His Climbs 1/2 >Picture Gallery < Back to Previous Page
In the Himalayas, Karakoram, Andes, Alps, Africa, China and the Canadian Rockies, Norman encountered the usual risks of mountaineering, including huge rockfalls, crevasses, frostbite, extreme winds, avalanches, high altitude sickness and many other health hazards.
He says, "If you push yourself to the limits you must have the courage to fail sometimes, for sound reasons, not excuses. Anyone with an extreme ambition will probably have to deal with the big D - disappointment - at times. You just have to keep in shape, mentally and physically, and get up and go again."
There were inevitably failures through bad weather, avalanche and stonefall risk, and he has turned back to escort down sick, exhausted or frightened companions, including one snowblind companion from 6,000 metres. Unlike other mountaineers he has suffered metal fatigue in one leg, yet on the other continued to climb to the top of a mountain of 5,000 metres.
