Trail running shoes are lightweight, flexible shoes with aggressive lugged outsoles for grip on dirt, rock, and mud. Originally for running, they are now widely used by hikers and backpackers for fast, light travel. They prioritize low weight and breathability over the support and durability of hiking boots.
Hiking shoes are low-cut, lightweight versions of hiking boots, offering grippy soles and trail protection without the higher ankle support. They suit day hikes and lighter loads on moderate terrain, splitting the difference between heavy boots and trail-running shoes for hikers who want some support but less weight.
Hiking boots are sturdy, supportive footwear with grippy lugged soles and higher ankle support, built for carrying loads over rough, uneven trails. They offer durability, protection, and stability — especially with a heavy pack — at the cost of weight compared with trail-running shoes, which many hikers now prefer for lighter, faster travel.
Summit fever is the dangerous, single-minded determination to reach a summit despite worsening weather, late timing, exhaustion, or other warning signs that should prompt a retreat. A psychological hazard rather than a physical one, summit fever has contributed to many mountaineering accidents by overriding the discipline to turn around.
Pressure breathing is a technique for high altitude in which you exhale forcefully against slightly pursed lips, raising the pressure in your lungs to improve oxygen uptake from thin air. Rhythmically synced with the rest step, it helps climbers stave off breathlessness and altitude symptoms while moving steadily uphill.
Supplemental oxygen is bottled oxygen, delivered through a mask and regulator, that high-altitude climbers breathe to offset the thin air on the world's highest peaks. Used widely above about 7,000-8,000 metres, it reduces the risk of altitude illness and frostbite and aids performance, though some climbers ascend the 8,000ers without it.
A snow bollard is an anchor carved directly from the snow itself — a teardrop- or horseshoe-shaped mound or trench around which the rope is looped to belay or rappel. Needing no hardware, it's a valuable backcountry anchor when gear is unavailable, but its strength depends entirely on snow quality and careful construction.
A high camp is a camp established above base camp, higher on the mountain, used to break a big climb into stages and to launch the summit bid from closer to the top. Expeditions often set a series of numbered camps (Camp 1, 2, 3) for acclimatization and to shorten the final summit day.
Base camp is the main, established camp at the foot of a mountain or expedition objective, serving as the hub for the climb. Stocked with supplies, tents, and often communications and medical support, base camp is where climbers rest, acclimatize, and stage their pushes to higher camps and the summit.
The rest step is an energy-saving uphill walking technique for steep snow and altitude, where you briefly lock the trailing leg straight and pause on the skeleton between each step, letting the muscles rest for a moment. Combined with rhythmic pressure breathing, it lets mountaineers move steadily for hours without exhausting their legs.