Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Nick is raising money for the MS Society, a cause that is very close to his heart. When Nick was 6 years old his uncle was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and Nick has watched helplessly as his uncles condition, and range of movement, have deteriorated for over 15 years as well as the impact that his disease has had on his family. By raising money for the MS Society Nick hopes that they can help other people and families in the same position.

In July 2012, British mountaineers Jon Gupta & Nick Valentine, along with French photographer Alexandre Buisse, will attempt to complete one of the world’s hardest mountaineering challenges:

This will be a BRITISH FIRST completion of the award and should they achieve this in their time of just 40 days frame… a WORLD FASTEST - which currently belongs to legendary climber Denis Ububko.

 

The Snow Leopard award was a Soviet mountaineering award given to very experienced climbers and in the modern era, it is still recognised in the Commonwealth of Independent States. To receive this award, a climber must summit all 5 peaks of 7000m and above located in the former Soviet Union.

In Tajikistan’s Pamir Mountains there are 3 Snow Leopard peaks:

• Ismail Samani Peak (formerly Communism Peak) 7,495 m (24,590 ft);
• Peak Korzhenevskaya 7,105 m (23,310 ft); and
• Ibn Sina Peak (formerly Lenin Peak) 7,134 m (23,406 ft) on the Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border

In the Tian Shan there are 2 Snow Leopard peaks:

• Jengish Chokusu (formerly Peak Pobeda) 7,439 metres (24,406 ft) in Kyrgyzstan (divided by the border with China); and
• Khan Tengri 7,010 m (22,998 ft) on the Kyrgyzstan-Kazakhstan border

In order of difficulty, Peak Pobeda is by far the most difficult and dangerous, followed by Khan Tengri, Ismail Samani Peak, Peak Korzhenevskaya, and Lenin (Ibn Sina) Peak

(25% of money raised will help to fund the expedition)