Climbing Patrick’s Mountain is bestselling author Des Kennedy’s haunting and elegant tale about coming to terms with one’s past. Expatriate Irishman Patrick Gallagher, an accomplished but eccentric breeder of prized roses, returns to Ireland as a celebrity host to lead a tour of Irish gardens, and hopes to attract the eye of a wealthy patron to donate funds to his garden back home. What is planned to be a pleasant and lucrative trip soon becomes a voyage of overcoming a painful history as the protagonist encounters the very reasons he left Ireland in the first place. Just as Patrick begins to reconcile with his demons, time runs out in a poignant conclusion. A vivid coming-of-middle-age story set in today’s Ireland, Climbing Patrick’s Mountain embraces the contradiction of the Irish sensibility: grand humour in the face of ultimate tragedy.
Cut the organisational and operational dead weight to climb higher, faster The Light and Fast Organisation presents a blueprint for organisations looking to thrive in today's rapidly evolving business landscape. VUCA - Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity - has become the dominant mode of modern business, and leaders are overwhelmed. Competition and instability has increased while barriers to entry have fallen, chronic employee disengagement is on the rise and the global economic recovery is incredibly fragile; business leaders are uncomfortable, with threats to their business looming on all sides. This book proposes an alternative to the VUCA paradigm, one in which we learn to be comfortable with being uncomfortable, and a model for helping your organisation climb above the fray. Case studies from both business and mountaineering illustrate the benefits and practicalities of becoming light, fast, and agile and underscore the importance of self-awareness and self-reliance in minimising your exposure to risk. Business and mountaineering share many parallels, including frequent operation outside of the comfort zone. This book shows you the strong skills and effective strategies you need to reach the summit. Get comfortable with discomfort Adopt an 'Alpine Style' approach to business Operate outside of the VUCA paradigm Stretch outside your comfort zone to achieve more, faster Leaders must accept the current VUCA state and assess their preparedness, but it's possible to move beyond it by ingraining a 'light and fast' approach at the core of their organisations' values and operations. It's only through reaching beyond the 'safe' zone that we learn what we're made of, and build the foundations for successful leadership and teamwork. The Light and Fast Organisation is your practical coach for climbing the mountain, and your guide to the quickest route to the summit.
A classic in the genre of mountain literature—with a new preface by the author Rising more than 20,000 feet into the Alaskan sky is Denali, the tallest mountain in North America. In this collection of exhilarating and stunning narratives, Jonathan Waterman paints a startlingly intimate portrait of the white leviathan and brings to vivid life men and women whose fates have entwined on its sheer icy peak.
CLICK HERE to download the first 50 pages from Climbing the Seven Summits * First and only guidebook to climbing all Seven Summits * Full color with 125 photographs and 24 maps including a map for each summit route * Essential information on primary climbing routes and travel logistics for mountaineers, with historical and cultural anecdotes for armchair readers Aconcagua. Denali. Elbrus. Everest. Kilimanjaro. Kosciuszko. Vinson. To a climber, these mountains are known as the Seven Summits* -- the highest peaks on each continent. If you've ever dreamed of climbing Denali or Everest, or joining the even more exclusive "Seven Summiters " club, then Climbing the Seven Summits is the guidebook you need to turn your dream into reality. With Mike Hamill as your guide, you will discover different approaches to tackling the list, as well as details on what you'll need to plan an expedition and what to expect from each climb. For each mountain you'll learn about documents and immunizations, expedition costs, training, guiding options, climbing styles, best seasons, essential gear, day-by-day itineraries, summit routes, maps showing approaches and camps, regional natural history, cultural notes, and even post-climb activities like going on safari in Africa or wine-touring in South America. Throughout you'll also find helpful and inspiring stories from the likes of Conrad Anker, Vern Tejas, Damien Gildea, Eric Simonson, and other famed climbers. Special insider tips from Hamill, based on his years of experience, as well as full-color photographs of each peak round out this collectible guidebook. And, because there remains some controversy about whether Kosciuszko in Australia or Carstenz Pyramid on the island of New Guinea is the "seventh summit," this guidebook to the Seven Summits actually covers eight mountains! *Within mountaineering circles there is debate over which peaks are considered the official Seven Summits. For the purposes of this guidebook, the Seven Summits are based on the continental model used in Western Europe, the United States, and Australia, also referred to as the 'Bass list.'
A celebration of feminine beauty, athleticism, wisdom, and skill—Women Who Dare profiles twenty of America’s most inspiring women climbers ranging from legends like Lynn Hill to the rising stars of today, with stunning color photography by veteran adventure photographer Chris Noble.
"Michael Cusack of Westport has climbed the Reek more than 100 times, so his Croagh Patrick and the Islands of Clew Bay: A Guide to the Edge of Europe is informed by lifelong footfall and curiosity. For that amazing view of the drumlin swarm of Clew Bay, he offers not only a name for every island but often a human history of occupancy stretching back before the Famine." Michael Viney, The Irish Times "Croagh Patrick and the Islands of Clew Bay" is a treasure of a publication - part social history of the bay's myriad islands, part historical record, part geographic research, with the additional bonus of up to twenty pages of stunning photographs of the islands and the Reek." The Mayo News "This is the first time that every island in Clew Bay, its history and other details has been explored for the armchair traveller, along with tales of the great mountain, shipwrecks, the magical Brackloon Wood, and other remarkable aspects of this area." The Connaught Telegraph Local legend has it that Yoko Ono had a difficult experience when she first stepped on the isolated Clew Bay island of Dorinish in the late 1960's. She was swooped upon by nesting terns and swore never to return. John Lennon had earlier arranged for a wooden "gypsy caravan" painted in psychedelic colours to be brought from London and floated out to the island on a purpose built raft as a temporary home. He later agreed to allow Sid Rawle, the "King of the Hippies" to establish a commune on the island. Dorinish (pronounced 'Dorinch' locally) is just one of 142 named islands and large rocks in Clew Bay, and many more anonymous patches of land above the Atlantic waves, as well as countless 'drowned' drumlins. The largest of the islands is Clare Island, former home of the "Pirate Queen" Grace O'Malley. This 16th century legend imposed her will on countless ships in the area. As a result, she was famously invited to meet a curious Queen Elizabeth. Their discussion was carried out in Latin, as O'Malley spoke no English and Elizabeth spoke no Irish. The most striking icon around this jewel of the Wild Atlantic Way is Croagh Patrick, known locally as "The Reek". This beautiful mountain dominates the landscape as seen from the vibrant town of Westport. Such stories are a part of "Croagh Patrick and the Islands of Clew Bay - A Guide to the Edge of Europe", the new book by Michael Cusack. This is the first time that every island in Clew Bay, their history and other details, have been explored for the armchair traveler, along with tales of the great mountain, shipwrecks, the magical Brackloon Wood, and other remarkable aspects of this area. From the Foreword by Gerardine Cusack, author of 'A Nightingale Sang': Fortunately, as one of the last of the Westport pilots, my father Peter Hopkins kept us in touch with heavenly Clew Bay and its memorable inhabitants. My father had every reason to remember the hospitality of the islanders - when it was too stormy for him to return to Westport, he was readily made welcome to stay the night on whichever island he happened to be near at the time. Almost all the islands are uninhabited now, but we who are left will remember other days and other ways, the left-over echoes of people who came and went and always left something of themselves behind. We'll remember other music makers. Maybe we'll hear the lilt of an islander's voice on the wind. We won't forget those we knew in the buried past. I hope that you enjoy reading this book as much as I have. It brings to light many little-known facts about the islands that will be revealing even to those who have lived in this wonderful area all of their lives.
This guidebook focuses on the best Irish rock climbing routes throughout the grades at the best crags, including areas and routes that haven't been documented in a modern guidebook before. Very detailed directions and maps make it easy for the first time visitor to find and climb their chosen route. There are 22 crag destinations, north and south, including Fair Head; Donegal; Dalkey Quarry; Wicklow; The Mournes; and The Burren.
