WL Gore and Associates have recently presented six Shipton-Tilman awards for 2010. All go to adventurous mountaineering expeditions and three are primarily British.
Gore established an annual Shipton-Tilman award in 1990 as a tribute to the spirit of adventure embodied by the great 20th Century mountain explorers Eric Shipton and Bill Tilman.
A grant provides up to £30,000 each year to between three and six expeditions that are most in harmony with the philosophies of those great mountain travellers. So, applications for awards are generally accepted from small teams of friends with daring and imaginative goals.
Shipton and Tilman had a famously minimalist approach to mountain exploration and climbing, so teams must plan to accomplish their objectives in an environmentally sound and cost-effective way, relying on their own resources.
Yvonne Erickson, representing Gore said, "even after 20 years we still find inspiring teams pursuing very ambitious goals. This year’s group includes young athletes in their 20s trying to make their mark, along with seasoned teams trying to overcome past failures".
This year a total of $20,000 has been distributed, with the highest grants received by the British expeditions, all of which have already received MEF and BMC support.
Australians Theo Kossart and Stuart Morris were awarded £2,000 for their proposed Grand Traverse of the Chamlang Massif in Nepal. Chamlang, which lies south west of Makalu, has four summits over 7,000m, with the West and highest peak (7,321m) having only been climbed on four occasions.
Americans Joe Stock, Dylan Taylor and Andrew Wexler also received £2,000 for their first full-length ski traverse of the Wrangell Range in Alaska. The journey will be around 250km and on the way they hope to ski over Mt Wrangell and several other summits.
Americans David Gottlieb and Joe Puryear have spent the last 18 months picking off three, high, unclimbed gems in Nepal's Rolwaling Himal, but they head for a change of scene with their proposed first ascent of Karjiang (7,221m) in Tibet, close to the border with Bhutan. Karjiang lies a few kilometres northeast of the high peak Kula Kangri (7,554m) and its lower, subsidiary summit, Karjiang Central, was climbed by Japanese in 1986.
Gottlieb and Puryear are committed to leaving no trace on the mountain: on their previous expeditions they have threaded their rappel rope directly through Abalakov's, so as to leave no rappel anchors in place. They also receive £2,000.
Hamish Dunn, Luke Hunt and Tom Ripley receive $4,000 for their attempt on the North West Ridge of Tahu Ratum (6,651m) in the Pakistan Karakoram. These recipients of the 2010 Nick Estcourt Award have now secured just about every grant going.
Malcolm Bass's Janahut (Jankuth) expedition hasn't done badly for grants either, though will greatly appreciate the support, as organizing a trip to the Indian Gangotri, with its double peak fee system, is an expensive business. They have been awarded $5,000 for an attempt on this 6,805m peak - the highest unclimbed summit in the Gangotri.
The current line up is Bass, Paul Figg and Simon Yearsley, with New Zealand female Pat Deavoll. Bass, Figg and Deavoll got quite high on this peak in 2004, so know what to expect.
Finally, the four-person team of Steve Beckwith and Matthew Traver (UK), with Chris Parenteau and Mike Royer (USA), hope to climb virgin summits in the Djangart Range of Kryghyzstan. This is a little explored area in the Central Tien Shan bordering China and not easy of access.
Prior to travelling there, the team are working with the Alpine Fund, a charitable organization set up by American Garth Willis that works with disadvantaged children, taking them into the outdoors. Hopefully, the recent revolution won't hinder access. This team was also awarded £5,000.
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