K2: The 1939 Tragedy/the Full Story of the Ill-Fated Wiessner Expedition - Hardcover

Kaufman, Andrew J.; Putnam, William Lowell

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0898863236 ISBN 13: 9780898863239

Publisher: Mountaineers Books, 1992

Synopsis

Describes the events of the 1939 American expedition to K2 in the Himalayas that led to the expedition's failure and the deaths of three guides and an expedition member

About this title

Review:

In 1939 an American expedition attempted to make a first ascent of the world's second-highest peak, K2, in the Himalayas. Two members of the party came within 800 feet of the summit before turning back, and in the confusion and inclement weather that followed, four men lost their lives. Then one of the worst tragedies in mountaineering history, the 1939 K2 disaster was also noteworthy for its mystery and intrigue. Could any of the climbers be faulted for their actions? And if so, who? Surviving members added to this intrigue with their reticence.

The authors of K2: The 1939 Tragedy retrace the expedition's footsteps through compelling personal diaries as well as recently uncovered documents, and their effort to unravel one of mountaineering's great mysteries makes for thrilling reading.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mountaineers Books
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0898863236
• ISBN 13: 9780898863239
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 224