James Salter

Andy Cave

Solo Faces

In 1997, Andy Cave returned from the Himalayas, having climbed the stupendous north face of Changabang but losing his friend and climbing partner in the process. Traumatized by the savage ordeal, he must examine his relationship with the mountains that have defined his life so far.

Thin White Line

At 16, Andy Cave followed in his father's and his grandfather's footsteps and became a miner. But at weekends he became involved with his local mountaineering club and soon learned to cherish this new-found freedom away from the colliery. In 1986, Andy quit his job as a miner and became a mountaineer full-time. This is his story. Originally publish.

Learning to Breathe

Set in Patagonia, Norway and Alaska, this book tackles the severest challenges modern Alpinism can pose. This book features the stark beauty of the environment and the colourful characters. It lays bare the fragility of our carefully constructed convictions.

At the age of sixteen, Andy Cave followed in his father's and grandfather's footsteps and became a miner - one of the last recruits into a dying world. Every day he would descend 3,000 feet into Grimethorpe pit. But at weekends Andy escaped from the pithead to a very different world - testing his nerve on the cliffs and mountains around Britain, and forging endearing friendships with his new companions. Enduring the 1984-5 miners' strike - the guilt, the broken friendships, the poverty - Andy continued to indulge his passion. In 1986, after much soul searching, he quit his job as a miner in order to devote himself to mountaineering. At the same time he decided to educate himself, acquiring almost from a standing start academic qualifications including a PhD in socio-linguistics. This extraordinary twin odyssey is graphically recalled in this remarkable book. In the Himalaya in 1997 Andy achieved a courageous first ascent on one of the steepest and most difficult summits in the world - the North Face of Changabang. Seventeen days later, he and only two of his team-mates crawled into base camp, frostbitten, emaciated and traumatised. His account of this terrifying experience provides a dramatic climax to this compelling story.

Andy Cave

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