David Lintern

&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at www.mountainairpodcast.ukEpisode 2#07 gets to know none other than multi-talented photojournalist David Lintern. Based in Kingussie in the Cairngorms National Park, David is an outdoor writer and photographer of high reputation. You’ve likely seen his images and read his words across many different magazines and websites that focus on Britain’s hills, mountains and rivers. So, who better to spend an hour with discussing the challenges and rewards of this environment we all love so much?Having just released his latest book, “Thunder Road: Voices from the Cape Wrath Trail”, David’s keen to describe the landscapes and people discovered along the most famous hiking route in Scotland’s epic north-west, as well as to discuss what he’s trying to achieve in documenting these unique subjects. He also shares the fascinating story of how a person ends up living the life of an environmental journalist in the Scottish Highlands - a dream job, perhaps, but one which brings plenty of insecurity with its limitless freedoms. From London-based cinema projectionist, to “scruffy musician”, to founder of a children’s charity, David’s journey has taken him from a deeply urban life to one spent amongst the wildest of places. There’s even time to discuss a fateful two-month hike of the Pyrenees and a formative winter mountaineering trip across the Ben Alder range with some deeply eerie details…Visit www.davidlintern.com to find out more about David’s work, and make sure to catch up with him on Instagram too: @davidjlinternListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 26/05/22]00:00 - Introduction03:23 - Welcome, “a photographer and writer focusing on human-powered travel, landscape and the environment”, discussing the book “Thunder Road: Voices from the Cape Wrath Trail”06:53 - Most definitely not “striding forth under self-imposed adversity”, more details of the Cape Wrath experience13:28 - War games off the Scottish coast17:33 - “Vanishing Point” photography project, the struggles of being a freelancer during the COVID pandemic, “lots of freedom, but lots of insecurity”20:13 - Enjoying “the wrestle” of writing, details of an outdoor media career, “esoteric ramblings”27:38 - “We were all feeling pretty experimental in COVID, weren’t we?”28:33 - Coming to the outdoors relatively late, discovering the mountains as an adult. A former life as a London-based cinema projectionist, youth music worker, sound engineer, and university lecturer… seeing “literally thousands of films at the National Film Theatre”33:23 - Becoming a community music leader, setting up the Soundmix charity (http://www.soundmix.org.uk/who-we-are/), working with the refugee council and “unaccompanied minors”, “what can a scruffy musician do?”35:23 - An “early mid-life crisis” expressed by walking across the Pyrenees in a two-month charity trip, starting to work with the John Muir Trust38:10 - A passion for cinema, music and soundtracks, performing background music for TV programmes, an interest in analogue machinery 40:13 - Creating electronic music and dub via Projector Records: “to call it a record label would suggest that it actually functioned… it was basically a group of friends that lived in a house in the mid-90s”42:51 - Some heartfelt words about a love of the outdoors and life in Kingussie, “when you live here you realise that they’re called the grey hills and the red hills for a reason… it’s a special place”49:39 - “The bit that’s important to me is allowing other people to speak… really I’m the least interesting bit of the equation”. 53:03 - Enriching your life through experiences in the “heavens”. How can we bring those transformative experiences back down to our everyday lives.54:23 - Greatest mountain memory… a long winter mountaineering weekend in the Ben Alder range, the Lancet Edge, eerie sounds, unsettling footsteps, a golden eagle.59:23 - All the time, money, freedom… what would you do? A simple answer… and a more complicated one: fixing the gap between recreational hill people, and those that live and work on the land, conservation and shooting estates (“we have big environmental decisions to make as a society… and we’re not able to have those conversations”)

&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>Episode 2#07 gets to know none other than multi-talented photojournalist David Lintern. Based in Kingussie in the Cairngorms National Park, David is an outdoor writer and photographer of high reputation. You’ve likely seen his images and read his words across many different magazines and websites that focus on Britain’s hills, mountains and rivers. So, who better to spend an hour with discussing the challenges and rewards of this environment we all love so much?Having just released his latest book, “<a href="https://www.duskpress.com/product/thunder-road-voices-from-the-cape-wrath-trail" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Thunder Road: Voices from the Cape Wrath Trail</a>”, David’s keen to describe the landscapes and people discovered along the most famous hiking route in Scotland’s epic north-west, as well as to discuss what he’s trying to achieve in documenting these unique subjects. He also shares the fascinating story of how a person ends up living the life of an environmental journalist in the Scottish Highlands - a dream job, perhaps, but one which brings plenty of insecurity with its limitless freedoms. From London-based cinema projectionist, to “scruffy musician”, to founder of a children’s charity, David’s journey has taken him from a deeply urban life to one spent amongst the wildest of places. There’s even time to discuss a fateful two-month hike of the Pyrenees and a formative winter mountaineering trip across the Ben Alder range with some deeply eerie details…Visit <a href="http://www.davidlintern.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.davidlintern.com</a> to find out more about David’s work, and make sure to catch up with him on Instagram too: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davidjlintern/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@davidjlintern</a>Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank <a href="https://www.ukhillwalking.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 26/05/22]00:00 - Introduction03:23 - Welcome, “a photographer and writer focusing on human-powered travel, landscape and the environment”, discussing the book “Thunder Road: Voices from the Cape Wrath Trail”06:53 - Most definitely not “striding forth under self-imposed adversity”, more details of the Cape Wrath experience13:28 - War games off the Scottish coast17:33 - “Vanishing Point” photography project, the struggles of being a freelancer during the COVID pandemic, “lots of freedom, but lots of insecurity”20:13 - Enjoying “the wrestle” of writing, details of an outdoor media career, “esoteric ramblings”27:38 - “We were all feeling pretty experimental in COVID, weren’t we?”28:33 - Coming to the outdoors relatively late, discovering the mountains as an adult. A former life as a London-based cinema projectionist, youth music worker, sound engineer, and university lecturer… seeing “literally thousands of films at the National Film Theatre”33:23 - Becoming a community music leader, setting up the Soundmix charity (<a href="http://www.soundmix.org.uk/who-we-are/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.soundmix.org.uk/who-we-are/</a>), working with the refugee council and “unaccompanied minors”, “what can a scruffy musician do?”35:23 - An “early mid-life crisis” expressed by walking across the Pyrenees in a two-month charity trip, starting to work with the John Muir Trust38:10 - A passion for cinema, music and soundtracks, performing background music for TV programmes, an interest in analogue machinery 40:13 - Creating electronic music and dub via Projector Records: “to call it a record label would suggest that it actually functioned… it was basically a group of friends that lived in a house in the mid-90s”42:51 - Some heartfelt words about a love of the outdoors and life in Kingussie, “when you live here you realise that they’re called the grey hills and the red hills for a reason… it’s a special place”49:39 - “The bit that’s important to me is allowing other people to speak… really I’m the least interesting bit of the equation”. 53:03 - Enriching your life through experiences in the “heavens”. How can we bring those transformative experiences back down to our everyday lives.54:23 - Greatest mountain memory… a long winter mountaineering weekend in the Ben Alder range, the Lancet Edge, eerie sounds, unsettling footsteps, a golden eagle.59:23 - All the time, money, freedom… what would you do? A simple answer… and a more complicated one: fixing the gap between recreational hill people, and those that live and work on the land, conservation and shooting estates (“we have big environmental decisions to make as a society… and we’re not able to have those conversations”)

2#07 David Lintern: the photojournalist

Rob Woodall

&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at www.mountainairpodcast.ukEpisode 2#06 welcomes a man that may be the most prolific hillwalker in history. That’s because Rob Woodall has spent the past 40 years systematically completing every list of peaks, tops, prominences and trig points in existence. Putting to one side the popular lifetime achievements of the Munros, the Corbetts, the Wainwrights and such; he’s summited all 1,556 “Marilyns” (UK peaks with a relative prominence of 150m), touched at least 6,190 trig points, and even stood atop all 2,271 “TuMPs” on the Welsh mainland (a deeply esoteric list of raised ground with Thirty and Upward Metre Prominences). Since recently semi-retiring his ambitions have even turned to the list of global “Ultra” peaks, which are those with a topographic prominence of 1,500m. There are 119 in Europe (not including the Matterhorn or the Eiger whose high cols preclude them), none in Britain (poor Ben Nevis), and so far at least 1,515 have been identified across the world. Nobody has come close to completing this list, and Rob doesn’t believe they are “realistically completable by anybody”. But he’s still quietly ticking them off.His achievements haven’t gone unnoticed, and it’s likely that you will have read about him in the outdoor press… but so many questions remain: How has he achieved such incredible hillbagging feats whilst being based in the lowland city of Peterborough? Has his lifelong career in civil engineering given him the map-savvy skills to achieve his goals? How does he endure so much driving? What kit does he wear when he’s out in the hills? Is there any moment of his spare time that isn’t spent hunting down summits? How do you access a sea stack? Can microspikes keep you from slipping on guano? Is he aware of quite how bonkers the whole thing seems to those outside the hobby?Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 18/11/21]Note: as there were a number of months in-between recording and publication, the ever-thorough Rob would like to point out that…The newly created North Northants unitary authority's top is a new hill! See Mill HillThere's not even a Hump in East Anglia (there are none east of Northampton's Arbury Hill)He is now 62Elbrus, for obvious reasons, is no longer in his current climbing plansThe Africa trip mentioned near the end of the interview was not feasible due to COVID restrictionsTime stamps…00:00 - Introduction02:02 - Welcome, “mind-bending achievements”03:57 - Defining the hill-bagging lists (Rob’s done them all)09:22 - “Anything which sticks out of the ground in Britain… you’ve stood on top of?”10:17 - *202114:17 - Starting a hill-bagging career in his early 20s, opening up further ticklists (birds, botany)18:02 - A friendly rivalry with Ken Whyte (who sadly passed away after this interview was recorded, see his obituary here: https://www.peakbagger.com/climber/climber.aspx?cid=7239), the camaraderie of chartering boats with fellow baggers to reach isolated island peaks, cake, whiskey and parties on the tops20:12 - “It’s not the sort of number that you can get to accidentally”22:32 - The practicalities of bagging: sleeping in the car, keeping up fitness, mountain running the “Big Three” rounds27:37 - Bagging the 6,200+ Trig Pillars (“they keep disappearing, a few get re-found which is always exciting”)32:02 - … nuclear sub base… critical assets that are “rather well defended… 20 years ago the fences were very different”34:02 - Coping with mammoth amounts of driving: “I’m a big fan of Radio 4”36:32 - Favourite parts of the UK hills and “spectacularly wet days”40:22 - Sea stacks, gannet colonies, the October “sweet spot” and microspikes47:32 - “I’m pretty obsessive, yeah…”48:32 - Praising the Buffalo Teclite and various phone apps51:42 - The global “ultras” (1,500m prominence)... which aren’t “realistically completable by anybody”56:17 - Using local guides60:32 - “Taking on something when you don’t know if it’s possible or not… you get a real buzz when it’s complete.”62:02 - Greatest mountain memory… Mount Odin in British Columbia “you can’t really see it from anywhere… it’s grizzly bear country”64:32 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? Disappear into the Andes for a number of months

&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>Episode 2#06 welcomes a man that may be the most prolific hillwalker in history. That’s because Rob Woodall has spent the past 40 years systematically completing every list of peaks, tops, prominences and trig points in existence. Putting to one side the popular lifetime achievements of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Munro_mountains" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Munros</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Corbett_mountains" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Corbetts</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wainwrights" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Wainwrights</a> and such; he’s summited all 1,556 “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyns" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Marilyns</a>” (UK peaks with a relative prominence of 150m), touched at least 6,190 trig points, and even stood atop all 2,271 “<a href="https://www.hill-bagging.co.uk/Tumps.php" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">TuMPs</a>” on the Welsh mainland (a deeply esoteric list of raised ground with Thirty and Upward Metre Prominences). Since recently semi-retiring his ambitions have even turned to the list of global “Ultra” peaks, which are those with a topographic prominence of 1,500m. There are 119 in Europe (not including the Matterhorn or the Eiger whose high cols preclude them), none in Britain (poor Ben Nevis), and so far at least 1,515 have been identified across the world. Nobody has come close to completing this list, and Rob doesn’t believe they are “realistically completable by anybody”. But he’s still quietly ticking them off.His achievements haven’t gone unnoticed, and it’s likely that you will have read about him in the outdoor press… but so many questions remain: How has he achieved such incredible hillbagging feats whilst being based in the lowland city of Peterborough? Has his lifelong career in civil engineering given him the map-savvy skills to achieve his goals? How does he endure so much driving? What kit does he wear when he’s out in the hills? Is there any moment of his spare time that isn’t spent hunting down summits? How do you access a sea stack? Can microspikes keep you from slipping on guano? Is he aware of quite how bonkers the whole thing seems to those outside the hobby?Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank <a href="https://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 18/11/21]Note: as there were a number of months in-between recording and publication, the ever-thorough Rob would like to point out that…The newly created North Northants unitary authority's top is a new hill! See <a href="http://www.hill-bagging.co.uk/mountaindetails.php?qu=S&amp;rf=19810&amp;utm_content=link1&amp;utm_campaign=articles_id_14483&amp;utm_medium=articles_post&amp;utm_source=%5Bsite%5D" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mill Hill</a>There's not even a Hump in East Anglia (there are none east of Northampton's Arbury Hill)He is now 62Elbrus, for obvious reasons, is no longer in his current climbing plansThe Africa trip mentioned near the end of the interview was not feasible due to COVID restrictionsTime stamps…00:00 - Introduction02:02 - Welcome, “mind-bending achievements”03:57 - Defining the hill-bagging lists (Rob’s done them all)09:22 - “Anything which sticks out of the ground in Britain… you’ve stood on top of?”10:17 - *202114:17 - Starting a hill-bagging career in his early 20s, opening up further ticklists (birds, botany)18:02 - A friendly rivalry with Ken Whyte (who sadly passed away after this interview was recorded, see his obituary here: <a href="https://www.peakbagger.com/climber/climber.aspx?cid=7239" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.peakbagger.com/climber/climber.aspx?cid=7239</a>), the camaraderie of chartering boats with fellow baggers to reach isolated island peaks, cake, whiskey and parties on the tops20:12 - “It’s not the sort of number that you can get to accidentally”22:32 - The practicalities of bagging: sleeping in the car, keeping up fitness, mountain running the “Big Three” rounds27:37 - Bagging the 6,200+ Trig Pillars (“they keep disappearing, a few get re-found which is always exciting”)32:02 - … nuclear sub base… critical assets that are “rather well defended… 20 years ago the fences were very different”34:02 - Coping with mammoth amounts of driving: “I’m a big fan of Radio 4”36:32 - Favourite parts of the UK hills and “spectacularly wet days”40:22 - Sea stacks, gannet colonies, the October “sweet spot” and microspikes47:32 - “I’m pretty obsessive, yeah…”48:32 - Praising the Buffalo Teclite and various phone apps51:42 - The global “ultras” (1,500m prominence)... which aren’t “realistically completable by anybody”56:17 - Using local guides60:32 - “Taking on something when you don’t know if it’s possible or not… you get a real buzz when it’s complete.”62:02 - Greatest mountain memory… Mount Odin in British Columbia “you can’t really see it from anywhere… it’s grizzly bear country”64:32 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? Disappear into the Andes for a number of months

2#06 Rob Woodall: the hill-bagging machine

Sarah Jane Douglas

Episode 2#05 cosies up with the irrepressible Sarah Jane Douglas. In 2019 Sarah published her first book: Just Another Mountain, an autobiographical story of loss and grief, but ultimately joy, love and empowerment found in the wild beauty of the Scottish Highlands. It was a huge success. So much so that it saw her lauded across the national press and invited onto ITV’s flagship breakfast show for a friendly “baptism of fire” (Sarah’s words) with Lorraine Kelly.You may also recognise her from across the outdoor press (including this episode’s sponsor UKHillwalking.com), where she contributes everything from gear reviews to in-depth walking features. What you may not know is that she’s also: a long-term member of the security team at Inverness Airport, a prolific artist and painter, a mother of two, a cancer survivor, a fanatical Corbett wildcamper, Munroist #5764 (“compleated” in 2015), a habitual destroyer of electronics, a hardened instigator (and resolver) of hillwalking disasters, a shameless follower of many soaps, very much a native Highlander, and one of the most passionate, dedicated and candid mountaineers you’re likely to hear on this podcast or any other. She also has an axe.&gt; Read more about Sarah here: www.jennybrownassociates.com/sarah-jane-douglas.htm&gt; … and here: smashingcancerintheface.wordpress.com/aboutListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 09/12/21]&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at www.mountainairpodcast.uk00:00 - Introduction02:00 - Welcome, airport shifts and winter escapes to the hills, why Inverness is “the absolute best place in the whole of Scotland to live”06:50 - It’s not about the bagging07:50 - “Being up on the mountains soothed me, and made my troubles seem to melt temporarily”09:07 - Writing “Just Another Mountain”: “Obviously I’m going to have to burn them before I die, because there’s no way I could have anyone reading some of the content that’s in there, let me tell you…”11:58 - A “baptism of fire” with Lorraine Kelly.13:00 - What do people find in the book? “They see a lot of themselves in the words that I’ve written… there is always hope as well, no matter how dark and grim life can become, there is a way forward through those troubles and difficulties”14:40 - A family history, loss, tragedy and childhood climbing (“thears a bairn on tha’ ruf!”)22:00 - Artwork: “I was always scribbling on my granny’s walls. She would go mental”. A broken ankle and an opportunity to paint again.29:10 - Celebrating disaster with “gonzo” outdoor writing, lost tents, drenched electronics, milk-clogged Jetboils, crisps for breakfast, weeing all over yourself… “I can’t have nice things, they just get trashed”42:51 - “The important thing to me is that I am well and that I am restored by the activities I love to do, and I do love the mountains”45:10 - Being alone in the outdoors, “hill hysteria”, people being “subjected to my singing”, the nightmare of the hillwalking earworm.50:00 - Foreign trips to the hills, “I always have this yearning to be on the highest spot that’s possible for my own ability”. A meaningful trip to Nepal.58:00 - Greatest Mountain Memory: searching for a memorial cairn in remote Nepal60:30 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? “I would just go away to the mountains and never come back”, food drops from helicopter pilots, building bothies, “spend the rest of my days just wandering from mountain to mountain… I’d be very happy doing that”62:45 - An Eastenders-based revelation65:30 - Household chores… with an axe(“CHOP CHOP CHOP”)

Episode 2#05 cosies up with the irrepressible Sarah Jane Douglas. In 2019 Sarah published her first book: Just Another Mountain, an autobiographical story of loss and grief, but ultimately joy, love and empowerment found in the wild beauty of the Scottish Highlands. It was a huge success. So much so that it saw her lauded across the national press and invited onto ITV’s flagship breakfast show for a friendly “baptism of fire” (Sarah’s words) with Lorraine Kelly.You may also recognise her from across the outdoor press (including this episode’s sponsor<a href="https://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> UKHillwalking.com</a>), where she contributes everything from gear reviews to in-depth walking features. What you may not know is that she’s also: a long-term member of the security team at Inverness Airport, a prolific artist and painter, a mother of two, a cancer survivor, a fanatical Corbett wildcamper, Munroist #5764 (“compleated” in 2015), a habitual destroyer of electronics, a hardened instigator (and resolver) of hillwalking disasters, a shameless follower of many soaps, very much a native Highlander, and one of the most passionate, dedicated and candid mountaineers you’re likely to hear on this podcast or any other. She also has an axe.&gt; Read more about Sarah here:<a href="https://www.jennybrownassociates.com/sarah-jane-douglas.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> www.jennybrownassociates.com/sarah-jane-douglas.htm</a>&gt; … and here:<a href="https://smashingcancerintheface.wordpress.com/about" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> smashingcancerintheface.wordpress.com/about</a>Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank<a href="https://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 09/12/21]&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>00:00 - Introduction02:00 - Welcome, airport shifts and winter escapes to the hills, why Inverness is “the absolute best place in the whole of Scotland to live”06:50 - It’s not about the bagging07:50 - “Being up on the mountains soothed me, and made my troubles seem to melt temporarily”09:07 - Writing “Just Another Mountain”: “Obviously I’m going to have to burn them before I die, because there’s no way I could have anyone reading some of the content that’s in there, let me tell you…”11:58 - A “baptism of fire” with Lorraine Kelly.13:00 - What do people find in the book? “They see a lot of themselves in the words that I’ve written… there is always hope as well, no matter how dark and grim life can become, there is a way forward through those troubles and difficulties”14:40 - A family history, loss, tragedy and childhood climbing (“thears a bairn on tha’ ruf!”)22:00 - Artwork: “I was always scribbling on my granny’s walls. She would go mental”. A broken ankle and an opportunity to paint again.29:10 - Celebrating disaster with “gonzo” outdoor writing, lost tents, drenched electronics, milk-clogged Jetboils, crisps for breakfast, weeing all over yourself… “I can’t have nice things, they just get trashed”42:51 - “The important thing to me is that I am well and that I am restored by the activities I love to do, and I do love the mountains”45:10 - Being alone in the outdoors, “hill hysteria”, people being “subjected to my singing”, the nightmare of the hillwalking earworm.50:00 - Foreign trips to the hills, “I always have this yearning to be on the highest spot that’s possible for my own ability”. A meaningful trip to Nepal.58:00 - Greatest Mountain Memory: searching for a memorial cairn in remote Nepal60:30 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? “I would just go away to the mountains and never come back”, food drops from helicopter pilots, building bothies, “spend the rest of my days just wandering from mountain to mountain… I’d be very happy doing that”62:45 - An Eastenders-based revelation65:30 - Household chores… with an axe(“CHOP CHOP CHOP”)

2#05 Sarah Jane Douglas: the natural-born Highlander

Renan Ozturk

Episode 2#04 is thrilled to sit down with Colorado-based Renan Ozturk to discuss his latest film “The Sanctity of Space”. A climbing film at heart, it not only celebrates the stunning landscapes of Denali National Park, the Alaska Range and the film-makers’ carving of a new skyline route across the “Moose’s Tooth” peak (3,150m)…  but also pays heartfelt tribute to Brad Washburn, the legendary aerial photographer whose life’s work provided inspiration for the entire project.And there’s time for more than that too. Renan - a sponsored expedition climber, landscape artist, and previous “National Geographic Adventurer of the Year” - has had a busy career so far. You may recognise him from his previous film projects “Meru” and “Sherpa” (both 2015), or perhaps from his back catalogue of arresting mountaineering photography. Possibly you’re one of his million-strong Instagram followers, or you met “dumpster diving” at Trader Joe’s in southern California, or he offered you a lift in the “technobago” whilst you were both enjoying your dirtbag climber phase. But don’t worry if not, this interview will provide the perfect introduction either way.&gt; Read more about Renan here: renanozturk.com, and find him on the ‘gram here: @renan_ozturk&gt; Find screenings and streaming links for “The Sanctity of Space” here: thesanctityofspace.comListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 10/03/22]&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at www.mountainairpodcast.uk00:00 - Introduction03:05 - Welcome04:14 - “The Sanctity of Space” - Brad Washburn, the sharing of exploration, finding an antique plane, “feeling the magic” in Washburn’s camera 11:20 - “I think what he created still stands up against the highest resolution digital cameras”11:59 - Gyro-stabilised gimbals15:33 - The Moose’s Tooth: “… it’s going to be hard to top that experience of drawing a line with our bodies across that beautiful skyline.”18:40 - “The factors are always stacked against you in the mountains” 19:11 -  Top backcountry tip: “...just as long as you always save half your dinner, you’re never going to run out of food”20:30 - The allure of Denali National Park: “there aren’t many places in the world that are as alive as the Alaska Range”26:13 - The challenges of film-making: needing “the same optimism you have when you’re doing a climb”26:58 - “It’s impossible to answer the question of why you climb, and why you suffer, and why you put yourself in these crazy situations… as artists we always want to package it in different ways where the art itself answers the question, these images give people heart-palpitations or goosebumps in a way that you can never do in a conversation at the bar.”28:48 - Growing up in Rhode Island, discovering mountaineering at College, “I wasn’t one of these kids that grew up with ​​Yvon Chouinard as an uncle”32:30 - The “technobago”, a duffel bag, a backpack, an “endless summer” of climbing for seven or eight years34:00 - Painting, not “struggling with technology”, dragging a 10ft long canvas around the landscape of Nepal39:15 - “Dumpster diving” in Trader Joe’s in southern California, career thoughts44:07 - Greatest mountain memory: the end of the Mooth’s Tooth traverse “moving for some 30-odd hours… hallucinating without drugs… the summertime in Alaska where it doesn’t really get dark”46:00 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? “I’d still be doing what I’m doing now. It’s such a random storm of luck and opportunity that’s led me here”

Episode 2#04 is thrilled to sit down with Colorado-based Renan Ozturk to discuss his latest film “The Sanctity of Space”. A climbing film at heart, it not only celebrates the stunning landscapes of Denali National Park, the Alaska Range and the film-makers’ carving of a new skyline route across the “Moose’s Tooth” peak (3,150m)… but also pays heartfelt tribute to Brad Washburn, the legendary aerial photographer whose life’s work provided inspiration for the entire project.And there’s time for more than that too. Renan - a sponsored expedition climber, landscape artist, and previous “National Geographic Adventurer of the Year” - has had a busy career so far. You may recognise him from his previous film projects “Meru” and “Sherpa” (both 2015), or perhaps from his back catalogue of arresting mountaineering photography. Possibly you’re one of his million-strong Instagram followers, or you met “dumpster diving” at Trader Joe’s in southern California, or he offered you a lift in the “technobago” whilst you were both enjoying your dirtbag climber phase. But don’t worry if not, this interview will provide the perfect introduction either way.&gt; Read more about Renan here: <a href="http://renanozturk.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">renanozturk.com</a>, and find him on the ‘gram here: @renan_ozturk&gt; Find screenings and streaming links for “The Sanctity of Space” here: <a href="http://thesanctityofspace.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">thesanctityofspace.com</a>Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank <a href="http://UKHillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series![episode recorded on 10/03/22]&gt; Find galleries, blog posts and many more episodes at <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>00:00 - Introduction03:05 - Welcome04:14 - “The Sanctity of Space” - Brad Washburn, the sharing of exploration, finding an antique plane, “feeling the magic” in Washburn’s camera 11:20 - “I think what he created still stands up against the highest resolution digital cameras”11:59 - Gyro-stabilised gimbals15:33 - The Moose’s Tooth: “… it’s going to be hard to top that experience of drawing a line with our bodies across that beautiful skyline.”18:40 - “The factors are always stacked against you in the mountains” 19:11 -  Top backcountry tip: “...just as long as you always save half your dinner, you’re never going to run out of food”20:30 - The allure of Denali National Park: “there aren’t many places in the world that are as alive as the Alaska Range”26:13 - The challenges of film-making: needing “the same optimism you have when you’re doing a climb”26:58 - “It’s impossible to answer the question of why you climb, and why you suffer, and why you put yourself in these crazy situations… as artists we always want to package it in different ways where the art itself answers the question, these images give people heart-palpitations or goosebumps in a way that you can never do in a conversation at the bar.”28:48 - Growing up in Rhode Island, discovering mountaineering at College, “I wasn’t one of these kids that grew up with ​​Yvon Chouinard as an uncle”32:30 - The “technobago”, a duffel bag, a backpack, an “endless summer” of climbing for seven or eight years34:00 - Painting, not “struggling with technology”, dragging a 10ft long canvas around the landscape of Nepal39:15 - “Dumpster diving” in Trader Joe’s in southern California, career thoughts44:07 - Greatest mountain memory: the end of the Mooth’s Tooth traverse “moving for some 30-odd hours… hallucinating without drugs… the summertime in Alaska where it doesn’t really get dark”46:00 - All the time, money, freedom… what do you do? “I’d still be doing what I’m doing now. It’s such a random storm of luck and opportunity that’s led me here”

2#04 Renan Ozturk: the mountain filmmaker

A very quick update about the next episode in the series… &gt; visit thesanctityofspace.com 

A very quick update about the next episode in the series… &gt; visit <a href="http://thesanctityofspace.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">thesanctityofspace.com</a>

A quick word about “The Sanctity of Space”…

Keri Wallace

Episode 2#03 hears all about a big decision. Exhausted by commuting, frustrated by inflexible work and desperate to spend more time pursuing her love of the outdoors, Keri Wallace stepped away from a 10-year career in science communication and moved with her husband and two young daughters to Glen Coe. She’s never regretted it for a second.The result of this sizeable life-shift was the founding, in 2018, of “Girls on Hills: the UK's only guided trail, fell and skyrunning running company, designed specifically for women”. Over the past four years, Girls on Hills has expanded from an idea shared between friends, to a multi-faceted guiding company where women can pursue a love of mountain running aided by some of Britain’s most dedicated female runners. It’s not just a business to Keri, but has become a positive force for empowering women in the outdoors and giving female runners the space to connect with nature, with each other, and to excel.But that’s not to say that Keri herself isn’t a pretty inspiring figure (far from it). Keri’s outdoor CV includes a 10-day solo traverse of the “Big Three” hillwalking rounds of the Bob Graham, Paddy Buckley and Charlie Ramsay (she was recovering from a running injury at the time); posting a competitive time on the mammoth Gore-Tex Transalpine Run; and - perhaps most impressively of all - managing to take her two young daughters wild camping atop Glen Coe…&gt; Read more about Keri Wallace and Girls on Hills here: girlsonhills.com, and find them on Instagram here: @girlsonhillsukListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series!&gt; www.mountainairpodcast.uk[episode recorded on 17/11/21]00:00 - Introduction02:15 -“Kids’ shenanigans” 05:10 - All about Girls on Hills, transitioning from science communicator to business owner: “a bit of a leap, and a massive financial step backwards… but suddenly life got much simpler”07:50 - “We saw that lots of women wanted to run”, opening up to each other in the outdoors10:00 - “The things that you learn in the mountains, in terms of self-sufficiency and confidence, can be applied in your wider life”, running as an accessible, “low skill” sport, the appeal of a “women-specific” running experience14:15 - Banter, the strengthening of mixed groups, bothies and camping, concerns about physical safety22:40 - Leading runners in the Glen Coe environment, “… it just looks impenetrable!”29:35 - A quick look at Keri’s running CV… “I think I’ll do a mountain marathon… how hard can it be?” … it turns out “really, really hard”.37:02 - A solo, 10-day hillwalking trio of the Bob Graham Round, the Paddy Buckley Round and the Charlie Ramsay Round, raising money for the John Muir Trust and Water Aid (“it made me scared to do these things by myself, and that made me think that I ought to go and do it”)40:46 - FACT CHECK: Keri is (of course) absolutely correct and the Bob Graham Round comprises the summits of 42 fells. 44:00 - Reaching personal limits on the Gore-Tex Transalpine Run … “when you find it you always think it’s not your limit, and there’s some reason it’s not your limit” 48:55 - Parenting tips: taking kids wild camping (build up to it, be prepared to carry them out, take sweets and give them one on each zig-zag, “we try really hard not to bribe them constantly”)53:03 - Greatest Mountain Memory: a formative tragedy on “my first ever mountain, which was Ben Nevis”55:25 - All the time, money, freedom… where do you go? “To apply myself to something, whether it be a race or a challenge… to throw myself into something and give it my best efforts”58:08 - A final thought on safety in the outdoors. What can the world - and men in particular - do to help others feel safe?

Episode 2#03 hears all about a big decision. Exhausted by commuting, frustrated by inflexible work and desperate to spend more time pursuing her love of the outdoors, Keri Wallace stepped away from a 10-year career in science communication and moved with her husband and two young daughters to Glen Coe. She’s never regretted it for a second.The result of this sizeable life-shift was the founding, in 2018, of “Girls on Hills: the UK's only guided trail, fell and skyrunning running company, designed specifically for women”. Over the past four years, Girls on Hills has expanded from an idea shared between friends, to a multi-faceted guiding company where women can pursue a love of mountain running aided by some of Britain’s most dedicated female runners. It’s not just a business to Keri, but has become a positive force for empowering women in the outdoors and giving female runners the space to connect with nature, with each other, and to excel.But that’s not to say that Keri herself isn’t a pretty inspiring figure (far from it). Keri’s outdoor CV includes a 10-day solo traverse of the “Big Three” hillwalking rounds of the Bob Graham, Paddy Buckley and Charlie Ramsay (she was recovering from a running injury at the time); posting a competitive time on the mammoth Gore-Tex Transalpine Run; and - perhaps most impressively of all - managing to take her two young daughters wild camping atop Glen Coe…&gt; Read more about Keri Wallace and Girls on Hills here: <a href="http://girlsonhills.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">girlsonhills.com</a>, and find them on Instagram here: @girlsonhillsukListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank <a href="http://UKHillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series!&gt; <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>[episode recorded on 17/11/21]00:00 - Introduction02:15 -“Kids’ shenanigans” 05:10 - All about Girls on Hills, transitioning from science communicator to business owner: “a bit of a leap, and a massive financial step backwards… but suddenly life got much simpler”07:50 - “We saw that lots of women wanted to run”, opening up to each other in the outdoors10:00 - “The things that you learn in the mountains, in terms of self-sufficiency and confidence, can be applied in your wider life”, running as an accessible, “low skill” sport, the appeal of a “women-specific” running experience14:15 - Banter, the strengthening of mixed groups, bothies and camping, concerns about physical safety22:40 - Leading runners in the Glen Coe environment, “… it just looks impenetrable!”29:35 - A quick look at Keri’s running CV… “I think I’ll do a mountain marathon… how hard can it be?” … it turns out “really, really hard”.37:02 - A solo, 10-day hillwalking trio of the Bob Graham Round, the Paddy Buckley Round and the Charlie Ramsay Round, raising money for the John Muir Trust and Water Aid (“it made me scared to do these things by myself, and that made me think that I ought to go and do it”)40:46 - FACT CHECK: Keri is (of course) absolutely correct and the Bob Graham Round comprises the summits of 42 fells. 44:00 - Reaching personal limits on the Gore-Tex Transalpine Run … “when you find it you always think it’s not your limit, and there’s some reason it’s not your limit” 48:55 - Parenting tips: taking kids wild camping (build up to it, be prepared to carry them out, take sweets and give them one on each zig-zag, “we try really hard not to bribe them constantly”)53:03 - Greatest Mountain Memory: a formative tragedy on “my first ever mountain, which was Ben Nevis”55:25 - All the time, money, freedom… where do you go? “To apply myself to something, whether it be a race or a challenge… to throw myself into something and give it my best efforts”58:08 - A final thought on safety in the outdoors. What can the world - and men in particular - do to help others feel safe?

2#03 Keri Wallace: the Girl on Hills

Episode 2#02 is in awe of Zac Poulton. Zac is one of the Lake District’s three “Fell Top Assessors”, which means that today, yesterday, tomorrow and every day of the winter season, there’s a 33 per cent chance that he’s walking to the summit of one of England’s highest peaks. The resulting pictures and written reports provide an invaluable resource for hillwalkers, climbers and anyone else venturing out onto the wintery fells. Winning this kind of role means you’re about as dependable on the hill as human beings get.But that’s only a fraction of the story. Because the more you ask Zac about his career in the outdoors, the more amazing the tales become. He spent a month in Greenland helping to film base jumping barnacle geese chicks. He’s dangled down Alum Pot testing 5G broadcast equipment, he’s lived in vans in Scotland, ditches in the Alps, safety managed Kilian Jornet in Glen Coe, solo climbed Ama Dablam, guided tens of people to the summit of Everest, explored parts of Antarctica, lectured University students, and hallucinated on Wainwright’s Coast-to-Coast.… and all of this whilst overcoming a fear of heights. If you’ve ever considered a career in the outdoors and are wondering where such a move could take you, Zac’s story could be exactly what you need to hear.&gt; Read more about Zac Poulton here: www.mtnsafety.co.uk, and follow him on Twitter here: @MTN_SafetyListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank the excellent UKHillwalking.com for their kind support of this series!www.mountainairpodcast.uk[episode recorded on 25/11/21]00:00 – Introduction02:58 – Welcome, fell top assessing, safety work, high altitude guiding04:52 – Recent activities: film safety, 5G testing and live broadcasts, Alum Pot10:47 – Base jumping barnacle geese chicks in Greenland16:20 – “… they get focused on what’s going on through the camera and forget about the polar bear that’s stalking them from behind…”18:26 – The last 10 years: commercial guiding on big peaks, Scotland, life in a van, lecturing, training film crews22:46 – “Keep saying yes, and keep doing a good job, and the doors will keep opening”24:24 - Alpine memories: “living in a ditch in a field until the money ran out then hitching home again”, inspired by a being a Scout and reading mountaineering literature “even before I could read”27:38 – Overcoming a fear of heights, and why it’s key to being an effective guide36:50 – The pressure of expedition guiding, and learning to decompress afterwards, “I like to think that if they’re complaining about the food, then things are going well”40:00 – Safety for mountain running events, Glen Coe Skyline with Kilian Jornet, personal running experience45:40 – “I maybe slept for four hours or so… the hallucinations were quite good”47:12 – Guiding on Everest, “It’s hurting, but I’ve got a job to do, and these people are probably hurting more. I need to support them”, 45-minutes alone on the summit “not a soul in sight, and looking at the view”56:20 – Life as a Fell Top Assessor… and “informal, 20-minute crampon sessions”62:00 – “Parenthood is another of those amazing experiences, so so ‘yes’ to that as well!”63:00 – Greatest Mountain Memory: solo climb of Ama Dablam “so much of my work is with clients, which I love, but just to be out there by myself, able to move at my own pace and enjoy that environment…”67:20 – All the time, money, freedom, where do you go? The Antarctic coastline, or explorations of Baffin Island and the Arctic territories

Episode 2#02 is in awe of Zac Poulton. Zac is one of the Lake District’s three “Fell Top Assessors”, which means that today, yesterday, tomorrow and every day of the winter season, there’s a 33 per cent chance that he’s walking to the summit of one of England’s highest peaks. The resulting pictures and written reports provide an invaluable resource for hillwalkers, climbers and anyone else venturing out onto the wintery fells. Winning this kind of role means you’re about as dependable on the hill as human beings get.But that’s only a fraction of the story. Because the more you ask Zac about his career in the outdoors, the more amazing the tales become. He spent a month in Greenland helping to film base jumping barnacle geese chicks. He’s dangled down Alum Pot testing 5G broadcast equipment, he’s lived in vans in Scotland, ditches in the Alps, safety managed Kilian Jornet in Glen Coe, solo climbed Ama Dablam, guided tens of people to the summit of Everest, explored parts of Antarctica, lectured University students, and hallucinated on Wainwright’s Coast-to-Coast.… and all of this whilst overcoming a fear of heights. If you’ve ever considered a career in the outdoors and are wondering where such a move could take you, Zac’s story could be exactly what you need to hear.&gt; Read more about Zac Poulton here: <a href="http://www.mtnsafety.co.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mtnsafety.co.uk</a>, and follow him on Twitter here: @MTN_SafetyListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank the excellent <a href="http://UKHillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> for their kind support of this series!<a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>[episode recorded on 25/11/21]00:00 – Introduction02:58 – Welcome, fell top assessing, safety work, high altitude guiding04:52 – Recent activities: film safety, 5G testing and live broadcasts, Alum Pot10:47 – Base jumping barnacle geese chicks in Greenland16:20 – “… they get focused on what’s going on through the camera and forget about the polar bear that’s stalking them from behind…”18:26 – The last 10 years: commercial guiding on big peaks, Scotland, life in a van, lecturing, training film crews22:46 – “Keep saying yes, and keep doing a good job, and the doors will keep opening”24:24 - Alpine memories: “living in a ditch in a field until the money ran out then hitching home again”, inspired by a being a Scout and reading mountaineering literature “even before I could read”27:38 – Overcoming a fear of heights, and why it’s key to being an effective guide36:50 – The pressure of expedition guiding, and learning to decompress afterwards, “I like to think that if they’re complaining about the food, then things are going well”40:00 – Safety for mountain running events, Glen Coe Skyline with Kilian Jornet, personal running experience45:40 – “I maybe slept for four hours or so… the hallucinations were quite good”47:12 – Guiding on Everest, “It’s hurting, but I’ve got a job to do, and these people are probably hurting more. I need to support them”, 45-minutes alone on the summit “not a soul in sight, and looking at the view”56:20 – Life as a Fell Top Assessor… and “informal, 20-minute crampon sessions”62:00 – “Parenthood is another of those amazing experiences, so so ‘yes’ to that as well!”63:00 – Greatest Mountain Memory: solo climb of Ama Dablam “so much of my work is with clients, which I love, but just to be out there by myself, able to move at my own pace and enjoy that environment…”67:20 – All the time, money, freedom, where do you go? The Antarctic coastline, or explorations of Baffin Island and the Arctic territories

2#02 Zac Poulton: the Fell Top Assessor

Hello! And welcome to series two of Mountain Air! It’s an absolute pleasure for this episode to be supported by UKHillwalking.com, and an equal pleasure to be bringing you 87-minutes of conversation with Sibusiso Vilane - an inspirational man with an inspirational story to tell.In 2003, Sibusiso he became the first black African to summit Mt Everest, a phenomenal achievement given his impoverished roots and lack of mountaineering background, and one that earned him the attention and praise of Nelson Mandela and the wider world. But his story runs far deeper than that. His childhood was one of extreme poverty in apartheid Johannesburg, and later in Swaziland (now Eswatini). Hard work, dedication and the privilege of being able to attend school from age 10 eventually brought him a job as a tourist officer in a nature reserve, a position which made possible a chance meeting that would change the path of his life forever.Consumed by a passion for mountains and physical challenges, his life story is one that involves continental summits, ultra running, humility, the responsibilities of being a role model, laughter, charity work, motivational speaking, multiple summits of Everest and historical partnerships with... Sir Ranulph Fiennes.&gt; Read more about Sibusiso Vilane at www.sibusisovilane.co.za &gt; Visit the podcast at www.mountainairpodcast.ukListen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking for their kind support![episode recorded on 11/11/21]00:00 – Introduction02:16 – Welcome, responding to the pandemic by running (“I ran a full marathon last weekend… it was just dreadful!”08:30 – The rarest of all mountaineering backgrounds: growing up poor and black in apartheid Johannesburg, then Swaziland (“we never had clothes or three square meals a day”)12:50 – Life as a “Headboy” in rural Swaziland (“I was 10 years old when I started school”), a multilingual upbringing19:05 – First steps into the world of work: manual labour, writing letters, a nature reserve, natural knowledge, life as a tourist officer, and a fateful meeting23:00 – Discovering the Drakensberg (“a vast mountain range, and a beautiful mountain grassland”), John Doble, waterfall scrambling, the start of mountaineering plans, why can’t black Africans do the same?30:40 - “It will not make sense to my grandmother or my mother who are trying to fend through hardship to bring food on the table… why would I want to go overseas to climb a mountain?”32:20 – Kilimanjaro: “I got as sick as a dog on day two, all the high altitude symptoms that you can get, I got all of them! But I summited on the most beautiful day, and I looked at that and thought that one day I would want to see the sunrise from the summit of Mt Everest”.36:50 – “I want to do it for Africa. I want to show the world and Africans themselves that they can do these things.”40:54 – Climbing Everest (“I can never deceive people that it was easy. It was physically tough. Mentally tough… it can never be explained in words how physically tough it is.”)50:34 – Reaching the summit (“You are about to be proof that it can be done… you become overcome by your emotions and you don’t believe what is happening.”)56:30 - “It took me a long time to realise how relevant it was going to be to any other young kid who grows up in Africa without a home”, meeting Nelson Mandela58:50 – The first black African to climb the Seven Summits (“when you set a standard, how do you keep it as consistent? There’s no way I could be consistent as a role model by climbing just one mountain. I will keep on climbing as long as I live to be looked upon as an example.”)68:50 – Being changed by mountain experiences (“I still regard mountains as the best ‘university’ I’ve ever attended.”), summiting Everest for a second time… with Ranulph Fiennes.75:20 – Sitting in a tent with Ranulph Fiennes: “Well if there’s anything else you want to do it’s one of the polar walks” (“When I looked at his hands, which were frostbitten, I thought ‘well, not a good idea…’”)76:38 - Greatest Mountain Memory: “I looked at this mountain and I just fell in love with it. I was disappointed to learn that it wasn’t Everest, it was Ama Dablam. This is the mountain that calls me to go back to mountains.”, similar experiences with the Matterhorn.79:32 - *HONK HONK*80:20 - All the time, money, freedom, where do you go?: “It depends on the season… on the slopes of an 8,000m mountain waiting to summit…  sweating profusely running a desert marathon… on a safari in the bush with the family…”

Hello! And welcome to series two of Mountain Air! It’s an absolute pleasure for this episode to be supported by <a href="http://UKHillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a>, and an equal pleasure to be bringing you 87-minutes of conversation with Sibusiso Vilane - an inspirational man with an inspirational story to tell.In 2003, Sibusiso he became the first black African to summit Mt Everest, a phenomenal achievement given his impoverished roots and lack of mountaineering background, and one that earned him the attention and praise of Nelson Mandela and the wider world. But his story runs far deeper than that. His childhood was one of extreme poverty in apartheid Johannesburg, and later in Swaziland (now Eswatini). Hard work, dedication and the privilege of being able to attend school from age 10 eventually brought him a job as a tourist officer in a nature reserve, a position which made possible a chance meeting that would change the path of his life forever.Consumed by a passion for mountains and physical challenges, his life story is one that involves continental summits, ultra running, humility, the responsibilities of being a role model, laughter, charity work, motivational speaking, multiple summits of Everest and historical partnerships with... Sir Ranulph Fiennes.&gt; Read more about Sibusiso Vilane at <a href="http://www.sibusisovilane.co.za" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.sibusisovilane.co.za</a> &gt; Visit the podcast at <a href="http://www.mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.mountainairpodcast.uk</a>Listen, enjoy, tell your friends, subscribe to the podcast if you get and chance, and thank UKHillwalking for their kind support![episode recorded on 11/11/21]00:00 – Introduction02:16 – Welcome, responding to the pandemic by running (“I ran a full marathon last weekend… it was just dreadful!”08:30 – The rarest of all mountaineering backgrounds: growing up poor and black in apartheid Johannesburg, then Swaziland (“we never had clothes or three square meals a day”)12:50 – Life as a “Headboy” in rural Swaziland (“I was 10 years old when I started school”), a multilingual upbringing19:05 – First steps into the world of work: manual labour, writing letters, a nature reserve, natural knowledge, life as a tourist officer, and a fateful meeting23:00 – Discovering the Drakensberg (“a vast mountain range, and a beautiful mountain grassland”), John Doble, waterfall scrambling, the start of mountaineering plans, why can’t black Africans do the same?30:40 - “It will not make sense to my grandmother or my mother who are trying to fend through hardship to bring food on the table… why would I want to go overseas to climb a mountain?”32:20 – Kilimanjaro: “I got as sick as a dog on day two, all the high altitude symptoms that you can get, I got all of them! But I summited on the most beautiful day, and I looked at that and thought that one day I would want to see the sunrise from the summit of Mt Everest”.36:50 – “I want to do it for Africa. I want to show the world and Africans themselves that they can do these things.”40:54 – Climbing Everest (“I can never deceive people that it was easy. It was physically tough. Mentally tough… it can never be explained in words how physically tough it is.”)50:34 – Reaching the summit (“You are about to be proof that it can be done… you become overcome by your emotions and you don’t believe what is happening.”)56:30 - “It took me a long time to realise how relevant it was going to be to any other young kid who grows up in Africa without a home”, meeting Nelson Mandela58:50 – The first black African to climb the Seven Summits (“when you set a standard, how do you keep it as consistent? There’s no way I could be consistent as a role model by climbing just one mountain. I will keep on climbing as long as I live to be looked upon as an example.”)68:50 – Being changed by mountain experiences (“I still regard mountains as the best ‘university’ I’ve ever attended.”), summiting Everest for a second time… with Ranulph Fiennes.75:20 – Sitting in a tent with Ranulph Fiennes: “Well if there’s anything else you want to do it’s one of the polar walks” (“When I looked at his hands, which were frostbitten, I thought ‘well, not a good idea…’”)76:38 - Greatest Mountain Memory: “I looked at this mountain and I just fell in love with it. I was disappointed to learn that it wasn’t Everest, it was Ama Dablam. This is the mountain that calls me to go back to mountains.”, similar experiences with the Matterhorn.79:32 - *HONK HONK*80:20 - All the time, money, freedom, where do you go?: “It depends on the season… on the slopes of an 8,000m mountain waiting to summit…  sweating profusely running a desert marathon… on a safari in the bush with the family…”

2#01 Sibusiso Vilane: the first black African on the roof of the world

Series 2 is here! And it requires a small amount of introduction. All of which you’ll find in the audio file you're currently browsing. However, for those of us that prefer the written word, here’s a précis:- there will be another 10 fantastic interviewees to look forward to.- it’s proudly sponsored by www.ukhillwalking.com (“the fastest growing hillwalking website in the world”).- the first episode is available via your browser on UKH right now, so you can listen to it straight away if you so desire.- it will then be released on mountainairpodcast.uk and this podcast feed in two weeks’ time, on Wednesday 15 December.- the same two week arrangement will be true for future episodes- episode 1 features the truly inspirational Sibusiso Vilane!That’s it. What are you waiting for? Get your sweet self over to www.ukhillwalking.com pronto.

Series 2 is here! And it requires a small amount of introduction. All of which you’ll find in the audio file you're currently browsing. However, for those of us that prefer the written word, here’s a précis:- there will be another 10 fantastic interviewees to look forward to.- it’s proudly sponsored by <a href="http://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.ukhillwalking.com</a> (“the fastest growing hillwalking website in the world”).- the first episode is available via your browser on UKH right now, so you can listen to it straight away if you so desire.- it will then be released on <a href="http://mountainairpodcast.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">mountainairpodcast.uk</a> and this podcast feed in two weeks’ time, on Wednesday 15 December.- the same two week arrangement will be true for future episodes- episode 1 features the truly inspirational Sibusiso Vilane!That’s it. What are you waiting for? Get your sweet self over to <a href="http://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.ukhillwalking.com</a> pronto.

Introducing Series 2…

Dan Bailey

Episode #10 stars guidebook writer, website editor, mountaineering journalist and all round outdoor adept Dan Bailey. When not researching and writing up gleaming new guidebooks to his adopted homeland of Scotland, London-born Dan lives the life of a professional outdoor scribe, managing a popular hillwalking website, publishing intricate route descriptions of the UK’s most inspiring mountain adventures, and tirelessly reviewing reams of expensive kit so that you don’t have to. It’s a tough life, I tells ya.Beyond this insight into one of planet Earth’s true “dream jobs”, Dan has enjoyed mountaineering epics from the Pyrenees to the Rwenzori (though he seems to enjoy an ice-clad Scotland best) and was once struck by lightning on the Cobbler. It’s every bit the anecdote that you would hope it to be. You can see Dan’s Cicerone author page here: cicerone.co.uk/authors/dan-bailey and make sure to visit UKHillwalking.com to see the fruits of his daily labours too.[episode recorded on 02/09/21]00:00 - Introduction01:44 - Welcome, guidebook writing11:22 - Precious feedback, and being recognised on the hill15:06 - “Over 10-15 years each book may have earned me a reasonable year’s salary”16:50 - Struck by lightning on the Cobbler: (holes in boots, exploding mugs and “my whole body was buzzing, like when you bang your funny bone and you get that nerve tingle. I had that from head to toe”). Eventually being poked and prodded by doctors26:43 - Outdoor journalism, editing ukhillwalking.com, “I’ve always understood how lucky I am to do that and call it work.”35:42 - Exploring every part of the UK mountains, “there are hills and even whole ranges that I haven’t even visited yet, so there’s always more to do”39:58 - Living remotely, “nine miles down a single track road from Gairloch… so a good 140 mile round trip on mountain roads in the winter to get the groceries in. We were menu planning quite closely.”43:30 - Reviewing outdoor gear for a living “It’s a real perk to have all this free gear showered on us, but it’s a real job as well.”47:06 - Calling all EU47 / UK12 boot-wearing hillwalkers48:35 - A “power imbalance” between outdoor brands and outdoor media?51:38 - An epic tale… climbing the three highest peaks in Africa, connected by public transport, “three weeks of manic bus travel”57:00 - (from https://www.britannica.com/place/Margherita-Peak... “It was first climbed in 1906 by an expedition led by Luigi Amedeo Abruzzi and was named for Queen Margherita of Italy”)61:00 - “We got into a little bivvy hut which is sort of like a metal coffin…”63:53 - Greatest Mountain Memory - a youthful awakening in the Pyrenees “The feeling of freedom and limitless possibility that you get when this mountain world opens to you for the first time, and you’re there under your own steam with no particular agenda… this is it. This is the most in touch with the world, and peaceful and enthused I’ve felt. Ever. I suppose I’m always trying to recreate that youthful, wide-eyed experience of the mountains.”68:48 - All the time, money, freedom, where do you go? “I like Scotland a lot, but I’ve never been to Scotland’s big sister, which is Norway… I’m going to drive from south to north over four months picking off mountaineering routes.”

Episode #10 stars guidebook writer, website editor, mountaineering journalist and all round outdoor adept Dan Bailey. When not researching and writing up gleaming new guidebooks to his adopted homeland of Scotland, London-born Dan lives the life of a professional outdoor scribe, managing a popular hillwalking website, publishing intricate route descriptions of the UK’s most inspiring mountain adventures, and tirelessly reviewing reams of expensive kit so that you don’t have to. It’s a tough life, I tells ya.Beyond this insight into one of planet Earth’s true “dream jobs”, Dan has enjoyed mountaineering epics from the Pyrenees to the Rwenzori (though he seems to enjoy an ice-clad Scotland best) and was once struck by lightning on the Cobbler. It’s every bit the anecdote that you would hope it to be. You can see Dan’s Cicerone author page here: <a href="https://www.cicerone.co.uk/authors/dan-bailey" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">cicerone.co.uk/authors/dan-bailey</a> and make sure to visit <a href="https://www.ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">UKHillwalking.com</a> to see the fruits of his daily labours too.[episode recorded on 02/09/21]00:00 - Introduction01:44 - Welcome, guidebook writing11:22 - Precious feedback, and being recognised on the hill15:06 - “Over 10-15 years each book may have earned me a reasonable year’s salary”16:50 - Struck by lightning on the Cobbler: (holes in boots, exploding mugs and “my whole body was buzzing, like when you bang your funny bone and you get that nerve tingle. I had that from head to toe”). Eventually being poked and prodded by doctors26:43 - Outdoor journalism, editing <a href="http://ukhillwalking.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ukhillwalking.com</a>, “I’ve always understood how lucky I am to do that and call it work.”35:42 - Exploring every part of the UK mountains, “there are hills and even whole ranges that I haven’t even visited yet, so there’s always more to do”39:58 - Living remotely, “nine miles down a single track road from Gairloch… so a good 140 mile round trip on mountain roads in the winter to get the groceries in. We were menu planning quite closely.”43:30 - Reviewing outdoor gear for a living “It’s a real perk to have all this free gear showered on us, but it’s a real job as well.”47:06 - Calling all EU47 / UK12 boot-wearing hillwalkers48:35 - A “power imbalance” between outdoor brands and outdoor media?51:38 - An epic tale… climbing the three highest peaks in Africa, connected by public transport, “three weeks of manic bus travel”57:00 - (from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Margherita-Peak" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.britannica.com/place/Margherita-Peak</a>... “It was first climbed in 1906 by an expedition led by Luigi Amedeo Abruzzi and was named for Queen Margherita of Italy”)61:00 - “We got into a little bivvy hut which is sort of like a metal coffin…”63:53 - Greatest Mountain Memory - a youthful awakening in the Pyrenees “The feeling of freedom and limitless possibility that you get when this mountain world opens to you for the first time, and you’re there under your own steam with no particular agenda… this is it. This is the most in touch with the world, and peaceful and enthused I’ve felt. Ever. I suppose I’m always trying to recreate that youthful, wide-eyed experience of the mountains.”68:48 - All the time, money, freedom, where do you go? “I like Scotland a lot, but I’ve never been to Scotland’s big sister, which is Norway… I’m going to drive from south to north over four months picking off mountaineering routes.”

1#10 Dan Bailey: the guidebook writer

Mountain Air is a podcast about outdoor people. Whether guide, photographer, writer, film-maker, athlete, enthusiast or other, each episode focuses on a different individual with a unique tale to tell. They each have one thing in common: a love of places high, wild, and free.

Mountain Air is a podcast about outdoor people. Whether guide, photographer, writer, film-maker, athlete, enthusiast or other, each episode focuses on a different individual with a unique tale to tell. They each have one thing in common: a love of places high, wild, and free.

Mountain Air

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