Victor Saunders Explained

Victor Saunders (born c. 1950) is a British climber,[1] mountain guide and author. He has summitted Mount Everest six times, and has climbed all the Seven Summits. His first book, Elusive Summits, won the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature in 1991.

Climbing

Saunders began climbing as a child in Scotland.[2] He would later attend Gordonstoun school, and later trained as an architect[3] at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London.

Saunders first gained recognition for his climbing in 1978 with his first ascent of Shield Direct, Ben Nevis. It was the first route on Ben Nevis to be graded VI.[4] Later that year, he climbed the north face of the Eiger in winter.

In the 1980s, he began to make expeditions to the Himalayas and the Karakoramwith fellow British climber Mick Fowler. The pair would continue to climb together for the next four decades.[5]

Across the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges, Saunders would go on to make notable first ascents on the North Pillar of Spantik, the east face of Uzum Brak and the first winter ascent on Langtang.[6]

At age 44, he left architecture to become a professional mountain guide.[7] In 1996, he was certified as a UIAGM/IFMGA ski and mountain guide and joined the SNGM (National Syndicate of French Mountain Guides) in 2003. Saunders first reached the summit of Mount Everest in May 2004, and went on to climb it five more times.[8] [9]

In 2015, writer Eric Vola published Les Tribulations de Mick et Vic, a collection of climbing stories from Saunders and Fowler. It encouraged the climbers to reunite to climb in the Himalayas once more.

In 2016, he and Mick Fowler made the first ascent of Sersank Peak (6,100m) in the Indian Himalaya.[10] It was their first time climbing together since 1987. Saunders was 66 years old at the time.[11]

In 2020 Saunders became president of the Alpine Club.[12]

In 2024, he and Fowler made the first ascent of the NW face of Yawash Sar, a 6,258m peak in Pakistan. Climbed in alpine style, the ascent in Pakistan's Karakoram was made forty years after the pair's first climb in the region. At the time of the climb, Fowler was 68 years old and Saunders was 74.[13]

Personal life

Saunders is the son of George Von Saloschin, a Jewish immigrant from Munich who fled Germany with his family in 1936. They immigrated to the United Kingdom where Saunders' father was given a place at Gordonstoun school. His father changed the family name to Saunders when he joined the Royal Marines.[14]

Saunders lives in Les Houches,[15] near Chamonix, France.[16]

Notable climbs

The climbs are listed in date order.

Publications

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Beaumont . Peter . Douglas . Ed . May 21, 2006 . Has mighty Everest been reduced to a playground? . www.theguardian.com .
  2. Web site: Satkevic . Evelina . 2021-07-07 . An interview with Alpine Club president Victor Saunders . 2024-09-24 . Dr. Melanie Windridge . en-US.
  3. Web site: January 26, 1998 . Bonington's last big challenge: the secret summit of Tibet . subscription . live . https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220817/http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/boningtons-last-big-challenge-the-secret-summit-of-tibet-1141092.html . 17 August 2022 . The Independent.
  4. Web site: Franz . Derek . 2016-10-25 . Mick Fowler and Victor Saunders make first ascent of Sersank Peak's north face . 2024-09-24 . Alpinist . en-US.
  5. Web site: Mick Fowler & Victor Saunders make first ascent of Yawash Sar (6258m) in Karakorum . 2024-09-24 . PlanetMountain.com.
  6. Web site: On the Couch with Victor Saunders: British Mountaineering legend World Expeditions . 2024-09-24 . worldexpeditions.com . en-US.
  7. Web site: Rose . David . How British climber Victor Saunder's Jewish identity helps him summit the world's highest mountains . 2024-09-24 . www.thejc.com . en.
  8. Web site: Himalayan Database Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley .
  9. Web site: Join Cooperative Activities .
  10. Web site: Mick Fowler and Victor Saunders / Sersank Himalaya details and photos . 2024-09-24 . PlanetMountain.com.
  11. Web site: Franz . Derek . 2016-10-25 . Mick Fowler and Victor Saunders make first ascent of Sersank Peak's north face . 2024-09-24 . Alpinist . en-US.
  12. Web site: Travers . Emma . 28 January 2020 . International winter climbing meet attracts top ice climbers . 29 June 2020 . www.thebmc.co.uk.
  13. Web site: gripped . 2024-09-24 . Alpinists, 74 and 68 Years Old, Climb Matterhorn-Like Karakoram Peak . 2024-09-24 . Gripped Magazine . en-US.
  14. Web site: Rose . David . How British climber Victor Saunder's Jewish identity helps him summit the world's highest mountains . 2024-09-24 . www.thejc.com . en.
  15. Web site: Pfanner . Eric . July 13, 2012 . A Blinding Rush of Snow Leaves Tragedy in the Alps . New York Times.
  16. Web site: Victor Saunders | Guide . Adventure Consultants.
  17. Web site: Benavides . Angela . 2024-09-24 . Veteran Climbers Fowler and Saunders Bag Another Alpine-Style First ยป Explorersweb . 2024-09-24 . Explorersweb.
  18. Web site: gripped . 2024-09-24 . Alpinists, 74 and 68 Years Old, Climb Matterhorn-Like Karakoram Peak . 2024-09-24 . Gripped Magazine . en-US.
  19. Web site: February 25, 2017 . ALE Summits Mount Tyree .
  20. Web site: Franz . Derek . Mick Fowler and Victor Saunders make first ascent of Sersank Peak's north face . www.alpinist.com . 29 June 2020.
  21. Web site: Maltese climbers conquer Everest . Times of Malta .
  22. Web site: Himalayan Database Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley .
  23. Web site: Himalayan Database Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley .
  24. Web site: Himalayan Database Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley .
  25. Web site: 168 Summits of Everest from Nepal in 2004: South Side Summits . www.everestnews2004.com .
  26. Book: Saunders . Victor . Structured Chaos: The Unusual Life of a Climber . 2021 . Vertebrate Publishing . Sheffield, United Kingdom.
  27. Web site: Dolan . Katherine . 2021-04-28 . Structured Chaos (at Altitude) with Victor Saunders . 2024-09-24 . Katherine Dolan Writes . en-NZ.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Victor Saunders".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2025, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.