Walking to school in the frigid December Minnesota air, bundled from head to toe in various layers of insulation, I was mulling over an email conversation I had the previous night with my new friend Dave. Dave lives in Mali, West Africa. I was wishing that I could transport myself three weeks forward in time when I would be there for a visit. One night, among other things, we were talking rock. I was reminiscing about sunshine and Lake States sandstone and he was bragging that, in Mali, it was too hot that day for him and his buddies to climb. Knowing that I would soon be visiting him, I held my tongue from complaining too much about the cold.

Mali is an historically rich country, home to many empires and cultures. Ever heard anyone refer to something as remote as Timbuktu? Well, the city lies in central Mali near the Niger River and was once a wealthy and learned metropolis supported by the caravan trade of gold, spices, and other goods. Today, Timbuktu is mostly a dusty outpost and portal to the incredible "Festival of the Desert." The northern two-thirds of the country is desert, so most of the ten million people live in the south and southwest where crops can be grown.

This would be my first visit to the country. Our main goal was to visit my brother, but climbing this exotic landscape, near the Village of Siby, with the local expat community, was a close second. My brother, Pieter, was a Water Sanitation Engineer serving through the Peace Corps in a small village south of Bamako. It was a good time of the year to visit, as our winter is their cool and dry season. Daytime temperatures reach the mid-90s but the nights can drop into the low 60s. Humidity lounges around the single digits. Summers are seriously hot and humid.

The Hand of Fatima is the better known rock climbing area in Mali, and some climbers regard the awesome 3,000-foot spires among the best in the world. Todd Skinner accomplished a number of ascents on the unusual formation, including the first free ascent on a new route on Kaga Pamari. However, all of our rock time was spent in the Siby region that has emerged as a climber’s mecca only within the last few years.

I suspect that the African sub-Saharan savannah rarely evokes thoughts of rock climbing. Rather, I’ll bet that most North Americans visualize lions, elephants, and mud-built villages. Nevertheless, a crucible of climbing lies not far from Bamako, on the road to Guinea.

Like any climber with an insatiable sense of adventure, the anticipation of climbing a new area adds an exciting dimension to a vacation. So, we packed harnesses and shoes. I am a young climber with several years experience. I help lead my college climbing club and manage our climbing wall. However, my dad had not been climbing for 30 years. This would be fun.

Less than 24 hours after landing in Africa, five of us headed southwest of the capital to the village of Siby. Our expat hosts were two amazing climbers. Joost Guttinger, from the The Netherlands, taught at the American School in Bamako. He selects schools based on many factors, but the rock climbing or surfing opportunities are on top of his priority list. He’ll soon be moving to Muscat, Oman. Dave Wong carries a Malaysian passport, is ethnically Chinese, has American citizen parents in the Carolinas, and has lived more than 20 years in Niger and Mali. He flies small aircraft throughout West Africa. During our stay, we would meet other expat climbers through association with Joost and Dave.