More on Everest

As I sit patiently waiting for my cat to show up at the door--chasing her around the yard did no good--I will continue my discussion of mountaineering disasters. There have been two major mountaineering disasters on Everest during the modern period of mountaineering. The first occurred in 1996 and was made famous in Jon Krakauer's book, Into Thin Air. Eight climbers died during a single summit attempt on May 11, 1996. Out of that tragedy, however, was a miraculous story of survival that has captivated me since I first read about it. A Texas pathologist, Beck Weathers became blinded by altitude on his way up the mountain. He was told by his guide to wait where he was until the guide returned from summiting the mountain with another climber. The guide--Rob Hall of New Zealand--never returned. He, along with the client, died on the mountain. Unable to see, Weathers made his way down to the area of the camp where each mountaineer launches his or her summit bid but because of a terrible storm and his inability to see, he could not find the camp. He found other climbers from his expedition but they too were disoriented. They huddled together to try to stay warm, but as the storm intensified, frostbite set in. The group lost sight of Weathers when he broke away from them and began tearing his clothes off--a sign of extreme hypothermia. Eventually, another member of the group set off to find the camp, and returned with other climbers to find the group. The climbers found Weathers but deemed him too far gone to make it to the camp. He was left for dead. But Weathers had a will to live and somehow found the strength to make it back to the camp the next morning. He collapsed in a tent and again was deemed too far gone to survive. Because of the extreme altitude, climbers can only stay at the high camp for a short period of time. There is simply not enough oxygen at that altitude to sustain life for any appreciable length of time. The surviving climbers left the camp and descended to a lower altitude, again leaving Weathers for dead. Again, however, Weathers summoned a strength borne solely out of his own will to live and made his way down the mountain despite legs that were nearly frozen solid and severe frostbite in his hands and arms.

That demonstration of the will to live triumphing over seemingly insurmountable odds is what captivates me. I have read numerous books about the 1996 disaster and, more recently, the tragedy in 2006 in which 12 climbers died, including Englishman David Sharp.  Sharp was found alive in the Death Zone (above 26,000 feet) but was in such a state as to be unable to walk.  He was left to die.  Australian Lincoln Hall was also left to die in the Death Zone but miraculously survived a night on the mountain and was rescued by a group of climbers.  What made the difference between dying on the mountain and surviving a night alone on the mountain?  I've read Lincoln Hall's book about the event, Dead Lucky, but it's still not clear to me why he held on while Sharp did not.  My only conclusion:  a stronger will to live and the grace of God to make it happen.