The Cold Inside

Mountains may inspire or repel. For climbers, they offer an opportunity for extreme adventure, as well as elusive, precious moments of feeling truly alive.



The Cold Inside takes an intimate look at what it takes to climb. With a unique focus on New Zealand's breathtaking, unparalleled landscape, seasoned mountaineer and award-winning author Paul Hersey is profoundly introspective, and his passion for his crafts — storytelling and climbing — is evident from the first pages.



A mix of adventure narrative, prose, and memoir, this book explores the psyche of climbers. It's as much an unflinching recount of risk and loss as it is a love letter to nature, both facets heightened through the deep connection that climbing provides. Drawing on decades of experience, Hersey artfully examines how such a distinct perspective influences everyday life, particularly in his homeland Aotearoa / New Zealand, where nature is equally giving and exacting.



The Cold Inside is a personal, searching journey towards understanding the inspiration as well as the cost of climbing mountains.