The Story Behind Kenton Cool's Amazing Himalayan Triple-Header

If you followed the Himalayan climbing season this spring you're probably already aware of Kenton Cool's amazing expedition. Just last week, the British climber who already had ten successful Everest summits to his name, put together one of the most impressive string of climbs that anyone could ever hope to accomplish. In a single push, Cool managed to knock off Nuptse (7861 m/25,791 ft), Everest (8848 m/29,029 ft) and Lhotse (8516 m/27,940 ft), something that had never been accomplished in a single season before.

Since completing this ambitious expedition we've heard snippets of Kenton's tale but post climb exhaustion, a busy travel schedule and difficult communications from Nepal haven't allowed us to fully grasp the details. At least until now.

Alan Arnette has interviewed Kenton for Outside Online and the story is just as riveting as you would imagine. Alan gets all the details starting from how the idea to climb all three mountains came about, what events allowed for Cool to make the attempt this season and what it was like to bag a trio of Himalayan peaks in succession. As you can imagine, it was no easy task and there were a number of obstacles along the way, both physical and mental.

The article is a good read with lots of insights into climbing big mountains – Nuptse, Everest and Lhotse in particular. You'll come away with an even greater respect for Kenton's accomplishment, which is one of the most daring in recent memory as far as I'm concerned.