The Big Walls are the royal discipline in mountaineering terms. They embody all the things that make climbing what it is - size, scale, difficulty, exposure, remoteness, and the reduction of equipment to a minimum. Challenging walls can be found the world over: in the Himalayas, the Karakorum, the Alps, South America, Alaska, and the Caucasus.Here, world famous mountaineer Reinhold Messner looks at the history of big wall climbing and presents detailed information on fifty walls, with the intention of showing a new generation of climbers where the big challenges and remaining climbing problems may be encountered. Messner's aim is to make the broader public aware of the true nature of mountaineering, which is not merely slogging up Mount Everest, but is being self-reliant with the minimum of equipment on a difficult mountain face at the end of the world.Illustrated throughout with stunning photographs, this book is inspirational as well as informative and is essential reading for climbers, mountaineers, and all those interested in adventure travel. Read Less