Category: TRAINING

JAPAN'S BEST ALPINE TRIPS BEGIN HERE

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2020/21 Mt FUJI WINTER ASCENTS: THE YEAR FOR KEEPING IT REAL

2020/21 IS A DRY YEAR ON FUJI WHICH MEANS IT’S FAR SAFER THAN USUAL. THE BEAUTY OF THIS MEANS IT’S AN IDEAL YEAR FOR ASCENTS IN REAL ALPINE STYLE THAT DON’T USE THE ESTABLISHED TRAILS. FOR ANYONE WHO HAS CLIMBED FUJI IN WINTER, THE CHANCE TO DO IT OFF THE TRAILS IS BOTH RARE AND…
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WINTER BIVY NIGHTS

WE’VE SOLD IMAGES OF JAPANESE ICEFALLS AND WINTER CLIMBING FOR YEARS NOW, BUT RECENTLY IT’S BEEN INTEREST IN BIVY SITES THAT HAS DRAWN ATTENTION. ALMOST INVARIABLY THOSE WHO POINT THIS OUT HAVE THE SAME REASON – THEY WANT TO START DOING MORE INVOLVED ASCENTS. SOMETIMES IT’S JUST ABOUT LEARNING A SURVIVAL SKILL, BUT MORE AND…
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JAPAN HARD ALPINISM: WHAT IS IT, AND HOW DO I GET SOME?

THIS WINTER IS DIFFERENT. ASIDE FROM THE CORONA VIRUS, FOR SOME REASON REQUESTS THIS TIME ROUND ARE CENTERING ON THE MORE SERIOUS SIDE OF JAPANESE ALPINISM. WE ASSUME THIS IS TO DO WITH THE AMOUNT OF TIME PEOPLE HAVE, AND THAT THE PEOPLE WANTING TRIPS THIS YEAR ARE BRINGING A HIGHER-THEN-USUAL DEGREE OF EXPERIENCE TO…
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JUST GET UP THE MOUNTAIN: VERTICAL PROBLEM SOLVING FOR INDEPENDENT CLIMBERS

“THERE’S ONLY TWO RULES – WHAT A MAN WILL DO, AND WHAT A MAN WON’T DO”. Capt. Jack Sparrow ICECLIMBINGJAPAN AND FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS GET A LOT OF CLIMBERS IN THE TRANSITION PHASE FROM GUIDED OR GUIDE-BOOKED ROUTES TO FIRST ASCENTS AND INDEPENDENT TRIPS. THESE ARE CLIMBERS WHO ARE GOING BEYOND WHAT COMMERCIAL CLIMBING…
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YATSUGATAKE; 2 DAY ICE / ALPINE LINK-UP

LINKING UP ROUTES IS THE MAINSTAY METHOD OF PUSHING YOUR GAME FOR LARGER OBJECTIVES. WHETHER IT’S PREPARING FOR BIG RANGE ASCENTS OR IN IT’S OWN RIGHT AS A DISCIPLINE OF ALPINISM, STACKING 2 OR MORE REGULAR ROUTES CONTINUOUSLY BECOMES AN OBVIOUS THING TO DO. IN JAPANESE ALPINISM THIS GETS CALLED ‘PACHINKO’ IN REFERENCE TO THE GAMBLING…
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Mt FUJI 2019 / 20 WINTER: GOOD TO GO

THIS IS IT. IF YOU NEED TO DECIDE IF YOU’RE GETTING ON Mt FUJI THIS WINTER THEN THIS IS HOW IT LOOKS RIGHT NOW.

JAPANESE FAST & LIGHT: A DIFFERENT STRATEGY

ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS WE’VE LEARNED FROM JAPANESE ALPINISM IS BEING TRULY FASTER AND LIGHTER. MOST PEOPLE NOTICE ON THE APPROACH TRAILS THAT JAPANESE CLIMBERS CARRY NO SHORTAGE OF STUFF – ESPECIALLY FOOD – AND MAKE THE HALF-BAKED CONCLUSION THE ‘FAST & LIGHT’ ETHOS NEVER TOOK HOLD HERE. BUT THEY’D BE WRONG. ITS VERY…
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CALORIE MATE CAN: THE SECRET

ICECLIMBINGJAPAN’S SECRET ON THINGS LIKE ONE DAY PUSH TRIPS, CALORIE MATE CAN – THE DRINK VERSION OF THE WELL KNOWN BARS – WE’VE FOUND TO BE EASILY THE BEST ENERGY SUPPLEMENT AROUND. TASTE WISE, UNLIKE THE BARS, IT’S EASY TO CONSUME; A BIT SWEET, A BIT FATTY, A BIT SALTY, IT DOESN’T TASTE LIKE PROTEIN…
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THE DNA OF JAPANESE ALPINISM; PACHINKO & THE NORTHERN ALPS TRAVERSE

SO ANYBODY FAMILIAR WITH THE HIMALAYAS OR ALASKA KNOWS THE JAPANESE HAVE MADE MAJOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO WORLD CLIMBING – ON PAR WITH THE POLISH, SLOVENIANS, AMERICANS, RUSSIANS. SHRUGGING OFF A MID-HISTORY OF SIEGING MOUNTAINS WITH THOUSANDS OF METERS OF FIXED LINE, EMERGING CLIMBERS BECAME KNOWN FOR DARING ROUTES ON MINIMAL FOOD AND GEAR, OFTEN PLAYING…
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MT FUJI FOR TRAINING 2019

this winter Mt Fuji is in exceptional alpine climbing condition. much less snow than usual (despite looking otherwise at the start of the season), scoured, bare and blasted. click to get a good look at the ripped surface and exposed rock. This makes the 18 / 19 season excellent for base training – the huge…
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