Simon Yates (born 1963) is an English
mountaineer
Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...
. In 1985, he and
Joe Simpson made the first ascent of the west face of
Siula Grande
Siula Grande is a mountain in the Huayhuash mountain range in the Peruvian Andes. It is high and has a subpeak, Siula Chico, high.
__NOTOC__
''Touching the Void'' ascent
In 1985, Siula Grande was climbed by Joe Simpson and Simon Yates. Alth ...
in the
Huayhuash mountain range
Huayhuash (possibly from Quechua ''waywash'', weasel'','' or ''waywashi'', squirrel) is a mountain range within the Andes of Peru, in the boundaries of the regions of Ancash, Lima and Huánuco.escale.minedu.gob.pe - UGEL map of the Cajatambo Prov ...
in the
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
vian
Andes
The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...
. After Simpson fell and badly broke his leg on the descent, Yates lowered him gradually down the mountain with ropes, but in
extreme weather
Extreme weather includes unexpected, unusual, severe weather, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Extreme events are based on a location's recorded weat ...
conditions, Simpson fell over a cliff edge. Yates was forced to cut the rope attaching him to Simpson to avoid being pulled over as well. Simpson survived, and recounted the story in the book ''
Touching the Void'', which was later adapted into a film.
Career
Together with Simpson, Yates climbed Siula Grande () in 1985, via the hitherto unconquered West Face. The climb was difficult and was accomplished in, at times, challenging blizzard weather conditions. The climbers commenced their descent via the peak's North Ridge which proved to be more difficult than they had anticipated. Shortly after the pair left the summit Yates fell through a cornice and started plummeting down the face they had just climbed but his fall was arrested by their climbing ropes. After a
bivouac high on the peak, the pair continued their descent the following morning but then Simpson fell from an ice cliff on the North Ridge of the mountain, breaking his right leg and heel. To continue the descent, Yates then used their two ropes tied together (total length ) to lower Simpson down the mountain in stages in deteriorating weather conditions. Yates lowered Simpson by this method and felt they were regaining control of the situation despite a worsening storm.
However, although the pair had almost descended to the relative safety of the glacier, Simpson went over an unseen cliff edge as he was being lowered, which meant that he was hanging free with only Yates's hold on the rope to prevent him falling. Simpson was unable to get his weight off the rope and Yates could not lower him any further. The two climbers were stuck in this situation for a considerable time (Yates estimated in excess of an hour and a half) during which time the weight of Simpson on the rope was pulling Yates from his unbelayed stance, above Simpson and an unknown additional distance above the glacier. To avoid being pulled off the mountain to almost certain death, Yates cut the rope. Simpson fell approximately to the entrance to a crevasse and a further distance onto a ledge within the crevasse. Yates dug a snowhole in the slope behind his stance and spent the rest of the night there. The following morning Yates completed his descent to the glacier and being unable to find Simpson he concluded his companion must have been killed, he returned to base camp that day. However, Simpson survived the fall and managed to climb and crawl out of the crevasse and reached base camp four days later.
Yates's rescue efforts contributed significantly to saving Simpson's life despite his decision, near the end of rescue, that he needed to cut their climbing rope to prevent a fatal fall. Yates initially received some criticism for cutting the rope from some not in possession of the full facts relating to his rescue of Simpson. Simpson has always vehemently defended Yates's actions, saying he would have done it himself had the roles been reversed
[The climb of his life](_blank)
smh.com.au, 28 February 2005. Retrieved 21 January 2011. and that his initial motivation for writing ''Touching the Void'' was to set out the full circumstances in response to ill-informed criticism of Yates.
Yates commented that after he moved away from Sheffield he had 'hardly seen Joe (Simpson) for nine years' until they went to
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
to film some scenes for the ''Touching the Void'' documentary.
[Simon Yates interviewed in 2002 for the documentary feature ''Return to Siula Grande'' which is included on the DVD of the docudrama film ''Touching the Void'', 2003]
Immediately after return from the Siula Grande climb, Yates went to the European
Alps
The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia.
...
and climbed the North Face of the
Eiger
The Eiger () is a mountain of the Bernese Alps, overlooking Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, just north of the main watershed and border with Valais. It is the easternmost peak of a ridge crest that extends ...
partnered by John Silvester. Subsequently he has participated in many expeditions including those that made the first ascents of
Laila Peak and
Nemeka in
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
and several expeditions to the
Cordillera Darwin
The Cordillera Darwin is an extensive mountain range mantled by an ice field that is located in Chile.
Description
Cordillera Darwin is located in the southwestern portion of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, entirely within the Chilean territor ...
in
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
. In 2007 Yates acted a guide to two Icelandic climbers in a successful attempt to climb
Ama Dablam
Ama Dablam is a mountain in the Eastern Himalayas range of Koshi Province, Nepal. The main peak is , the lower western peak is . Ama Dablam means "mother's necklace"; the long ridges on each side like the arms of a mother (''ama'') protecting he ...
(6,812 metres/22,349 ft) in the
Khumbu
Khumbu (also known as the Everest Region) is a region of northeastern Nepal on the Nepalese side of Mount Everest. It is part of the Solukhumbu District, which in turn is part of Koshi Pradesh.Bradley, Mayhew; "Trekking in the Nepal Himalaya"; ...
region of
Nepal
Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
to the south of the
Mount Everest
Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...
massif and a film of the expedition was made: ''Ama Dablam: Beyond the Void''. In July 2009, Yates successfully led a group of four clients to the summit of
Lenin Peak
Lenin Peak or Ibn Sina (Avicenna) Peak (, ; ; , renamed () in July 2006
(Tajik); for Russian tex
Cordillera Huayhuash
Huayhuash (possibly from Quechuan languages, Quechua ''waywash'', weasel'','' or ''waywashi'', squirrel) is a mountain range within the Andes of Peru, in the boundaries of the regions of Ancash Region, Ancash, Lima Region, Lima and Huánuco Regio ...
25 years after his climb with Simpson, to lead a group of trekkers to the base camp of Siula Grande and to the viewpoint over Cerro Bella Vista, from where the path along which Simpson crawled to safety can be seen.
Yates has authored three
autobiographical
An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...
books about mountaineering. The first, ''Against the Wall'', is about an expedition to climb a new route on the Central
Torres del Paine
The Cordillera Paine is a mountain group in Torres del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. The cordillera is located north of Punta Arenas, and about south of the Chilean capital Santiago. It belongs to the Commune of Torres del Paine ...
in
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
an
Patagonia
Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...
and was short-listed for the
Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature
The Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature is an annual prize of £3,000 awarded by the Boardman Tasker Charitable Trust to an author or authors for "an original work which has made an outstanding contribution to mountain literature". The p ...
. The book details how that particular climb led to Yates re-evaluating the priorities in his life as a climber. ''The Flame of Adventure'' describes a series of climbing expeditions around the world. His most recent book, ''The Wild Within'', describes expeditions to the Cordillera Darwin in
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South America, South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan.
The archipelago consists of the main is ...
, the
Wrangell St-Elias ranges on the
Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
-
Yukon
Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...
border, and eastern
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
.
Personal life
Yates was born in
Croft, Leicestershire
Croft is a village and civil parish in the Blaby (district), Blaby district of Leicestershire, off the Fosse Way, straddling the River Soar. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,639.
Geography
The village is about south ...
, England and educated at
Lutterworth Grammar School
Lutterworth College is a large 11–19 non-selective, inclusive, comprehensive, Church of England Secondary School and Sixth Form College with academy status.
Lutterworth College is situated in the rural market town of Lutterworth in the dist ...
. In the 1980s he moved to Sheffield to complete a degree in
biochemistry
Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...
at the University of Sheffield. After graduation Yates concentrated on mountaineering and did
rope access
Rope access or industrial climbing or commercial climbing, is a form of work positioning, initially developed from techniques used in climbing and caving, which applies practical ropework to allow workers to access difficult-to-reach locations wi ...
work to support himself financially.
Yates lives in
Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...
with his wife and their two children.
His wife and children have accompanied him on some of his later expeditions.
See also
*
List of climbers, alpinists and mountaineers
References
World Expeditions
External links
Simon's own Mountaineering Guide site - Mountain Dream
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yates, Simon
English mountain climbers
Living people
People from Blaby District
1963 births
People educated at Lutterworth College
Alumni of the University of Sheffield