Doug Scott
Encyclopedia
- For Douglas Scott, the Glasgow-based climbing partner of W. H. Murray in the period 1935-1955, see that article
Douglas Keith Scott CBE, known as Doug Scott (born 29 May 1941), is an English mountaineer
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
noted for the first ascent of the south-west face of Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
on 24 September 1975. Scott and Dougal Haston
Dougal Haston
Dougal Haston, , was a Scottish mountaineer born in Currie, on the outskirts of Edinburgh.-Climbing achievements:...
were the first Britons to climb Everest during this expedition. In receiving one of mountaineering's highest honours, the Lifetime Achievement Piolet d'Or
Piolet d'Or
The Piolet d'Or is an annual mountaineering award given by the French magazine Montagnes and The Groupe de Haute Montagne since 1991...
, his personal style and climbs were described as "visionary".
Childhood
Scott was born in NottinghamNottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and started climbing at the age of 12, his interest sparked by a school trip to the White Hall outdoor activities centre near Buxton
Buxton
Buxton is a spa town in Derbyshire, England. It has the highest elevation of any market town in England. Located close to the county boundary with Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south, Buxton is described as "the gateway to the Peak District National Park"...
.
Mountaineering
Scott's mountaineering career includes over 30 expeditions to inner AsiaAsia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and he is regarded as one of the world's leading high altitude and big wall climbers. He is best known for his first ascent of the south-west face of Everest with Dougal Haston
Dougal Haston
Dougal Haston, , was a Scottish mountaineer born in Currie, on the outskirts of Edinburgh.-Climbing achievements:...
in an expedition led by Chris Bonington
Chris Bonington
Sir Christian John Storey Bonington, CVO, CBE, DL is a British mountaineer.His career has included nineteen expeditions to the Himalayas, including four to Mount Everest and the first ascent of the south face of Annapurna.-Early life and expeditions:Educated at University College School in...
. All of his other climbs have been in the lightweight alpine style.
Highlights of Scott's climbing career include
- 1975: South-west face of Everest with Dougal HastonDougal HastonDougal Haston, , was a Scottish mountaineer born in Currie, on the outskirts of Edinburgh.-Climbing achievements:...
, bivouac on the south summit at 8760 m. - 1977: Baintha Brakk, more commonly known as The Ogre (in PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
), and descent with both legs broken at the ankle. - 1978: Attempt of the west side of K2K2K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest...
. - 1979: North ridge of KangchenjungaKangchenjungaKangchenjunga is the third highest mountain of the world with an elevation of and located along the India-Nepal border in the Himalayas.Kangchenjunga is also the name of the section of the Himalayas and means "The Five Treasures of Snows", as it contains five peaks, four of them over...
(8586 m). - 1979: Ascent of the north side of NuptseNuptseNuptse is a mountain in the Khumbu region of the Mahalangur Himal, in the Nepalese Himalayas. It lies two kilometres WSW of Mount Everest. Nuptse is Tibetan for "west peak", as it is the western segment of the Lhotse-Nuptse massif....
with Georges Bettembourg, Brian Hall and Alan RouseAlan RouseAlan Paul Rouse was the first British climber to reach the summit of the second highest mountain in the world, K2, but died on the descent.-Education:...
.
Scott has climbed the Seven Summits
Seven Summits
The Seven Summits are the highest mountains of each of the seven continents. Summiting all of them is regarded as a mountaineering challenge, first postulated as such and achieved on April 30, 1985 by Richard Bass .-Definition:...
, the highest peak on each of all seven continents. He is a past President of the Alpine Club
Alpine Club (UK)
The Alpine Club was founded in London in 1857 and was probably the world's first mountaineering club. It is UK mountaineering's acknowledged 'senior club'.-History:...
and was made a CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 1994. In 1999 he was awarded the Patron’s Medal of the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
. He was presented with the Golden Eagle Award by the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild
Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild
The Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild was established in 1980 as a forum for writers and photographers specialising in the outdoors, mainly in the UK. It has since gone from strength to strength, and today has over 150 members. It is run by a committee of members...
in 2005 and received the Lifetime Contribution Award at the 2011 Piolet d'Or
Piolet d'Or
The Piolet d'Or is an annual mountaineering award given by the French magazine Montagnes and The Groupe de Haute Montagne since 1991...
awards in Chamonix. He was awarded an honorary MA by the University of Nottingham in 1991.
Charity work in Nepal
During Scott's climbing career, his understanding of the culture and the people in the regions where he climbed grew as he formed strong bonds and relationships. Scott founded the charity Community Action Nepal and spends much of his time fundraising for this cause, especially from giving public lectures. Scott is also an advocate of Responsible TourismResponsible Tourism
Responsible Tourism is tourism ‘that creates better places for people to live in, and better places to visit’.The 2002 Cape Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations defines Responsible Tourism as follows:...
. Scott set up his own trekking agency in 1989, and pays the porters and other staff double the going rate, with improved working conditions, porters' loads being reduced and clothing purchased to combat the cold and rain.
Books
- Doug Scott, Himalayan Climber: A Lifetime's Quest to the World's Greater Ranges, ISBN 1-898573-16-6
- Doug Scott, Big Wall Climbing, ISBN 0-7182-0967-2.
- Doug Scott and Alex Macintyre, The Shishapangma Expedition, ISBN 0-89886-723-1.
- Doug Scott, Mountaineer (1992)