Kirkpatrick's Climbing Notes

Home
Archive
About
New
Top
Discussion
Island in the Sky
A few years ago, I was soloing El Cap right beside another solo climber. We were neck and neck for a while, like a race between snails. I was on the…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
1
Train Spotting
We live in a funny age, one in which people often feel compelled to redefine their God-given gifts and abilities as handicaps and disabilities, be that…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
4
Everything
I had a realisation the other day. I’ve become unemotional. Disconnected. Untouchable. Untouching. I no longer write about people, mainly myself, me…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
7
VBL 2023
Another look at the concept of the vapour barrier sock
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
August 2023
Me, Myself & I 2023 part 2
BEFORE THE WALL “Pleasure isn’t in the fulfilment, but in the pursuit.” Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais 01 Pre-Solo Preparation Before soloing a…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
1
Me, Myself & I 2023 part I
The catalyst for my latest book, "On the Line", wasn’t actually to pen a new book but to add a section on top rope soloing (TRS) to the third edition of…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
2
On the Line Sneak Preview
After eight months of baby-go-slow, where getting even a few hours of meaningful work done was a miracle, this week has finally seen me back to work…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
5
July 2023
By a Thread: Slim Margins
The following was meant to be a short - bang it out - piece on an obscure and "trivial piece of equipment, the Saran footbed. In the end, it seemed to…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
Swiss Cheese
Applying James Reason's 'Swiss Cheese' model of risk to the high-stakes game of climbing.
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
April 2023
Work
I once had a drink with the late Dave Roberts. I asked him how he managed to write a book every year (he wrote 32 books), and he replied, "It's my job…
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
Atlantis, El Capitan
Video Share
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
March 2023
Mountain Survival kit
An unconventional and idiosyncratic (or idiotic) approach to mountain first aid kits for day trips and expeditions.
 • 
Andy Kirkpatrick
6
© 2023 Andy Kirkpatrick
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing