Solo

"It is a fine thing to be out on the hills alone. A man can hardly be a beast or a fool alone on a great mountain." — Francis Kilvert (1840-79).

"In all the splendor of solitude... it is a test of myself, and one thing I loathe is to have to test myself in front of other people." — Naomi Uemura on why he soloes.

"I wouldn't last 30 minutes climbing solo." — Bradford Washburn.

"Some people love soloing and are great at it. They can have it." — Alison Osius.

"In Layton Kor's Beyond the Vertical, you can read about when Galen Rowell got his boot stuck in a wide crack above Hollow Flake Ledge on an early ascent of the Salathé. Kor soloed up to him and hammered the boot out from below."

"This (climbing) thread reminds me of why the Silent Partner was invented." — Rex Pieper.

"Free soloing can be deadly, even if it looks great in the photos." — From a Climbing Editorial.

"The solitary ascent of the Dru had the immediate effect of expanding the horizons of my ideas about mountaineering. It made me aware of possibilities well in advance of the times, which were characterized by very restricted mothods. This was how the superb pyramid of K2 surfaced once more in the list of my projects. But I chose K2 as a way for giving concrete form to my new concept of mountaineering: to climb the second highest mountain in the world solo, alpine style, and without oxygen." — Walter Bonatti on contemplating a solo ascent of K2 in 1955.

"I stand undefeated alone in the ring just pacing
The sweat and the blood dried on my hands all wasted
I'm shouting: "come back and fight for I am the king"
But the lights are all out and the people are gone
How come we always burned brightest when no one was watching ?" — New Model Army, These Words.

"Horn /n./ malady brought on by being too long alone in the mountains.
Ice screw /n./ drastic cure for a severe case of horn."

"The ground is a harsh spotter" — Old Man Caballo.

"My success rate is much higher when I'm soloing. It's easier to talk yourself into quitting when you have someone to talk to." — Amanda Tarr.

"How do you keep your underwear clean anyway ? Mine get pretty dirty after just a few weeks of wearing them even though I always wear them when I take my weekly shower. I will say more, I have to retire most of them after just a few months of use... I have heard that some people own several at the same time but I cannot believe it, this is surely an urban myth... I wish I could ask my climbing partners but I only climb solo..." — Old Man Caballo.

"I knew I was in trouble when my farts came out cold." — Edwin Drummond, recalling his rescue from high on a solo attempt of North America Wall during a 12-day storm.

"The climb will go. Get rid of the rope. It's only distracting you." — Jeff Lowe's inner voice before soloing Bridalveil falls.