Islands in the Snow: A journey to explore Nepal's trekking peaks

by Mark Horrell

Overview

Two days east of Lukla was a pleasant yak pasture surrounded by high peaks. When Col. Jim Roberts set out to look for it in 1953, he ended up making the first ascent of Mera Peak and sowing the seeds of Himalayan tourism.

Mera Peak has become a popular goal for trekkers and novice mountaineers, but few people climb to its true summit, and fewer still travel beyond it to find the secret yak pasture that sparked Roberts’ journey.

The yak pasture was the Hongu Valley, a hidden sanctuary of grassland, lakes and glaciers linking Mera Peak with the Everest region and Island Peak to the north. Fifty years after Roberts, Mark Horrell embarked on a trek through Nepal’s Khumbu region to follow in his footsteps, climb the two trekking peaks at either end of the valley, and resolve a long-standing mystery about Mera Peak’s height.

Join Mark on a captivating journey through this enchanting region of high mountains and remote valleys.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781912748020
Publisher:	Amhex Communications Ltd
Publication date:	09/30/2018
Series:	Footsteps on the Mountain Diaries
Edition description:	Revised ed.
Pages:	166
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.38(d)

About the Author

For many years Mark Horrell has been writing what has been described as one of the most credible Everest opinion blogs out there. He writes about trekking and mountaineering from the often silent perspective of the commercial client.

For nearly 20 years he has been exploring the world's greater mountain ranges and keeping a diary of his travels. As a writer he strives to do for mountain history what Bill Bryson did for long-distance hiking.

His favourite mountaineering book is The Ascent of Rum Doodle by W.E. Bowman.