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If you had six months to a year out and a bit of money to go travelling, where would you go to work on your mountaineering & climbing skills? It's something I may be looking to do in the next year or so...

I'd like to get a heap of varied rock and mountain experience and build some good skills while seeing some interesting parts of the world. Basically go back-packing with a full alpine rack! I'd probably need some longer spells in cheaper places... so I like the idea of pitching a tent in Yosemite for a few weeks, renting a campervan to do a circuit of NZ's South Island, or maybe spend a month working the crags of Yangshuo. I could get to the states, buy a van Honnold-style and live out of that for a while...

A super vague question, I know... I'd just love to hear some suggestions to get me inspired for places that may not be on my radar...

If you are talking about North America, then I would hit the Sierra Nevadas, Tetons, Cascades, Canadian Rockies.

Primary variables would be what season and what kind of mountaineering you want to focus on...secondary variables would be what languages you speak, how comfortable you are in the 3rd world, how much social life you want. And if you are doing some standard backpacking and sight seeing, everyone has some personal prejudice. For example my first big international solo trip was to Peru/Bolivia for 3 months. I went to see Machu Picchu so I added a few big climbs in the Cordillera Blanca. Pretty much everywhere around the world has some form of excellent climbing so the climbing itself doesn't necessarily need to be the decisive factor.

Having said all that, you can't go wrong with central California. It's prime time in Yosemite with the high mountains a short drive away for a reprieve from the heat. You can count on good weather with numerous options including glaciated stuff less than a day's drive north. With 6 months, you will have flexibility to get north to the Cascades, Tetons, Sierra and loads of less popular spots. If you've never been there, that would be my choice.

South Island would be a bit cold now, although it wouldn't be a bad option a few months later. Definitely world class mountaineering though I imagine it would be harder to find partners for any serious stuff compared to California. The territory is also a bit limited compared to the Pac coast, I don't think you would run out of stuff to do, but you might find it difficult to dodge crap weather.

Yangshuo is very nice, I've been there twice. Though you would be limited to sport climbing and there isn't much variety at that, all limestone and a lot of tufas. On the positive, it is a very social and international scene. Although I've heard there is some problems with access on some of the crags lately. Your costs will decrease if you like chinese food and know how to order it. Beyond Yanghsuo but still within China, there is little development for climbing.

If I were you and I wanted 'a heap of varied rock and mountain experience', I'd probably go to the Alps. It's amazing how often that place is overlooked. You definitely have to manage your costs but there is an ungodly amount of rock, it has all been climbed and it is very accessible and you'll find lots of climbers year round. Imagine all of Yosemite Valley and the entire Eastern Sierra accessible from your doorstep, then add rain and snow (a lot) - that's Chamonix. And with 6 months you would have unlimited possibilities for climbing or general touring...Spain, Scandinavia, Greece, Italy, Morocco...

Wind River Range, WY
Teton Range, WY
San Juan Range, CO

ozarkmac wrote:Wind River Range, WY
Teton Range, WY
San Juan Range, CO

Great choices!

Read P.J. O'Rourke's "Holidays in Hell", and go somewhere else.

The Wind River Range, Central Wyoming is an excellent suggestion,...
So, is the Sierra Nevada Range, in California.
But, I would probably head for the Canadian Rockies, and,... Banff National Park.

If you are going solo, and plan to stay solo, then look no further than the Sierra Nevada.

The approaches are short, objective dangers minimal (at least during the summer), good weather, spectacular terrain.

The Cascades and Canadian Rockies are beautiful, but the objective dangers (i.e, crevasses) make it difficulty and frightening for the solo climber.

The Colorado Rockies are also good, but they are just not as spectacular as the Sierras. Additionally, the approaches are a bit longer and many approaches require a touch 4x4 truck to reach the trailhead. If you are into ski mountaineering, then Colorado is a great option for solo summer skiing.

I've never been to the Wind River range, but I have planned some trips out there. The approaches are very long.

The Tetons would be a good choice, but the range is much smaller than the Sierras and your options are therefore limited in comparison.

If you're thinking of spending a bit of time on the South Island you might want to consider buying a suitable vehicle and then selling it back when you leave.

A bloke I hiked with last year did that. There's a mob in Christchurch that organises this for backpackers planning to spend a bit of time which would make renting not such a great option.

If you want to know more, try a PM to "middlepeak" here on SP. He told me the name of this outfit, but I've forgotten....

Really appreciate all the suggestions folks... Plenty there to keep me busy for a while! Looks like the trip should be going ahead so I'll definitely allow a good chunk of time for North America and do some homework on all the areas mentioned...

Cheers atavist for putting the effort in with all that info. I'm keen on the alps although am originally from the UK and likely to be living back there at some stage in the next few years. If that ends up being the case then I will have plenty of time to explore the area and I might be better off getting further afield while I have the time? So am leaning more towards America (North and South), Asia and Australasia at the minute...

One question I still have is about transport (cheers dadndave for the NZ recommendation). Here in Oz – and it seems in NZ – buying a cheap camper and selling it on a few months later is pretty standard practice, and all the backpackers mean there's a steady market. Is it a similar setup in the US? Are reasonably cheap and reliable campers plentiful? And If I did pick up a van in the US would I be able to easily make the road trip up to the Canadian Rockies or would there be too much red tape crossing borders?

Thanks all

You could get a used van for $2,000, easily. I'm not sure how easy it would be for you to put license plates on it though- not having a permanent residence here. The licensing laws vary state to state- but all recognize each others license plates. In some states, liability auto insurance is mandatory as well.

If I wanted to go out solo, and really get away from it all, I'd head up to central Alaska, at least for backpacking. Not sure I'd be crazy enough to walk across a glacier solo.

Well, I am taking a year off to climb all of the European Country highpoints, and learn some new skills as well. I believe that if you are going to be taking that much time off you should go somewhere new. I think that good mountain training can be found in many of the European ranges, from the Alps to the Carpathians. I mean, you can be talking glaciers and that on Mont Blanc, ski mountaineering in the same area, and multipitch rock climbing nearby too.
Since Europe is well-served by public transit you can get to a lot of areas easily by train, for example the High Tatras of Slovakia and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Eastern Alps. This allows you to go to a lot of different areas easily, and on a day of bad weather you can go see the sights.

Just thought I'd resurrect an old thread of mine to give some positive feedback. Sometimes questions get asked, people spend time replying and no one gets thanked...

I finally took all your suggestions on board, quit my job and booked a one way flight. Will be climbing for the next year. Got six months planned in North America and plan on ticking off all the suggestions on this thread.

So cheers for all the input guys, will let you know how I get on

huwj wrote:Just thought I'd resurrect an old thread of mine to give some positive feedback. Sometimes questions get asked, people spend time replying and no one gets thanked...

I finally took all your suggestions on board, quit my job and booked a one way flight. Will be climbing for the next year. Got six months planned in North America and plan on ticking off all the suggestions on this thread.

So cheers for all the input guys, will let you know how I get on

I think that if you're looking for the largest variety of climbing/mountaineering objectives, with the best possibility of fair weather, then the Wind River range is tops. Yes, as SLR noted, the approaches are long which is typical for Wyoming unless you're in the Tetons which are a small range in terms of length/width. However, when you factor in weather, it beats the Cascades and Tetons in terms of available terrain/training. There is plenty of available water, the largest concentration of glaciers in the American Rockies, many 3rd and 4th class routes, as well as hundreds of quality alpine rock climbs. I believe Mt Hooker has one of the most challenging big wall alpine climbs in the country as well. Gannett Peak is known as one of the tougher state highpoints in the country. The Cascades are by far the best big mountain training ground in the country when factoring in glacier travel, but for a solo excursion, I'd pick a place with better weather if going for a short time. Please don't read this as the Winds being a hospitable fun-in-the-sun environment......the weather there is volatile for sure, but you don't typically get the wet monsoon weather like in Washington.

Brooks Range
Wind Rivers

I love the Sierra's and Tetons but they're crowded.