Alpinist Magazine Issue 52 | Winter 2015 Back Issue

FEATURES Freedom in the Hills For decades, female alpinists have made extraordinary ascents from remote big walls to storm-swept peaks, yet their numbers have remained relatively low. Charlotte Austin explores some of the barriers of the past and the potential for the future. Sílvia Vidal, Jarmila Tyrril, Pat Deavoll, Ines Papert, Jewell Lund, Lee Myoung-hee, Kei Taniguchi and Natalia Martínez share ascents and ideas that have inspired them in recent years. Available Light With the constant shifts of clouds and sun, darkness and light, the mountains as we perceive them are in perpetual fux. Photographer Emily Polar travels from the Cordillera Blanca to the Himalaya, exploring alpine landscapes on the edge of change. A Mysterious, Lonely Path The reclusive Slovenian alpinist Franček Knez has no car, computer or phone. Over the decades, he has completed some 5,000 international climbs, including the frst ascent of Hell’s Direttissima on Cerro Torre. Bernadette McDonald seeks to learn more about the sources