Climbing mountains is primarily a Darrell-thing. Gill initially tolerated it but has come to enjoy it more now that we have experience under our belt. That said, Gill is scared of heights so that tempers how extreme or technical we can go, but maybe we'll take on more challenging climbs in the future.

Most of our climbs to date have been strenuous treks rather than clambering up rock faces. One climb not featured below is our attempt on Mount Cotopaxi in Ecuador - 20k feet, crampons, ice axes, ropes and some crevasse jumping. Gill was ill and had to turn back with the guide. I switched to another group but they too faltered part way up preventing my summit experience. It was disappointing at the time, but in retrospect important to gain experience in turning back if summit conditions are not right - beware of summit fever!