Summer in Bavaria
I have been in my hometown Garmisch-Partenkirchen for a few weeks and it is absolutely gorgeous to be here. When I am away I keep forgetting how beautiful Bavaria is and how much it has… (Read More)
Kathmandu 2010
I am NOT on Facebook
Dear Friends Please be advised that the Billi Bierling page on Facebook is NOT mine. And even though you can see a FB icon on the top of this site, I have never been on… (Read More)
Everest Season is winding down
This year’s Everest season has been heavily covered by the international news and I am wondering whether I should actually comment on it or not. I have had a few phone calls from journalists wanting… (Read More)
Getting ready to head out
Another fortnight has gone and I have been rushing around Kathmandu trying to catch up with the teams I need to interview for Miss Elizabeth Hawley’s Himalayan Database. Kathmandu’s tourist district Thamel is noticeably filling… (Read More)
A Morning Out in the Kathmandu Valley
It has been less than 36 hours that my plane touched down in Kathmandu and even though it is good to be back in the madness of this sprawling city, it was great to get… (Read More)
The end is nigh
After having spent five months working for the Swiss Humanitarian Aid in Berne, time has come to say goodbye to Europe and head back to my other life in Nepal. I have had a… (Read More)
Thank you
This is just a very quick note to say Thank You to everyone who came to my Manaslu presentation and who supported the solar light project in the region. More than 100 people attended the… (Read More)
Slide Show in Garmisch-Partenkirchen
On the second weekend in December, I will present pictures and a few stories about my two Manaslu expeditions. Manaslu, also called ‘Mountain of the Spirits’, is the eighth highest mountain in the world and… (Read More)
Geriatric 10k run in Lausanne
In my last entry I was boasting that I would be doing a half-marathon in Lausanne on 30 October, however, these 21km were reduced to a 10km race due to various aches and pains by… (Read More)
Summit to Swiss desk in five days
Since I wrote my last entry, my life has literally rushed past me as it took me only five days to get from the summit of Manaslu to my new job in Bern. I am… (Read More)
Second Summit Attempt
While I am writing this I am lying in my tent which is engulfed in a huge cloud and I can hardly see the tent next to mine. But despite this latest fog at base… (Read More)
Peaks, politics and prime ministers
When I arrived in Kathmandu last Sunday, I had no idea that this was the day of the country’s general elections. I had long lost track of who was actually ruling the country as the… (Read More)
Wildspitze and other outdoor joys
I have been in Europe for two weeks and I am enjoying the good food, the clean air, the organised life and all the outdoor possibilities Europe has on offer. I have been swimming in… (Read More)
Ladakh – the land of high passes
I just got back from the beautiful region of Ladakh in northern India, where I was leading a trek to Tso Moriri and Lungser Kangri, a 6,666m peak, which unfortunately we did not get to… (Read More)
The dramatic scenery of the Karakorum
This is just a quick update whilst in civilisation before I go off into the mountains again. I have just come back from trekking to Concordia and the K2 memorial site in Pakistan and even… (Read More)
Off trekking to K2 Base Camp
After having spent one week in the sweltering heat of Islamabad I am now off to K2 base camp – a trip I am leading for a British tour operator. I am really excited to… (Read More)
Back in the sweltering heat of Islamabad
Just about two weeks after having left base camp and the cold, I am back in Islamabad, where temperatures are currently soaring up to about 45 C. Life happens so fast sometimes and my Lhotse… (Read More)
Back in Kathmandu
This is just a short note to let say that I am back in Kathmandu and I don’t think I have ever come back from the mountains so quickly. After having come down from Camp… (Read More)
Back from Camp III
Apologies for the silence over the past week but I have been away from modern technology and have been unable to send any updates to my website. I have just come down from four days… (Read More)
Going down before going up again
It is the 5th of May and while many teams are going down to the lower elevations to recover from having lived above 5,000m and prepare for their summit attempt, the Himalayan Experience Lhotse group… (Read More)
Outing to Kala Patar
Greetings from my little acclimatisation hike with my friend and mountain mentor Ellen from Vale!The rest of the Lhotse group is still on their way down from the 5,455m peak and Ellen and I are… (Read More)
Silence has arrived at our base camp
This is just a quick update on what has been happening here at Everest base camp. Our Everest group has gone off to Camp II and Camp III for the next six days, and the… (Read More)
High Altitude Lethargy
I am just sitting in the legendary White Pod – the igloo-like structure that dominates the Himalayan Experience base camp – and the thought of moving over to the prayer flags from where I have… (Read More)
Getting ready for Lhotse
After having wrapped up my job with the United Nations in Islamabad and said goodbye to the lovely people I met there as well as our CORE community, I am back in Kathmandu getting ready… (Read More)
Climbing season well underway
I have just come back to Islamabad after having spent a week in Kathmandu, where I was busy meeting mountaineering expeditions for Miss Hawley and starting writing the Newsletter for Himalayan Experience, who I will… (Read More)
Off to a new adventure
I have just noticed that time must have been flying over the past three months and even though it seems that I have only just got back to Pakistan after my visit to Europe, I… (Read More)
The floods continue
I don’t think I have to say any more about the floods in Pakistan as I am sure you are all seeing daily pictures of these devastating waters that have submerged one fifth of Pakistan’s… (Read More)
The relentless rains just don’t want to stop
Most of you will have heard that Pakistan has been hit by severe floods following torrential rains that fell over one week ago, and the extent of these raging waters engulfing the country is still… (Read More)
Life has handed me lemons
One of the comments to my last entry said: “Billi, you are a master of making lemonade when life hands you lemons.” This was a note from Beth, who has followed my website since I… (Read More)
A new adventure in Pakistan
After having thought that my next adventure would take me back to Islamabad to do another three-months stint for the United Nations there, I was bitterly disappointed to find out that my contract could not… (Read More)