For the past couple of years, First Ascent sponsored climber Melissa Arnot has been a guide on Everest, and has stood atop that mountain on more than one occasion. This year she has turned her attention on a different peak, although she is back in the Himalaya once again.
This spring, Arnott is climbing the fifth highest peak in the world, Makalu. The mountain stands 8481 meters (27,825ft) in height, and offers some signifiant technical challenges over Everest. In the video below, Melissa talks about those challenges, which include fewer fixed ropes, steeper slopes, and more. She also gives us a glimpse of her training methods, which she conducts in Sun Valley, Idaho.
First Ascent has done a fantastic job over the past few spring seasons on keeping us up to date with their climbers in the Himalaya. Hopefully that will be the case once again this year, as they have turned out not only great blog posts and dispatches on the Born Out There Blog, but the videos from the mountain have been spectacular as well.
To read more about Melissa's Makalu ascent, check out her blog post here. This is a very personal climb for her, and it should be a good one to follow along with.