K2 is the second tallest mountain on earth at 28,250 ft. While not quite as tall as the more famous Mt. Everest, K2 is a more dangerous climb. In 1938, mountaineer and medical student, Charlie Houston, led an expedition up the mountain looking for a route to the summit. They came close. In 1939 another attempt was made by a team led by Fritz Wiessner. This expedition turned tragic before reaching the summit. Then in 1953, fifteen years after his first expedition, Houston led another team, determined to reach the summit, all without the help of oxygen tanks that are used in these expeditions today. This book reads like an adventure novel, but it’s all true. Describing in detail the efforts of the climbing team and native Sherpas and porters to carry several tons of equipment and supplies up the mountain, establishing various camps along the route, will have your heart pounding. As the men push their bodies to the limit at high altitudes, you will find yourself gasping for breath. Short on supplies, breathlessness, injuries, falls, frostbite, 80 mph winds and blizzards will have you shouting at them – TURN BACK!!!
0 Comments
|
Categories
All
Archives
September 2020
|