple interwoven paths in a forest and like the numerous possible futures for mountain literature itself.
Back in 1987, during an international festival for mountaineering literature, the climbing writer Dave Cook had pointed out the need to make room for more varied voices, including those of women and people of colour. He’d also urged adventure writers to seek sources of inspiration beyond the narrow formulas of escapist tales, to acknowledge the “interconnections” between experiences in the mountains and the rest of life, and to reassert “some of the values of humanity and fellowship against the imperial colonisation of the hills.”
Today, despite all the challenges of pursuing writing in our era, emerging authors from many diverse backgrounds are increasingly producing narratives that help mountain writing grow in creative and original shapes----beyond what even Cook might have imagined possible. Among such books, ‘Two Trees Make a Forest” represents a work of both literary merit and bold vision. Lee’s story, David Canning explains, is “Beautifully written, and it successfully progresses the genre of exploration writing into new territory.” And for this reason, I’m happy to say that the author of ‘Two Trees Make a Forest, Jessica J.Lee will receive the 2020 Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature.”
Katie Ives, 2020 BT Chair of Judges’ full speech is available at www.boardmantasker.com
Steve Dean
Secretary
Boardman Tasker