Vardy Nigel - Once Bitten

Book Design and Setting by Neil Coe
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Set in Rotis Serif 11pt on 14pt

First published in 2008 by;

Ecademy Press
6 Woodland Rise, Penryn,
Cornwall UK TR10 8QD
www.ecademy-press.com

Printed and Bound by;
Lightning Source in the UK and USA

Printed on acid-free paper from managed forests. This book is printed on demand, so no copies will be remaindered or pulped.

ISBN 978-1-905823-27-7

The rights of the persons named in the title of each chapter to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright holder except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Applications for the Copyright holders written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publishers.

Belay The securing of a rope on rock or ice during climbing.

Bergschrund A crevasse or series of crevasses, usually deep and often broad, occurring near the head of a mountain glacier

Couloir A deep mountainside gorge or gully

Crevasse A deep open chasm in a glacier

DENSAN Our expedition name (Short for Denali, Steve, Anthony & Nigel)

Down Climbing The opposite of climbing up!

Front Pointing Standing on the front points of crampons especially when climbing steep slopes

Jumar A mechanical device for ascending a rope

Karabiner An oblong metal ring with a spring clip, often used to attach a running rope to a climber or their equipment.

PTT Switch Press to Talk switch on a two way radio

Spindrift Small ice particles usually flying in the wind

White Gas A type of liquid fuel for mountain stoves

Windslab Layers of snow deposited by the wind

I would like to thank the following people for their support

Steve Ball and Antony Hollinshead my fellow climbers without whom I couldnt have survived the mountain, all the staff at Providence Medical Centre Alaska for all their help, Diddy Hitchens for being a complete star! The Denali National Parks Department and Rescue Services for saving my life, Malcolm and Karen Daly for being there for me in Alaska, Patrick Minder for supporting Amanda and me in Alaska, everyone at Nottingham City Hospital for rebuilding my life and keeping me climbing, Nicky Cockerill (nee Bentley) for her friendship and physio skills, my Mum and Dad for being there (and putting up with me for this long), my big sister Amanda and her family for keeping me above water and supporting my exploits, Jamie and Clare Glazebrook for being great friends and supporting me, Richard Bull for making me laugh and bringing in the beer, Chris Chadwick for all his drive and enlightenment, Bob Forbes for his patience and enthusiasm, Ian and Jean Henderson for climbing and drinking with me all these years, everyone at Terra Nova Ltd for their support, Steve Pountain for helping me shoot again, Rob Edmonds for all his help at getting boots to fit me, Martin Moran for getting me back into the mountains, Chris Dale for taking me on some epic technical climbs and David Broom for pushing me on the big routes.

And finally

Mindy Gibbins-Klein for all her help in writing and producing this book and Tina Moult for giving me the drive (and the kick up the bum) to get it finished!

I entered this world at 10pm on a wet and windy night in 1969 and weighed in at a mighty 10lb 1oz natural. It is a fact my mother has never let me forget. I was the only boy born on the ward that week and had a fearsome grip and bellowing lungs.

The swinging sixties were almost at a close. In the few months left Man walked on the Moon, Woodstock brought music to the world and Derby County were promoted to Division One.

I had a wonderful childhood and was brought up by two loving parents. I was allowed to play in the woods, pinch fruit and vegetables from the garden and build dens galore. I made few friends but had an active imagination which kept me happy for hours.

Parallel to my childhood life was another, that of my older sister. By the time I was eight or nine she was banging her head away to heavy metal and causing the usual early teenage hell. At first I couldnt understand what it was all but within a few years her influences had been passed down and I began my lifelong addiction to bands such as Queen and Led Zeppelin. I became a DJ at thirteen and turned the wheels of steel until my late twenties.

Most people wouldnt own up to being a swat at school but Im afraid Ill have to. I was both a Prefect and a Librarian. I always did my homework on time and it took a real illness to keep me away from the classroom. My mind was transfixed by Chemistry and Physics, as I loved experimenting. I regularly mixed everything together at the end of the chemistry lesson hoping for some excitement a fizz or perhaps a bang but alas nothing ever happened. I electrocuted a few people in Physics though!

My teens were faced with darker moments. It was the depression of the 1980s and my Dad worked in the steel industry. Times were hard and he found himself unemployed for the first time in his life. I watched him sit in disbelief and depression as the world went by. No one wanted his skills and he felt abandoned. With little help he picked himself up from the doldrums and became a self-employed Decorator until he retired. My Mum has worked in everything from hosiery to cleaning, finally becoming a home help. Between them they worked very hard to bring up my sister and I the best way they could.

I was in my teens when outdoor pursuits were part of the school curriculum and a part of my life. Unfortunately climbing and abseiling scared me witless as I suffered severe vertigo. I still hate looking over a cliff edge to this day. People may find this a strange truth for someone who climbs but it is perfectly true. I find snow a much easier medium to look over as it disguises the actual angle of the drop (well, it does for me). I preferred to sail and spent many a happy hour tacking up and down the local reservoirs getting cold and wet.

I left school in 1985 with five o levels and three cses and began my ascent into the world of electrical engineering. At sixteen I started an apprenticeship at the Electricity Board, rising to Engineer by my early twenties.

But where did the adventure part of me come from? There were no other travellers in my family. Holidays were spent at the seaside and weekends in the garden or walking in Derbyshire. I can only put it down to my fathers interest in Warfare. Many children of my generation built model kits, played with toy soldiers and read about the adventures of armies overseas. I was fascinated by the battles of World War II and read of places such as El Alamein, Rangoon and Singapore. I scanned the pages of the family atlas to find these far off places and I dreamed. I wanted to see them with my own eyes and imagine history. It was all a bit Boys Own but I loved it.