This is the story of a theoretical astronomer who at age 40 switched from being a correspondence chess player to face new challenges as a mountaineer. During the next 40 years, a number of adventures were undertaken which sometimes became life-threatening epics experienced alone. This involved visiting remote locations on all the seven continents and also included wildlife safaris as a second hobby. Although the style was often reckless, the dangers of altitude were treated with respect. In this way, the summits of the highest mountains in the Western Hemisphere were scaled without headaches. The narrative illustrates the dangers of going alone and emphasizes the importance of self-reliance. Other climbs were carried out with small groups of friends or guided parties. At the same time, many trips were made to get close to wild animals. In short, the 34 self-contained individual chapters cover a variety of encounters with uncorrupted nature, both living and dead.