K2 : The Story of the Savage Mountain

by Curran, Jim

• ISBN13: 9780898866834
• ISBN10: 0898866839
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-04-01
• Publisher: Mountaineers Books

Summary

K2 is the world's second highest mountain, but its savage reputation is second to none. The loss of Alison Hargreaves and six companions in 1995 was a grim echo of the multiple deaths in 1986 and of earlier disasters which have become part of climbing legend. K2 has always attracted the greatest names in mountaineering. Wiessner, Houston, Bonatti, Diemberger and Bonington are among those whose lives have been permanently scarred by their experiences on it. At the same time some inspiring new routes have been achieved on the world's most difficult 8000-metre peak. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Jim Curran, himself a survivor of 1986, has traced the history of the mountain from the nineteenth-century pioneer explorers down to the present, and sees a repeating pattern of naked ambition, rivalry, misjudgment and recrimination. He has also found selfless heroism and impressive route-making on the mountain that top climbers will always covet as the ultimate prize

Table of Contents

Author's Note	p. 19
Introduction	p. 21
What's in a Name?	p. 25
The First Intruders	p. 33
Conway--Connoisseur or Con Man?	p. 43
The Great Beast 666	p. 53
The First Italian Campaign	p. 65
Cowboys on K2	p. 73
Neither Saint nor Sinner	p. 81
Strangers and Brothers	p. 95
A Sahib Is About to Climb K2	p. 105
A Teams and B Teams	p. 121
An Old Score Settled	p. 137
The Magic Line	p. 157
The West Ridge	p. 171
1986	p. 183
Settling Dust	p. 197
The Golden Age of Himalayan Mountaineering?	p. 209
What Next?	p. 223
Postscript	p. 226
A complete list of expeditions to K2	p. 227
A complete list of ascents of K2	p. 241
A complete list of fatalities on K2	p. 248
A review of Kurt Diemberger's The Endless Knot by Jim Curran	p. 251
A Select Bibliography	p. 255
Index	p. 259
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.