Dark Summit - Nick Heil

Dark Summit

By Nick Heil

  • Release Date: 2008-04-29
  • Genre: Specialty Travel
Score: 4
4
From 123 Ratings

Description

Written by experienced climber Nick Heil, Dark Summit is both a riveting account of a notorious climbing season and a troubling investigation into whether the pursuit of the ultimate mountaineering prize has spiraled out of control.

"A dramatic story, ably and convincingly told . . . A chilling look at the precarious line between success and tragedy."—Kirkus Reviews


On May 15, 2006, a young British climber named David Sharp lay dying near the top of Mount Everest while forty other climbers walked past him on their way to the summit. A week later, Lincoln Hall, a seasoned Australian climber, was left for dead near the same spot. Hall's death was reported around the world, but the next day he was found alive after spending the night on the upper mountain with no food and no shelter.

If David Sharp's death was shocking, it was hardly singular: ten others died attempting to reach the summit that year. In this meticulous inquiry into what went wrong, Nick Heil tells the full story of the deadliest year on Everest since the infamous season of 1996. As more climbers attempt the summit each year, Heil shows how increasingly risky expeditions and unscrupulous outfitters threaten to turn Everest into a deadly circus.

Reviews

  • Very well-written

    5
    By MMAAVV
    This was a great read.... Fast-paced, and captured a broad scope of detail of the events in that tragic year.
  • Great read

    4
    By Idaho weather
    Very enjoyable and great development of place. Able to inject and develop personal character(s) in a way to make you feel you were on the climb or in the tents.

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