Mark Horrell
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markhorrell.bsky.social
Mark Horrell
@markhorrell.bsky.social
Indie author & mountaineering writer | Bit of a mountain history geek | Baldest digital comms professional to climb Everest (probably) | Occasionally frivolous
French donors have funded a new $400K via ferrata route with a 100m abseil that bypasses the Khumbu Icefall to Camp 1 on Everest 🗻

But why? It's hard to believe that commercial teams will use it? 😕
www.alanarnette.com/blog/2025/11...
Everest 2026: Khumbu Icefall Bypass-Real or a Dream? | The Blog on alanarnette.com
Mostly, local Nepalese media are promoting a new route bypassing the infamous Khumbu Icefall, claiming it to be shorter, faster, and safer, retracing the original path used by the British 1953 expedit...
www.alanarnette.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:42 PM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

A short distance south of Pen y Fan, the highest peak in the Brecon Beacons, is a range of peaks less well known to the outside world 🍟

The Rhigos Hills are home to the highest point in the county of Glamorgan 🗻

My latest County Top ✅
www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/cr...
Craig y Llyn: zipping up the cliff of the lake
A short distance south of Pen y Fan, the highest peak in the Brecon Beacons is a range of peaks less well known to the outside world. The Rhigos Hills are home to the highest point in the county of…
www.markhorrell.com
November 19, 2025 at 7:22 PM
"The bivouac can be read simultaneously as an act of love and an act of hubris: a structure that wants to merge with the mountain while also marking it." ⛺

A sentence that wants to merge with my head while going straight over it. 🤯

Looks a good museum though 🏛️
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
High art: the museum that is only accessible via an eight-hour hike
The Frattini Bivouac is part of a Bergamo gallery’s experiment to ‘think like a mountain’. But in the thin air of the Italian alps, curatorial ideas are challenged in more ways than one
www.theguardian.com
November 18, 2025 at 9:11 PM
"Climbers wanted her approval more than a certificate. Messner called her 'the only authority' on Himalayan records." ✅

Nice tribute to the founder of the Himalayan Database, Elizabeth Hawley 🏔️
explorersweb.com/remembering-...
Remembering Elizabeth Hawley, the Sherlock Holmes of Himalayan Summits » Explorersweb
For over 50 years, Elizabeth Hawley documented Himalayan expeditions. We commemorate her birthday by revisiting some of her important investigations.
explorersweb.com
November 12, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Today's Hellofresh delivery arrived with a complimentary roll of festive toilet paper 🎄🚽

I knew I shouldn't have ordered the curry this week 😦
November 10, 2025 at 6:26 PM
"Amazon claims its AI translations are 'automatically evaluated for accuracy' before publication, but it doesn’t detail what steps are involved."

A job best done by an editor in their native language. Still, it could provide a good first draft 🤔
techcrunch.com/2025/11/06/a...
Amazon launches an AI-powered Kindle Translate service for e-book authors | TechCrunch
Kindle Translate, an AI-powered translation service, is designed to broaden the reach of e-book authors.
techcrunch.com
November 6, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Reposted by Mark Horrell
November 5, 2025 at 10:50 AM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

Ever since a hike in the Apennines, the promise of ladders on a route has made me nervous 🪜

As we approached the Grand Balcon Sud, I wondered if they would be like the ones on Corno Piccolo? 😨

You can see for yourself in my latest videos 🎥
www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/to...
Tour du Mont Blanc, the videos: Part 2 – Switzerland and France
Ever since an incident in the Italian Apennines, the promise of ladders on a hiking route has made me nervous. As we approached the 11 ladders of the Grand Balcon Sud on the Tour du Mont Blanc, I w…
www.markhorrell.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:17 PM
One of the strangest figures in Everest history, Henry Todd, has passed away in a Kathmandu hospital.

The article doesn't mention his earlier career as a manufacturer of LSD (google Operation Julie for more). He later became an Everest expedition pioneer. RIP ➕
thetourismtimes.com/news/t3-spec...
British mountaineer Henry Todd dies at 80
Henry B Todd, a veteran British mountain outfitter, has died at the age of 80 while undergoing treatment in Kathmandu.
thetourismtimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 9:16 PM
"The fact that Jim Morrison skied down this combination of two couloirs [Everest’s Supercouloir] yesterday and survived unscathed borders on a minor miracle in my opinion." 😮🪄

It certainly does. Next week Elvis Presley will be free climbing the Second Step 🕺
abenteuer-berg.de/en/jim-morri...
Jim Morrison completes first ski descent of Mount Everest's north face - Adventure Mountain
When I close my eyes and think back to the North Face of Mount Everest 20 years ago, I see the so-called Supercouloir in front of me. The Japanese Couloir in the lower section and the Hornbein Couloir...
abenteuer-berg.de
October 16, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Really useful stuff from @ashrouten.com.
Saved me from another disappointing night out 🍺

TL;DR if you're thinking of drinking your own Fosters, do it before you get thirsty.
explorersweb.com/drinking-pee...
Survival Stories Get It Wrong, Drinking Pee Won’t Save You » Explorersweb
By the time you’re dehydrated enough to consider drinking urine, the urine will be so concentrated that it’s just too salty.
explorersweb.com
October 14, 2025 at 6:25 PM
"I am always astonished at how quickly and comprehensively the media avalanche rolls in as soon as Mount Everest comes into play." 🗻 📰

Well said @springinsfeld.bsky.social, but less drama on Everest? There will be pigs flying to the summit before then 🐖✈️
abenteuer-berg.de/en/mount-eve...
Mount Everest: A little less drama, please! - Adventure Mountain
It shouldn’t surprise me anymore, because it’s nothing new. And yet I am always astonished at how quickly and comprehensively the media avalanche rolls in as soon as Mount Everest comes into play. Tha...
abenteuer-berg.de
October 9, 2025 at 7:39 PM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

It was going to be a heck of a day. We had over 2,000m to ascend in tropical heat 🌞

Edita and I couldn’t think of another occasion when we'd ascended so many metres in a single day 👣

My trip report from Pico Duarte, summit of the Caribbean 🌴🇩🇴
www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/an...
An ascent of Pico Duarte, the highest mountain in the Dominican Republic
This is the second of two posts about our recent visit to the mountainous island of Hispaniola. In the first post, I introduced you to the Dominican Republic, and how we came to trek there. In this…
www.markhorrell.com
October 8, 2025 at 6:08 PM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

The Dominican Republic has 5 mountain ranges, inc. the highest peak in the Caribbean 🇩🇴

I would never have travelled there had Edita not been working in Haiti, but I found a great destination for short multi-day treks 👣

But boy is it humid 😓
www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/a-...
A mission to climb the highest mountains in the Caribbean
A few years ago, I wrote a blog post to explain that from that moment on I would aim to climb more obscure mountains that hardly anyone writes about. But how to decide which unusual peaks to climb?…
www.markhorrell.com
September 24, 2025 at 6:18 PM
[Excessively priced outdoor clothing brand] Arc-teryx issued apologies for the event, with the company saying the display “was out of line with Arc’teryx’s values”. 🔥🛢️

Or as Groucho Marx said, if you don't like our values, we have others 🙈
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/s...
Arc’teryx fireworks display in Tibet prompts environmental outcry
Outdoor brand says the Rising Dragon promotional event was out of line with its values after public criticism
www.theguardian.com
September 22, 2025 at 8:43 PM
"Competitors approached the adjudicator, sharing their concerns over suspiciously circular skipping stones."

Good grief, they didn't did they? All I can say is, what a bunch of tossers! 😳
explorersweb.com/world-stone-...
World Stone Skimming Championships Rocked By Cheating Scandal » Explorersweb
On a small Scottish island, the World Stone Skimming Championship was rocked by the discovery of doctored stones. Confronted, the perpetrators confessed.
explorersweb.com
September 18, 2025 at 7:53 PM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

The handful of people who enjoy my audiobooks will be happy to learn that I’ve just released another one 📚

Islands in the Snow, about a trek through the Solu-Khumbu region of Nepal, is now available on all the main audiobook channels 🎵 🎧

www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/on...
One upon a time there was a man who climbed both summits of Mera Peak and narrated an audiobook about it
The handful of you who are fans of my audiobooks will be delighted to learn that I’ve just released another one. Islands in the Snow, about a trek through the Solu-Khumbu region of Nepal, is …
www.markhorrell.com
August 14, 2025 at 6:26 AM
"For reference, the fastest ever mile time is 3:43.13, set by Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco in 1999. El Guerrouj did not drink four beers during his run."

4 laps of the track with a beer to start each lap. If only I'd known earlier in life this was a thing 🍺🍺🍺🍺
www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/a...
Meet the five-time beer-mile world champion: ‘I knew I could chug from a young age’
Corey Bellemore keeps dominating the Beer Mile World Classic, which involves running after glugging four drinks
www.theguardian.com
August 9, 2025 at 8:18 PM
"Selfie parks provide self-contained spaces that give visitors a curated environment in which to create content (often of themselves)." 🤔

An interesting concept. Will shepherding the selfie hunters into a warehouse help to reduce overtourism? 📷
theconversation.com/how-selfie-p...
How selfie parks limit tourism damage to the world’s most ‘Instagrammable’ destinations
Travellers have been killed in search of the perfect shot – selfie parks may be controversial but they should at least keep tourists safe.
theconversation.com
August 5, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Reposted by Mark Horrell
What will drone transport on Everest mean for Sherpa mountaineers?

Xenon-assisted climbing may be an unnecessary innovation but this isn’t: it means less gear-hauling and more safety, says @markhorrell.bsky.social

www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/wh...
What will drone transport on Everest mean for Sherpa mountaineers?
Much of the media coverage around Everest this year has focused on a brace of unusual speed ascents that have been framed as a game changer for aspiring Everest climbers. But there was another tech…
www.markhorrell.com
August 3, 2025 at 6:27 PM
“Today is day 11 of free soloing a harder route every day until I fall,” the tousle-haired young rock climber says to the camera.

Interesting form of entertainment. Presumably it all ends quite suddenly...
explorersweb.com/this-free-so...
This Free Soloist Wants Your Attention » Explorersweb
One young free soloist seems to be risking his life for Instagram clicks -- and asking followers to pay him for the entertainment.
explorersweb.com
August 2, 2025 at 8:38 AM
🌟 New blog post ✍️

Kongur sits between three huge mountain ranges in Central Asia. It was unexplored in 1980 when a British team set off to climb it 🗻 🇨🇳

After 18 years sitting on my bookshelf, I finally got round to reading Chris Bonington's book about it 📚
www.markhorrell.com/blog/2025/ch...
Chris Bonington and the first ascent of Kongur Tagh
Wedged between the foothills of three huge mountain ranges – the Karakoram to the south, Pamirs to the north-west, and the Kunlun to the west – is Kongur, a complex massif of interlinked peaks and …
www.markhorrell.com
July 30, 2025 at 6:18 PM
"The controversy shifted dramatically when Hojac and Brugger discovered that Siegrist had retroactively changed details about his 2004 climb on his website." 😮

Handbags on the Eiger. Two competing claims to a speed record as accuser becomes the accused 👜
explorersweb.com/controversy-...
Controversy Surrounds Speed Record on Bernese North Face Trilogy » Explorersweb
A mountaineering dispute continues to simmer after climber Stephan Siegrist questioned a new speed record set by Nicolas Hojac and Philipp Brugger.
explorersweb.com
July 22, 2025 at 6:09 PM