Peak& Fathom

Journeys & surface intervals by Yoki

Stories from mountains, roads, and the ocean.

Latest · Surface interval

Master of None, and Fine With It

Everyone knows the saying about jacks of all trades. Nobody finishes it. I'm choosing curiosity over passion, and a ten-year-old in a helicopter seat saw it coming.

19 October 2026 · 4 min read

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The descent

Every journey so far, from the highest to the lowest: from the snows of Thorong La down to the coast. The line doesn’t stop at sea level. The next stories start underwater.

Journeys ordered by elevation, from Annapurna Circuit, Nepal down to sea level2,000 m1,000 m250 msea levelNothing Cures a Headache Like a Broken LegAnnapurna Circuit, Nepal5,416 mThe Audacity of a Mountaineering CoursePahalgam, Kashmir3,500 mThe Land of the Thunder DragonBhutan3,120 mStepping into the UnknownOoty2,240 mThe Mesmerising Abode of CloudsMeghalaya1,484 mRajasthan DiariesRajasthan225 mA Day in VedanthangalVedanthangal20 mVietnam, Before the World StoppedVietnam12 mGoa Without Beaches and BoozeGoa10 mNext chapterbelow the surface
Annapurna Circuit, Nepal · 5,416 mNothing Cures a Headache Like a Broken LegMost people drown a broken heart in alcohol. I chose to drag mine up the highest trekkable pass in the world, in February, to freeze it.Read the story →Pahalgam, Kashmir · 3,500 mThe Audacity of a Mountaineering CourseTwenty-eight days in Kashmir, a language I barely spoke, and a lie about amnesia I somehow kept running for six weeks.Read the story →Bhutan · 3,120 mThe Land of the Thunder DragonOverland from Siliguri to Paro, Thimphu and the cliffs of Tiger’s Nest.Read the story →Ooty · 2,240 mStepping into the UnknownThe night-before fear, and the first step of a long journey anyway.Read the story →Meghalaya · 1,484 mThe Mesmerising Abode of CloudsStraight out of engineering exams and alone to the Scotland of the East.Read the story →Rajasthan · 225 mRajasthan DiariesThe Blue City, the Golden City and the desert in between, scouting for Hygge Journeys.Read the story →Vedanthangal · 20 mA Day in VedanthangalThe bird sanctuary a whole village keeps quiet for, even on Diwali.Read the story →Vietnam · 12 mVietnam, Before the World StoppedHa Long Bay, one very red eye, and four days with a host family, right before the world hit pause.Read the story →Goa · 10 mGoa Without Beaches and BoozeA month to kill before mountaineering school, and a Goa most people never see.Read the story →
Next chapter · below the surfaceStories from below the surfaceThe next chapter is underwater. Those stories are coming.

Journeys

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Surface Intervals

All surface intervals →
  1. 2026Master of None, and Fine With ItEveryone knows the saying about jacks of all trades. Nobody finishes it. I'm choosing curiosity over passion, and a ten-year-old in a helicopter seat saw it coming.4 min
  2. 2026Why Isn't It Unfair in My Favour?A cricketer beat cancer, fought his way back into the Australian side at 34, and scored nothing. I think he won anyway.3 min
  3. 2026My Blueberry NightsI've walked away from almost everything. Then came the one person I couldn't, and a flight back to Osaka to try one last time.4 min
  4. 2026Before the Coffee Gets ColdOne night leaving for Ooty led, link by link, to a leaky bus, a crying teacher and a 10×10 room in Osaka. I'd go back in a heartbeat.4 min
  5. 2026The Art of Walking AwayEveryone taught me not to quit. Nobody taught me when to. So I worked it out myself, one exit at a time.4 min
  6. 2026Ozzy and MayTwo birds I never asked for, never fed, and never got to say goodbye to.4 min
  7. 2026Everyone Has Parents, Right?A remark from my mom when I was 13, two films, and a plan to raise the kids who are already out there.3 min
  8. 2026The Courage to Say “Let’s See”A gold loan, a trekking company I knew nothing about, and four years of the best kind of chaos.5 min
  9. 2026The Schemer Who Only Wanted LightTwo halves of one story, written six years apart.2 min
  10. 2016Selfies OverloadedOn the camera that was meant to freeze a moment and ended up stealing it.1 min
  11. 2015Life Back ThenA printing-press town, a dream of astronomy, and where it all started.3 min

About the writer

An engineering graduate who ran for the hills, then did a mountaineering course, started a travel company and became a scuba diving instructor. This is where I write it all down.

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