Tag: Podcast

Climbing News, Live Interview, Podcast

Podcast with Astronaut & Everest Summiteer Scott Parazynski

Scott Parazynski

In this podcast, I speak with Scott Parazynski, who is about as unique an individual as you will find these days. Consider a small fraction of his achievements:

Five-time space shuttle astronaut, seven spacewalks, and a former NASA researcher.
Spent over 8 weeks in space with more than 47 hours outside on spacewalks, and traveled over 23 million miles in orbit.
Attempted Everest in May 2008, but was forced to turn back before the summit due to a ruptured disc while at Camp 3
Served as team physician for the Discovery Channel’s Beyond the Limit series for IMG
May 20, 2009, at 4:00 am, he successfully summited Everest
Visited the wreck of the Titanic
Conducted a scientific dive in the summit caldera lake of the 19,700-foot Masaya volcano, the world’s highest lake
Life-long SCUBA diver and accomplished mountaineer
Commercial, instrument, multiengine and seaplane-rated pilot with over 2,500 flight hours

I hope you enjoy the episode and perhaps consider reading his book, The Sky Below: A True Story of Summits, Space, and Speed.

Climb On!
Alan
Memories are Everything

7 Summits, Climbing News, Everest, Everest News, Garrett Madison, Podcast

7-Summits-in-One-Year-Podcast-with-Garrett-Madison

As we close out 2025, I caught up with Garrett Maddison, founder of Madison Mountaineering, for a rare moment while he was home in the Seattle area. Garrett summited all of the Seven Summits (Messner List) in 2025, plus had some interesting times on Cho Oyu, watched one of his teams struggle, like the others, on K2, and is actively guiding on Vinson. We discussed all this, including what to expect for Everest in 2026, with the more expensive permit fees, new requirements for Everest applicants from China, and proposals from Nepal. #everest2026

Climbing News, Interview, K2, K2 2023 Coverage

Podcast Interview with Kristin Harila

Norwegian Kristin Harila, 37, Tenjen (Lama) Sherpa summited all fourteen 8000ers in three months and 1 day (92 days.) The first was Shishapangma on April 26, 2023, and the last K2 on July 27, 2023. In 2022, Harila summited twelve of the fourteen, but China refused them entry into Tibet to attempt Shishapangma and Cho Oyu thus, she returned this year to complete her project.

Harila’s journey was not with controversy. They included switching teams and Sherpas from 2022 to 2023, using helicopters to fly Sherpas to Camp 2 on Manaslu, and the one that caught global attention when a High Altitude Porter, Muhammad Hassan, not climbing with her team died on K2. Her team gave aid, but he died. A video taken hours later showed other climbers, not Harila’s team stepping over the dead body on the way to the summit. Harila was widely criticized for his death, yet her team did everything to save his life.

The Pakistani government investigated the incident and posted a detailed report clearing Harila’s team of any wrongdoing and gave her photographer, Gabriel Tarso, an “appreciation letter” for his effort to save a life that night. We explore all of these controversies in detail in this podcast. #k2023

Climbing News, Podcast

Podcast: Manaslu 2022 and Taking Care of our Mountains

Manaslu 2013

The Manaslu 2022 season is moving nicely, with the first client summits for the season on Thursday, September 22, 2022. There are a record number of people there, with 400 foreigners with permits and an equal or greater r number of support climbers, so it’s crowded. This means there is an opportunity for more trash, crowds, and poor practices.

In this podcast, I talk about my 2013 experience on Manaslu plus how we can take better care of our mountains.

Climb On!
Alan
Memories are Everything