Our 2012 Wilderness Award winner, James Bingham, his brother Eddy and their colleagues Mark Wynne and Quentin Brooksbank, have returned safely from their expedition "A Short Winter in the Hindu Kush".  Inspired by Eric Newby's writings, the team set out to do a first winter ascent of Mir Samir (19,878ft, 6,059m) , up the north face.  For most people, attempting a peak in the Panjshir province of Afghanistan's Hindu Kush mountains would seem to be enough of a challenge, without the added dimension of a winter ascent. In the event, the team were turned back by heavy snow that restricted them on some days to making only 200m progress. But we are really looking forward to hearing about their various adventures en route to the mountain and on the way back!