03 May 2014, 11:15 AM IST
Just before the 1924 ill-fated British expedition to the Mount Everest, a journalist asked George Leigh Mallory, as to why he wanted to climb the tallest mountain in the world. "Because it's there," Mallory famously replied. Discovered and measured for the first time by an Indian, Radhanath Sikdhar in 1852, the three sided pyramidal mass has had an irresistible if not a fatal attraction to mountaineers nay to all adventure lovers since then. The tragedy at Everest continues. The mind numbing fatalities of 16 Sherpas swept away in a murderous avalanche this month, is a grim reminder, of how a situation at the Everest in just a moment, can go horribly wrong.
The 1996 was another year when disaster struck several teams simultaneously during their assault on the Everest. The saga of dereliction of sacrosanct rules, hubris, agonizing decisions, raw heroism and death, is vividly portrayed in the book 'Into Thin Air,' by Jon Krakauer- a journalist, a mountaineer and a member of the ill-fated team, who survived to tell the tale.
Krakauer was roped in by the editors of a magazine to cover the high profile commercial expedition led by the legendary climber from New Zealand, Rob Hall. There was a serious flow in the composition of Rob's team which consisted of climbers with tenuous mountain climbing experience. Another team similarly constituted was from the US, led by a professional climber Scott Fischer. Days into the ascent things began to go awry. Though insignificant in scale and magnitude, it had a cumulative effect that metastasized as the summit neared. The turnaround time at the summit which was to be two o'clock in the afternoon and no later, was flagrantly disregarded and climbers were ascending till late in the evening. Even after summiting, they dallied their descent, frittering away precious minutes while savoring their moment of triumph at the summit.
Unknown to many, a rogue storm, was gathering in intensity and barreling down on them. Krakauer relates, "None of them imagined that a horrible ordeal was drawing nigh. Nobody suspected that by the end of that long day every minute would matter." The storm would last for 3 to 4 days, the aftermath of which would leave 12 climbers dead in all.
The book, when first published, drew considerable criticism, owing to its controversial content. It was raw in its form that exposed the frailties of a conducted commercial expedition and pulled no punches when it came to laying bare the idiosyncrasies of human behavior in the extreme environment. It is a riveting book that takes the reader to the stratospheric heights of Everest and back.
There will always be that urge in man to caress danger, to outrun the pugnacious bull or test the limit of endurance by defying death. Vincent Van Gogh said, "What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" The Everest will always lure man to its summit and as long as it is there, why not!
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