5. Discuss about mountaineering in detail
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Mountaineering is the set of activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing. Unlike most sports, mountaineering lacks widely-applied formal rules, regulations, and governance; mountaineers adhere to a large variety of techniques and philosophies when climbing mountains.[7] Numerous local alpine clubs support mountaineers by hosting resources and social activities. A federation of alpine clubs, the International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation (UIAA), is the International Olympic Committee-recognized world organization for mountaineering and climbing.Mountaineering, also called mountain climbing, the sport of attaining, or attempting to attain, high points in mountainous regions, mainly for the pleasure of the climb. ... For the untrained, mountaineering is a dangerous pastime.
Regardless of the length of the trip ―which can range from a few hours to multi-day expeditions―, mountaineering is more physically demanding than hiking. Mountains often provide a mixed terrain (with the presence of rock, ice and snow), so climbers need to be able to navigate through a wide variety of conditions. Depending on the case, mountaineering may involve using technical equipment and combining a series of related skills like scrambling, climbing, glacier travel, ice climbing or mixed climbing.
Besides reaching a summit or completing a ridge traverse, the true success (and the main objective) of a mountaineering trip lies on overcoming safely every hazard along the route.
Most challenges in the mountain derive from the terrain’s characteristics: crevasses, avalanches, rockfall, glaciers, etc. High altitude (especially when attempting a peak over 4,000 meters) and adverse weather conditions are two other essential factors that may add difficulty to a mountaineering trip.
Other factors are directly related to mountaineers themselves, including their physical condition and acclimatization, technical skills, equipment, orientation, resourcefulness and decision-making skills.
Mountaineering is mostly practiced in groups: team-work and support are very important parts of the activity.
The best conditions for a mountaineering trip are generally during Spring, early-Autumn, and Summer. These seasons provide more pleasant and stable weather conditions and allow mountaineers to avoid heavy snowfalls, extremely cold temperatures, and strong winds.
Many mountains have a specific ‘peak season’: a time of the year when climbing is more popular. During peak season, all services on the mountain (mountain huts, gondolas) are fully-functional, while most of them close in the off-season. Some routes are only open during the official climbing season as well. On the downside, climbing a popular mountain in peak season ―and especially during weekends or holidays― usually also implies more crowds.
Winter mountaineering is considered a more advanced stage in mountaineering, which requires specific equipment and a more complete technical training. Winter conditions add technical difficulty to all mountain climbs. Besides, the risk of avalanches is bigger during this time of the year. Winter mountaineering is only recommended for mountaineers with previous experience.