Well, it’s been a very busy few months since I last updated my blog and by way of excuse (I’m good at those!), I’ve been putting the finishing touches to my two latest books, with the first one already up and running on Amazon.

The CLIMBING DENALI: JOURNAL & LOGBOOK is an old project that I started ages ago but put off due to prohibitive printing costs. However, with the arrival of Createspace and an almost completed manuscript, I decided to give it another shot. To my surprise, my original formatting was even better this time round, despite the heavy use of tables and charts, than when I did my last book so I was able to update and finalize it pretty quickly.

One thing that all the commentators caution against is using pictures in your book but I had a bunch of pictures that I really wanted to include and they all came out picture-perfect, to coin a phrase. I did try putting together a colour version as well but this really put up the price for each book so in the end I decided against it.

The latest book is a journal and logbook for anyone wanting to climb Mt. McKinley (otherwise known as Denali) which, at 20,230 ft, is the highest mountain in North America and one of the coveted Seven Summit Peaks (the others are Everest, Aconcagua, Vinson, Carstenz, Elbrus and Kilimanjaro). I climbed it quite a few years ago and wished that I’d had something similar so that I could keep a detailed record of the ordeal (I mean challenge!).

During that trip, our climbing team was also asked to assist a group that had encountered difficulties and while we assisted by offering first aid and food, two very accomplished alpinists, Alex Lowe and Conrad Anker, actually climbed up to 19,000ft to rescue the remaining climbers. Very sadly, Alex Lowe was later killed in an avalanche during one of his many expeditions, which is why I decided to donate 50% of the royalties of the book to the Alex Lowe Charitable Foundation (ALCF), which you can find out more about by visiting their website.

As well as a day-by-day climbing diary, the CLIMBING DENALI JOURNAL & LOGBOOK also comes full of useful information, lists and tips for climbing Mt. McKinley, including a suggested schedule to keep your climb on track, gear and equipment to take with you, great food ideas for your trip, top tips and suggestions to make your climb a success and, of course, much more!

Having done a few other climbs in my time, and depending on how this book does, I may also do a few other Journal & Logbooks for those interested in keep a detailed diary and journal of their trips.

Pete (in the red jacket) and the Hong Kong Team on the summit of Denali!