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Ask the Expert
Big-Wall Warrior Mark Synnott Answers
Your Climbing Queries
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Me and my best buddy are anxious to try our hand at rock
climbing. We are pretty adventurous but have never climbed anything
other than trees. Do you think we could handle a trip down to the slot
canyons of Arizona? Or do you recommend something else? Also,
where could I find a guide?
—Matt, Toronto, Canada
Matt,
I highly encourage you and your buddy to get out there on some crazy
adventures. Once you tap into the vast possibilities for adventure in this
world, you will never be bored again. However, canyoneering might not
be the best place to get started. I have done a fair amount of this down in
the desert southwest and it is pretty serious business, perhaps not the best
place to cut your teeth. Flash floods not only rage through these canyons
without warning, they also damage the rappel anchors in many cases. If
you're not an experienced climber it would be hard to gauge
whether that rock which smashed into a bolt rendered it potentially unsafe.
Better for you guys to get started at a more accessible climbing area where
you can get some professional instruction. At your local outdoor store you
should be able to pick up a copy of Climbing Magazine. In the
back they have a section called guides and travel which has info on a lot of
different guide services all over the U.S. and world.
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About Our Expert
"A lot of people don't realize it, but the only thing you really need to climb
big walls, or any big route, is determination," says Mark Synnott. OK. But
what else does it take to best a big wall?
E-mail Mark and he'll give you the skinny on everything from grub to
gear to getting started. And he should know.
Mark has bagged more than 50 big walls, including Argentina's Cerro
Torre and first ascents on Canada's Baffin Island and southern Asia's
Karakoram Range. And when he's not climbing, he's helping design new
North Face equipment or contributing to magazines like National
Geographic, Outside, and Climbing.
E-mail Mark
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Climber Mark Synnott
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National Geographic Atlas of the World