THE SOUL OF MOUNTAINEERING

Past and present on Europe’s most appealing peaks

This book outlines the mountaineering exploits done by some of the first pioneers combined with stories and images about ascending these iconic peaks in present time. With this unique collection of stories, I hope to inspire people to go out and climb some of these striking mountains.

Besides enjoyable physical exercise, the climbs I made for this book gave me a great feeling of comradeship and the chance to meet different people from the mountaineering tribe while experiencing the beauty and forces of the mountains together. Having stood on all these summits, sometimes alone but most of the time with others, it felt like celebrating life and honoring the rich history of mountaineering and the adventurous individuals who started this unique ‘sport’.

The routes described in this book usually follow the way of the first ascensionists which are most of the time the easiest ways to the summit. As a result, this book is a source of inspiration for many of you out there. With the benefits of modern infrastructures, sport specific training, high-end gear and the availability of professional mountain guides, these iconic peaks can be on the bucket list of anyone willing to invest in proper gear and suitable fitness. Dedicating yourself to reach the summit of one of Europe’s most appealing mountains can be a great and even life-changing experience.

In the thirty years that I’ve been climbing, I always had a certain drive for the unknown and unclimbed. I started my climbing career with ascending bridges and art structures in my home town and ended up making first ascents of mountains in Algeria, Greenland, Baffin Island and Surinam. After many years of scaling the globe, I felt that the amount of time and energy spent traveling to distant places was no longer worth the effort. I had to start looking at the potential in my own backyard; Europe.

Looking for inspiration I went through my extended collection of mountaineering books and while looking at an ordinary picture of the Matterhorn, I realized that there were moments in history when mountains like Matterhorn and Mont Blanc were climbed for the very first time.

Curious about these early mountaineers and the atmosphere of their ascents I started reading about mountaineering history. Soon after I started to organize trips to ascent the mountains and routes that I read about. I visited beautiful places, enjoyed climbing mountains far within my comfort zone and honored my climbing ancestors on the way. I discovered that knowing the history of a mountain added an extra layer to its ascent and decided I wanted to share this experience by publishing this book.

The origin of mountaineering comes from human curiosity and the urge to explore and discover. The most early ascents were done on behalf of science, cartography or religion. Without the scientific experiments that were done on the summit of Mont Blanc in 1787, the climb would have been labeled ‘useless’ in those days. And without the big cross that was placed on the summit of the Großglockner in the year 1800 the expedition would have been unsuccessful. An exception occurred in 1492 when King Charles VIII of france gave orders to ascent the Mont Inaccessible for no other reason than to show it could be done. This ascent of the Mont Aiguille, as we now call it, is often reverted to as the cradle of mountaineering.

The soul of mountaineering on the other hand is much more personal and spiritual. It seems to be an inner call to rise high above the valley floor and to be forced upon a different perspective on life. This inner call has been the stimulus for many mountaineers and fuels individuals to do extraordinary things.

By publishing these stories and making people eager to go into the mountains, I have to point out that mountaineering is an activity that involves risk and uncertainty. The slip of a foot can cause an accident in which people can get injured or even get killed. The disaster during the descent of the Matterhorn in 1865 was the first example of such a tragedy in the history of mountaineering. It almost made Queen Victoria decide to ban mountaineering altogether.

While growing older and going through new phases of life I often wonder why I feel this urge to go out and climb mountains. It seems to me that every now and then I’m longing for a rougher and more primitive way of life in which I often meet the better version of myself. In those moments I feel more aware of myself and my surroundings, free from daily routines where incitement and expectations seem to dominate. I forget about my smartphone and I stop thinking about the obligations that are still to come. for a moment I’m free of distraction, only trying to keep up with my climbing partner, my own expectations and the challenges that nature has to offer. After climbing and descending a mountain successfully I sometimes feel ‘like a lion’ as Charles Barrington put it when reflecting on his first ascent of the notorious Eiger in 1858.

When you are done reading, go out, enjoy comradeship and be safe while ascending the most iconic peaks of Europe!