Alpinist - Styles of Mountaineering

Styles of Mountaineering

There are two main styles of mountaineering: Expedition style and Alpine style.

A mountaineer who adopts Alpine style is referred to as an Alpine Mountaineer. Alpine Mountaineers are typically found climbing in medium-sized glaciated mountain areas such as the Alps or Rocky Mountains. Medium-sized generally refers to altitudes in the intermediate altitude (7,000' to 12,000') and first half of high altitude (12,000' to 18,000') ranges. However, alpine style ascents have been done throughout history on extreme altitude (18,000' to 29,000') peaks also, albeit in lower volume to expedition style ascents. Alpine style refers to a particular style of mountain climbing that involves a mixture of snow climbing, ice climbing, rock climbing, and glacier travel, where climbers generally single carry their loads between camps, in a single push for the summit. Light and fast is the mantra of the Alpine Mountaineer.

The term alpine style contrasts with expedition style (as commonly undertaken in the Himalayan region or other large ranges of the world), which could be viewed as slow and heavy, where climbers may use porters, pack animals, glacier airplanes, cooks, multiple carries between camps, usage of fixed lines etc. A mountaineer who adopts this style of climbing is referred to as an Expedition Mountaineer. Expedition mountaineers still employ the skill sets of the alpine mountaineer, except they have to deal with even higher altitudes, expanded time scale, longer routes, foreign logistics, more severe weather, and additional skills unique to expeditionary climbing. The prevalence of expedition style climbing in the Himalaya is largely a function of the nature of the mountains in the region. Because Himalayan base camps can take days or weeks to trek to, and Himalayan mountains can take weeks or perhaps even months to climb, a large number of personnel and amount of supplies are necessary. This is why expedition style climbing is frequently used on large and isolated peaks in the Himalaya. In Europe and North America there is less of a need for expedition style climbing on most medium-sized mountains. These mountains can often be easily accessed by car or air, are at a lower altitude and can be climbed in a shorter time scale. Expedition style mountaineering can be found in the larger high altitude and extreme altitude North American ranges such as the Alaska Range and Saint Elias Mountains. These remote mountaineering destinations can require up to a 2 week trek by foot, just to make it to base camp. Most expeditions in these regions choose a glacier flight to basecamp. Route length in days from basecamp can vary in these regions, typically from 10 days to 1 month during the climbing season. Winter mountaineering on major peaks in these ranges can generally consume between 30 to 60 days depending on the route, and can generally only be tackled via expedition style mountaineering during this season.

The differences between, and advantages and disadvantages of, the two kinds of climbing are as follows: