Climber. Author. Taxman.
First to climb: The Golden Pillar of Spantik, Pakistan
Number of expeditions: 35(ish)
Dogs rescued: One
Mick’s landed a number of ‘firsts’ in the world of climbing – balancing
his love of altitude with a career at the UK’s tax office.
For Mick, the outdoors is about the experience – and the friendships.
Climbing Gave Ding with climbing partner Paul Ramsden. Making it to the top of the Golden Pillar of Spantik. Rescuing the family dog from a Derbyshire cave.
He’s been making those memories since he was 13, when his dad took him rock climbing at Southern Sandstone.
After a brief ‘teenage revolt’, he quickly fell back in love with climbing a few years later.
Rock. Ice. The Alps. Peru. All of it.
Slowed – but never stopped
Third time lucky? Well, no. In 2022, the “awful weather and climbing conditions” kept him from the summit. Chombu remains unclimbed.
But while Mick doesn’t plan to go back, Chombu hasn’t knocked his attitude. He’s busy researching his next trip. Or – more likely – trips.
Next up is La Meije in the Alps. Mick says it’s been on the books for a while. But once he’s done and dusted with that, he’ll get straight into picking the next one.