Rock Climbing In Chad

A group of climbers has headed to the African country of Chad in search of new challenges. Amongst the members of the team are Jimmy Chin, Alex Honnold, and Renan Ozturk, who is filing dispatches over at the Never Stop Exploring Blog, which is the official blog for the North Face.

The expedition dispatches are worth checking out for the photographs alone, which show of a stark, yet beautiful, landscape with some surprisingly great rock climbing opportunities including a number of massive rock towers. At the moment, there are at least a half-dozen dispatches to sift through, with Renan giving us some great insights into what it is like to be on an expedition of this nature. The team has been exploring the deserts of Chad, and finding plenty of unclimbed sandstone walls to tackle. While sandstone is not the best rock to climb, it seems that there are rewards to be found at the top, as the climbers are discovering amazing views with breathtaking vistas in all direction.

For those who don't know, Chad is located in north central Africa and is an interesting mix of deserts and fertile savannah. It is considered one of the poorest, and most corrupt, countries in the entire world, and most of its citizens live well below the subsistence level. It seems that much of its landscape remains untouched by explorers and climbers, and there are still plenty of adventures to be had in the remote corners of the country.

These are really interesting dispatches to read and as I said, the photos are spectacular. They'll inspire you to want to visit Chad for yourself and witness these spectacular places.

Thanks to The Goat for the tip on this one.