Duke’s Nose
Prologue: I was under this presumption that mountaineering is all about reaching the summits of mighty Himalayas, Alps and Patagonia etc. Until one day I came to Pune and became part of Giripremi family. Giripremi is Pune's mountaineering club which has been promoting mountaineering sport since 1982. Notable ascents of not only Indian Himalaya but also Sahyadri rock climbing were successfully summited by Giripremi members. 2012's Mt. Everest expedition was the landmark event for the club and since then Giripremians have been scaling giant 8000ers one after the other. I have been with Giripremi family for past two years now. When I came here, I had already Basic & Advance mountaineering courses under my belt. Both ‘A’ grades. Enough to get a high of being a ‘qualified’ mountaineer. But just a couple of courses make you a capable mountaineer? In retrospect, I could hear clear ‘NO’. And here I was, having left a potentially money minting job, in pursuit of scalin...