FIRE-STARTER. The gritstone quarries of Bolton are dismal places but to me they were everything. Since my childhood, I have always felt summoned to such places of industrial dereliction to practise my art or simply to explore the past. Previously unpublished.

RUBBLE MERCHANTS, SLATEHEADS AND OTHERS. I moved to that capital of British climbing, Llanberis, in 1986 to follow the path of full time climber. It is both fortunate and unfortunate that things can’t always stay the same. On the Edge 69 (1997).

LOST IN THE BROCCOLI GARDEN. Gogarth epitomises British sea cliff climbing. When you make contact with the rock you can feel the history seeping into your fingers. I have loved Gogarth and I have hated the place. I feel I grew up a little on the Red Walls. High (1987).

A PIECE OF DRIFTWOOD. Ed Stone was part of a close-knit team of friends in Llanberis who shared many good times. He died solo climbing on the Trinity face of Yr Wyddfa in 1994. Previously unpublished.

ON THE BIG STONE. The first of many trips to Sron Ulladale. I later climbed Knuckle Sandwich (E7) with Johnny and Moskill Grooves (E6) with Johnny and Ben Moon. Ten years later the Scoop has been climbed in a day, but with pitons in-situ and a description of where the climb goes, it is a much more feasible proposition. On the Edge 49 (1995).

BHAGIRATHI DIARY. In 1990 I went on my first mountain climbing ‘expedition’ with Johnny Dawes, Joe Simpson and Bob Drury. We travelled in tandem with another British team who were attempting Shivling and made a feeble attempt on Bhagirathi 3. It was all so new to me, Bob and Johnny and we set about the task of organising a big expedition with enthusiasm. Now, a few years later, it’s difficult to recapture that magic. Expeditions are now called holidays and though I need them I have a more relaxed approach. Previously unpublished.

EL REGALO DE MWONO. My first big wall climbing experience and the beginning of a nine-month road trip. I forsake the Yosemite training and jumped in at the deep end. The route is 1200m long and the grade is 6, 5.11, A4 and Scottish ice V. Team members were Noel Craine, Sean Smith, Simon Yates, Hanneke Steenmetz and myself. American Alpine Journal (1993).

EL CABALLO DE DIABLO. The best free climb I ever made was marred by feelings of guilt. This climb means more to me, perhaps, than any other. The day, the company, the style of ascent, everything gelled to make the perfect climb. The descent was another story, a story from which I learnt a few lessons. To me it is sadly ironic that Philip should have later died on this mountain. We graded the climb ED+, E5, French 7A, 550m. On the Edge 59 (1996).

JUST PASSING THROUGH. Another stop on a long journey through South America. On the Edge 61 (1996).

THE DOCTOR AND THE WITCH. In 1992, whilst feeling homesick in Bolivia, I went down with amoebic dysentery. I had just arrived from Brazil where my Basque, Catalonian and Argentinian friends and I had made a fabulous wall climb. In my fever the present and the near past became intertwined. On the Edge 65 (1997).

A GAME ONE CLIMBER PLAYED. In 1993 I came unstuck at Gogarth whilst trying to make the second ascent of Pat Littlejohn’s direct start to Games Climbers Play. My Australian friend, and partner for the day, Glenn Robbins, pulled me out of the water, resuscitated me and sat with me for three hours until Oliver Saunders, who was out walking, happened to pass by. Glenn shouted to him and he ran to call a rescue. Mountain Yodel 6 (1997).

ADRIFT. In May 1994, with Steve Quinlan, I climbed a new line on the East face of El Capitan, Yosemite. The essence of the climb for me was here, on the UK Cowboy pitch. We got down off the climb and headed straight to Baffin Island. Grade 6, A4, 5.9, 1000m. On the Edge 60 (1996).

HYPERBOREA. Asgard West Face, 1994. Simon Yates, Sean Smith, Keith Jones, Steve Quinlan, Noel Craine, Jordi Tosas, Paul Pritchard. Grade 6, A4, E4. 1000m. On the Edge 45 (1994).

A SURVIVOR’S AFFAIR. Teo Plaza died in an avalanche on El Tronador with other friends whilst training to become an Argentinian guide. He was the most talented of the young Bariloche set. On the Edge 50 (1995).

MAKING CASTLES IN THE SAND. Trango Tower mixed men and women’s expedition 1995. Donna Claridge, Celia Bull, Geraldine Westrupp, Kate Phillips, Noel Craine, Adam Wainwright, Andy Cave, Paul Pritchard, Ali Hussain Abadi, Ismael Bondo, Captain Jamal Mohammed. The Slovene route is 1000m long and has been free climbed in fine style by Wolfgang Güllich and Kurt Albert and later, for a film, by Catherine Destivelle and Jeff Lowe. The grade was 5.12b. With ice in the cracks we were forced to use some aid and for us the grade stood at 6, 5.10, A2. The first ascent was made in 1984 by Franček Knez, S. Canker and B. Srot. On the Edge 53 (1995).

ON THE SHARK’S FIN WITH PHILIP LLOYD. In 1993 Philip Lloyd, Johnny Dawes and I tried to climb the Meru Shark’s Fin in Gangotri. We were repulsed after Johnny accidentally dropped his boot whilst trying to get it on after a bivouac one morning. A reminiscence of my last time with Philip. Mountain Review 7 (1994).

ACCIDENTAL HERO – SILVO KARO. A tough man from a tough world. An inspiration. On the Edge 58 (1996).

A LESSON IN HEALING FROM ANDY PARKIN. On Centre Post Direct Finish I came unstuck and fell 50 metres sustaining four crushed vertebrae, a broken sternum and a fractured skull. Nick Kekus lowered me and four clients down a thousand feet of gully and stayed with me while the others went to call for a helicopter. From Andy I learnt how to re-build life (and maintain sanity) when all seemed devastated by injury and illness. A combination of articles in On the Edge 48 and 57.

Note: Most of the articles have been substantially edited and developed since their first publication.