Dangerous mountaineering fiasco!
Be very careful when selecting a mountaineering tour guide! Teamwork is key and for a team with beginners, a strong leadership is crucial. Nathan lacks this leadership and that brought us in a very dangerous situation. We were ice climbing a 260meter ice wall with 10 people on 1 rope. 1 person wanted to get off at the beginning so if we all moved down 2 meters, he could get off and we could move forward and reach the summit. But there was no communication, no cooperation. I was on that ice wall for 1 hour, the ones above me longer. Even 2 hours. In the same position, waiting, calf cramps enduring. Eventually I heard we were rappelling down. But the ropes thrown down got tangled. I called out to the Nathan that I didn't feel safe, asking him to rappel down and fix the ropes. I did not even got a reaction and later I heard that he ignored me on purpose. This is unacceptable! It gets crazier. The person climbing behind guide Nathan, was a beginner, who did not get training nor an instruction. He was just told to start climbing. When the fiasco broke out, Nathan disconnected himself to arrange the rappel down. But then that beginner was not secured anymore. If he would fall, he would fall 20 meters. Picking up so much speed that the person below him cannot secure him, taking more and more people on a dangerous fall! That beginner mountaineer is an experienced trad climber. He rappelled down to me to fix the tangled ropes so I could rappel down safely. The leader is the one who should train and inform his team. Instruct them to cooperate and communicate good with each other. Communicate good himself. Nathan did none of these things. A leader should not leave a beginners team unsecured on a 260 meter wall. Leaving them to fend for themself in a very risky, dangerous, possibly deadly situation. This is unacceptable, unforgivable and embarrassingly bad!
By Dreamstarter Adventure T.