Shortly after I finished reading this book, newspapers flashed photographs of a Sherpa who skipped his own attempt at summitting Mt. Everest to carry a nearly dead Malaysian climber back to base camp from the death zone.
In 1996, journalist and mountain climber Jon Kraukauer was assigned to cover an Everest ascent expedition, and chronicle the experiences of people — some experienced climbers, some not — who paid a small fortune for the chance at a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Kraukauer was a member of one of three American-led climbing teams that would attempt to climb to the summit of Mt. Everest. By the time the teams made their way back to Base Camp, eleven people had died on the mountain.
This book describes why one might want to climb Mt. Everest; what the mind-set of a person even contemplating such a task would be. It describes how one might go about achieving this very task.
He goes on to describe his own journey to Everest, the different people in the teams and their leaders, the storm that scattered the group just below the summit, and the deadly aftermath. It seeks to rationalize the decisions and behaviors of some of the people in the group, and understand how so many died in such a senseless way. Kraukauer himself, because he was part of the team, isn’t an impartial witness, and the book doesn’t shy away from his own culpability — at least two of the deaths that occurred during the expedition were very likely a direct result of Kraukauer’s own actions.
The readers get an insight into what exactly goes into an Everest expedition, and the book does a thorough job of describing the absolute horrific ways one might die on the way to achieve this monumental accolade. Kraukauer also spends some time discussing whether it’s even a good idea for people to attempt Everest in the first place. Aside from the very real risk of death, Kraukauer also considers the ethics of employing local Sherpa guides, and whether supplemental oxygen ultimately helps or hurts climbers.
An excellent read.