The Mountaineers Books Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills

Summary

The textbook for mountain climbing.

This is the textbook for mountaineering. It not only covers the what or the how of a subject but the why giving you a more in-depth understanding.

For example, you shouldn't wear cotton in cold weather because the shape of the fiber holds water and fills the air spaces greatly reducing insulation. This goes on for such diverse topics as digging a cat hole to go poo to using an ice ax to cross a glacier. If you can master the techniques in this book you can climb the biggest peaks in the wildest places.

The downside of a book is you are not going to master complex techniques just by reading the instructions. For the easier activities like navigation or tying knots you need to practice. For more complex activities like climbing or crossing a glacier you need to find an instructor to start to ask questions and help with misunderstandings.

This is the best ref book yet for the outdoors. It covers a broad range of skills - orienteering, rock climbing, gear, snow travel, etc. and one can learn a lot by reading it.

I highly recommend this book if you want to spend time off the beaten path.

This is one of the best all around guide books for anything you wish to know about mountains. Rock, ice, climb. It's easy to read, simple illustrations and really it's just cover everything and make a great book to start with if looking for any mountain activity. Been looking around for a book that will give me some good all around introduction and this book fit the bill.

I recommend this book for all novice or expert climbers and backpackers. Good solid information that will get you started the right way. Great for review also.