Nigel Vardy - 7x7: Seven Peaks, Seven Islands

Cover design and book design by Neil Coe
First published in 2011

Ecademy Press
48 St Vincent Drive, St Albans, Herts AL1 5SJ
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 978-1-907722-27-1

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.

CHAPTER 1
The Penny Ice Cap Baffin Island April/May 2003

CHAPTER 2
Gunnbjorns Fjeld Greenland May/June 2004

CHAPTER 3
Mt Fuji Honshu September 2004

CHAPTER 4
Mt Kinabalu Borneo October 2005

CHAPTER 5
Gunung Kerinci Pt 1 Sumatra October 2005

CHAPTER 6
Gunung Kerinci Pt 2 Sumatra October 2006

CHAPTER 7
Carstensz Pyramid Irian Jaya October 2006

CHAPTER 8
Maromokotro Madagascar October 2007

CHAPTER 9
Now Its All Over, What Did I Learn?

CHAPTER 10
Whats All This Everest Thing?

Its the work that counts,
not the applause that follows

ROBERT FALCON SCOTT

I would like to thank the following for their support, love and kicks up the bum

My Mum and Dad for all their support and tea!

My big sister Amanda for rebuilding me on a regular basis.

Jamie and Clare Glazebrook for their undying friendship.

Ian and Jean Henderson for all the laughter, beer and pies!

Terra Nova Ltd for their support.

Rob Edmonds for squeezing ski boots onto whats left of my feet.

Martin Moran for his professional help in guiding me back into the mountains.

Alison Musgrove at Nottingham City Hospital for keeping my feet going.

Toby, Holly and Rupert Cross for their friendship, patience and love.

Paul Walker at Tangent Expeditions.

Craig Coates for putting up with me in an Arctic blizzard.

Jaime Vinals for giving me the Seven Islands challenge. (All this is your fault!)

Liz Roche for her patience, medical help and book buying.

Phil Poole for being a great tent mate when the chips were down.

Diane Leesmith for being a bloody great friend.

Dave Pritt at Adventure Peaks.

Sibusiso Vilane My friend, you are the best!

Roanne Finch for allowing me to use her research on Everest.

Tina Moult for loving and supporting me through some of the darkest times.

Piers, Debbie and Helen Bostock for their friendship and sound advice.

Colletts Mountain Holidays.

Katrina Whitaker, Miles Hilton-Barber, Paul Booker and Kaye Booth for making sense of it all.

Mindy Gibbins-Klein and Ecademy Press for help in producing this book.

and finally

Kara, my 1977 VW Bay Window Camper. The best office a man can have

When you accept a challenge to cross the world, risk life and limb, set records and face the consequences, you should not do it lightly. You should take a long, hard stare at it and consider what you are undertaking, but more importantly why you want to do it. By the time I had accepted my challenge it had already begun, but I was determined to see it to the end. It all came from one conversation in a tent, which was to rule my life for the following five years.

Jaime Vinals is an incredible climber from Guatemala. He was in the Arctic, or more specifically on Baffin Island, to climb its highest point and continue on a quest to climb the highest points on the worlds seven largest islands. This immediately caught my mind as something I could do despite my frostbite injuries. Mt McKinley had robbed me of all my toes, fingertips and nose only four years before, and I struggled to walk long distances or climb extreme mountains. I had to pamper my wounds continuously to keep them in one piece and couldnt risk further damage. People told me that I should be relaxing on a beach and taking life easy, but thats just not me at all.

The peaks ranged from glaciated Arctic mountains to jungle clad tropical volcanoes. How these differing climates would hurt my already battered skin grafts and scars I didnt know, but I was willing to find out the hard way. My life needed a purpose, a goal, and this was it. My soul had been in the wilderness and it needed direction and order, two things I thrive on. I had no idea where the challenge was going to take me, but I didnt care. The end seemed a long way away and there were plenty of bridges to cross, physically, financially and emotionally.

Jaime was almost at the end of his journey, having only Greenland to visit after Baffin Island, and then he was off home to his family. As his adventure was ending, mine was just beginning

It is a mistake to look too far ahead. Only one link in the chain of destiny can be handled at a time

SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL

The rain was beating on my office window as I sat silently surfing the web. It was late at night and I was wondering what to do with my life. Post-expedition blues had set in since my recent return from Nepal and I was desperate to travel again. I sipped on a glass of whisky, closed my eyes and sat back in my chair. What the hell is wrong with me? I thought. Youve only just got home from one trip. Give yourself some time Nige. The room was in darkness, save for the white light of my computer screen and the flashing beams of car headlights as they shone through the blinds. There was a ping as a new e-mail came in. I lazily opened an eye and clicked on it. It was from my friend Craig in Yorkshire. Nige, Im thinking of going to Baffin Island next year and wondered if you might be interested? I sat straight up, put down my glass and began to read intently. There was little information to hand, so without much thought I replied, Yes mate, send me some more details! I had always worked on what my instinct told me, but had no idea what I was about to undertake. I had been trying to get out to Baffin Island for years after reading of its mountains and history and watching a few TV programmes, but circumstance and severe injury had stopped me time and time again. It seemed my chance had finally come.

The plan was to ski tour towards the Penny Ice Cap and climb Tete Blanche, the tallest peak on the island. I searched for maps, but came up with little, although I did manage to read some reports from climbing magazines, but they were very sketchy. Sod it, just go, I quietly said to myself and sent confirmation details to Craig. My family didnt like the prospect of me going off again, but my mind was sold.