I believe that solo climbing – like all climbing or any other alpine sport for that matter – can, for the most part, be as safe or as dangerous as you choose to make it. Admittedly there are aspects of climbing that you have little or no control over – such as the weather, whether a snow bridge over a crevasse will take your weight, or why that once solid-looking hold suddenly broke when you weighted it. However, for the majority of climbing situations, the level of danger faced is quite literally in the hands of the climber, and how potentially hazardous it becomes is largely dependent on the level of risk the climber is prepared to accept. More than anything, you make a judgement when you commit to a climb and you continue to make these calls throughout the climb.....

In September 2006, a group of Tibetan refugees were fired upon by Chinese border soldiers as they attempted to cross the Nangpa La, an alpine pass on the Tibet–Nepal border. One refugee was killed and another wounded. Every year, thousands of Tibetans flee the oppression they endure in Chinese-occupied Tibet, travelling on foot through the Himalaya. What makes the 2006 Nangpa La shootings unique is that they were witnessed by up to 100 Westerners at Advanced Base Camp on nearby Cho Oyu, and filmed by one climber. Although many people witnessed the shootings, the vast majority were not willing to speak up about what they had seen. For the first time in New Zealand, Mountainz tells the story of the 2006 Nangpa La shootings, the aftermath, and the New Zealand connections to this event....