The High Route magazine cover 1: Adam Fabrikant nears the summit of Gasherbrum II. Photo: Billy Haas
Issue 1 of The High Route magazine is off to the printers. Billy Haas has the cover shot—a photo capturing his longtime friend Adam Fabrikant steps away from Gasherbrum II’s summit.
We are at a crossroads at The High Route, in a good way. We sent off the final proof for printing issue 1 of The High Route Magazine on Monday morning, just a bit behind schedule. I had an electric wave of nausea and excitement when I hit send on this email to the printer: “All good from our side—let’s proceed.”
Aside from a physical object we’ll have in ours and your hands soon, this project has been a relationship builder. Like anything meaningful, I’ve become much closer to the individuals involved. That I did not torch my relationships with co-editor Kelly Cordes or designer Matt Janes is a testament to our belief in the end goal and to see a vision through.
The High Route magazine took its next step early this week.
We are also here to discuss the cover shot for issue 1. Last July, Adam Fabrikant, Billy Hass, and Brendan O’Neill climbed and skied two 8,000-meter peaks, Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II, in minimalist style (no oxygen, no fixed ropes, and no support above basecamp). You can read about their trip in the magazine. Adam’s story, “Moments in the Sky,” is one of the features.
As we reviewed photos for a potential cover shot, one stood out. Haas snapped an iPhone image of Fabrikant a mere “10 feet, but 10 minutes” from Gasherbrum II’s summit.
When I showed the cover shot to those involved with Issue 1, most, but not all, people were in support. The primary concern I heard was, “This is a backcountry ski magazine; a person descending on skis is essential—skis must be on the feet, not the pack.”
But, we kept returning to this image.
Skis are on the pack. Fabrikant is ascending. During a group call to discuss the cover, Haas explained, “Going uphill is just as much of the whole experience as going downhill.” That, in a few words, summarizes how The High Route sees touring and ski mountaineering.
Although most of us have neither ascended nor skied down an 8,000-meter peak, we all can identify with a demanding physical effort. We see Adam’s boot tracks up an airy ridge. There’s a brooding Karakoram atmosphere.
And there’s the snowflake. The snowflake sealed the deal.
During a call to discuss the image, Haas said the snowflake reminded him of a fractally crystal. Something he recalled Maurice Herzog describing in his classic 1951 book Annapurna as he stepped onto the summit at the upper margins of the cloud layer.
This was no big-time Karakoram expedition with full-bodied cameras, a documentary crew, and a shoot plan. “Seeing this image, the feeling it invokes is that we were just a couple of guys with some iPhones, some skis, climbing and skiing on some big mountains,” said Hass.
“One thing that comes to mind when I see that picture is timelessness,” added Fabrikant. “You can tell things are going slowly amidst a deep-deep blue sky and some chaotic weather. It could be 1990, it could be last summer. That’s my favorite picture from the whole trip.”
Producing issue 1 has been a trip, too. If you have not subscribed, we would love your support.
