Canadians on Everest - Hardcover

Patterson, Bruce

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1550590154 ISBN 13: 9781550590159

Publisher: Brush Education, 1990

Synopsis

The story of four Canadian expeditions to Mount Everest

About this title

About the Author

Bruce Patterson is the author of Canadians on Everest and Alberta SuperGuide. He is a co-author of Wild West SuperGuide. After years of writing about outdoor adventures in the Canadian Rockies, he moved west to Vancouver Island, where he lives with his wife, Joan Wagner. He is arts editor of the Victoria Times Colonist newspaper.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Laurie Skreslet stood at the edge of the gaping crevasse and faced an agonizing decision. He was in the Khumbu Icefall, one of the most dangerous mountaineering environments on the earth. And he was alone. Farther up the mountain, on the other side of the chasm, his teammates were pushing a route toward the summit of the Himalayan giant. Laurie was in pain. His broken ribs still hadn't healed from the six-metre fall he'd suffered earlier in the expedition. He desperately wanted to join the other climbers, but he knew the risk was perilous. A makeshift bridge of ropes and an aluminum ladder had provided safe passage for those who had already crossed the 30-metre-deep gap. But the constantly shifting maze of ice and snow that spills down the flank of Everest had pulled the ladder loose. Laurie searched in vain for an alternate route, but he soon realized that if he wanted to continue, he would have to make a 1.5-metre jump from the end of the ladder to a precarious ledge on the other side. There was no shame in turning back. Leader Bill March had already made it clear that he thought it was too dangerous for Laurie to even attempt climbing through the icefall on his own. Not only was there still the risk of avalanche, but seracs (towering blocks of ice) could collapse at any time. And yawning crevasses could shift or open up in an instant. It was Russian roulette for those who dared to claw their way up or around the frozen pillars stacked at every conceivable angle. If Laurie were climbing with others, there would at least be a chance of rescue if he fell and injured himself. But alone, there was only a remote chance he would come out alive. His ribs throbbed as he thought of the damage already inflicted on his body. Would he survive a second fall? He was in radio contact with mountaineers spread out in camps up and down the mountain, but this was a test of self-reliance. Laurie knew his progress reports to base camp were serving one primary purpose - to make it easier for the team to find his body if he failed to make it through. Taking one last look at the crevasse in front of him, Laurie decided that he'd given his best effort on the mountain. But as he prepared to retreat to the safety of base camp, a nagging doubt remained. Was there more he could give? The jump looked impossible, but he had to try. Pushing his fear to the back of his mind, he secured the safety ropes as best he could and pounded anchors into the snow. He then attached clamps to the lines that would hopefully minimize the damage if he fell into the icy chasm. "At best, the odds are 50-50 that I'll make it," he told himself as he edged his way out to the end of the ladder and made his leap.

Edition details

• Publisher: Brush Education
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1550590154
• ISBN 13: 9781550590159
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240