On the back of some serendipitous travel arrangements I was able to represent the Club at the UIAA (World Mountaineering Federation) meeting in Tehran in mid October. The meeting was fine but more fun and demanding were a couple of days walking in the foothills beyond Tehran and a trip to Damavand (5600m), the apex of the Middle East. I had been to Iran ski mountaineering with a Wellington team in late winter last year so autumn, with minimal snow, was a real contrast. Being a slow acclimatiser Damavand was always going to be a challenge for me in a short trip and I was not surprised at having to turn back well below the 5000 metre mark with Hiroo of Japan. Harald of Norway, Elena of the Czech Republic and our two Iranian friends did get to the top on a cloudy cold day. John Nankervis