Hindu Kush

Mir Samir is a 6059m peak on the Afghan border with Nuristan that Eric Newby and his companion (both inexperienced mountaineers) set out to climb in 1956, a trip described in ‘A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush’. Although they were unsuccessful, the mountain has since received a number of ascents, but never in winter. Not put off by the unstable political situation in Afghanistan, this more experienced 4-man team hoped to climb a new route on the peak’s North face in winter conditions. Unfortunately, a number of factors led to the expedition being cut short: the theft of a kit bag containing essential equipment, coupled with very deep snow conditions and route finding difficulties meant the team were unable to even reach the base-camp of the mountain.