Leo Houlding’s Expedition to Climb Roraima in Guyana

Leo Houlding is in Guyana on an expedition to free climb the epic prow of Mount Roraima, a 2,810-metre mountain with steep walls and a flat top. Houlding will be climbing with Anna Taylor, Wilson Cutbirth and Waldo Etherington.

Roraima is a tepui (flat top mountain) is deep in the Amazon rain forest on the border between Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana. Their goal is to climb a 600-metre overhanging jungle big wall. Houlding and the team are going to airdrop most of their load into the forest below the mountain from a helicopter, using parachute systems and GPS locating devices.

Then a small team of locals will guide the team through the jungle to the mountain, trying to avoid bird eating spiders, killer bees and venomous snakes.

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"But a sportin’ risk, young fellah, that’s the salt of existence. Then it’s worth livin’ again. We’re all gettin’ a deal too soft and dull and comfy. Give me the great waste lands and the wide spaces, with a gun in my fist and somethin’ to look for that’s worth findin’." Lord John Roxton, Arthur Conan Doyles "The Lost World" I'll change the gun for a rack and rope but otherwise I'm right behind Lord Roxton! On Monday I'm setting off to fulfill a boyhood dream, to attempt to free climb the Prow of Mount Roraima in Guyana's Amazon jungle. For the next month we'll be sharing our epic in real time. Check out the link in my bio to Berghaus website and stay tuned here on Insta. #roraimaexpedition #berghaus #epicadventure

A post shared by Leo Houlding (@leo_houlding) on Nov 1, 2019 at 11:32am PDT

Once established on the wall, they hope to lead the first locals to ever climb the wall to the summit. A month after starting out they’ll be extracted from the jungle-free summit plateau by helicopter.

Be sure to follow Houlding on Instagram below for regular updates.

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We’ve spent the last two days in the jungle, and have made good progress. We set off in the morning of the 9th of November, shouldered our loads and took our first steps into the woods. Because this part of the rainforest is so close to Phillipai, the trails are good and it was fairly easy going to start with. Heavy packs and high humidity, but the weather is stable and conditions are fine for walking. Half way through the first day we stopped for lunch at a river bend, and the full team went in for a swim, clothes and all. You get so wet with sweat and humidity that it makes little difference, and actually gives you a chance to freshen up your clothes as well as keep cool for the next section of the walk. The afternoon was much the same, but the trail definitely thinned a little and the local guides did some machete hacking. Anna is adapting to jungle life extremely well, and very quickly. She has a quiet, stoic approach to everything, and just gets on with whatever is thrown at her. The river crossings are trees strategically felled to create a bridge. They’re mossy, slippery and some have serious consequence if you were to stumble. Anna walks across them like they’re nothing, with no nonsense, as if she’s been doing it for years. The temperature, humidity, and general war of attrition that is expedition life doesn’t seem to be affecting her, but the entire team will be put to the test as this next week progresses. Edward, a local porter who’s helped on previous expeditions, has told us to expect deterioration in the weather as we approach Roraima. He’s shown a serious interest in coming up the wall with us, and his passion and enthusiasm are genuine. Time will tell. . @berghausofficial @coldhouse_ @theadventurepodcast @scarpa_uk @kleankanteenuk @dmm_wales @lindewerdelin @leathermanuk @whitbyandco #RoraimaExpedition #bushplane #TimeToGetOut #Lindewerdelinexplorer #BringYourOwn #ForRealLife #LifesAdventures #climbnowworklater #SeatoSummit #noplacetoofar

A post shared by Leo Houlding (@leo_houlding) on Nov 11, 2019 at 2:53am PST