How to cut the cost down while keeping safety in mind, and how to prepare step by step.

Every line we paid on Denali, and a level check that turns your fitness into a date.

Buy the Field Notes · €29

What you gain

Cost

All 17 cost lines worked out, with buy or rent per item. We paid $2,717 each. A guided trip costs $9,800 to $19,000.

Safety

The lines you never save on, and the two policy clauses that decide whether an unguided team is insured.

Preparation

Four tests with pass marks tell you how many months you still need, then an eight-month plan you can run next to a job.

Logistics

The timeline worked back from your departure date, starting with the permit.

Your next mountain

The numbers are from Denali. The method of splitting costs, testing your level and planning back from the start date works just as well on Aconcagua, Kilimanjaro or in the Alps.

With our receipts

The three purchases that were worth double, and the three that were wasted money.

Lead Climber · first 1,000

Your copy includes every update to the book in your first year, plus the field guides from Koen's next expeditions.

If you believe no adventure is too big, with the right preparation. Join The Edge, because for us, limits are only invitations.

€29 Founding price until 30 November, then €39

One month, full refund. Mail connect@koendarras.com.

Questions

I have never been at altitude. Too early?: That is who the level check is for. It tells you how long the gap is.
Do you tell me to skip a guide?: No. It shows what a guide costs and what it covers, so you decide.
Not for me?: Mail connect@koendarras.com within a month, full refund.