The Last Step (Legends & Lore): The American Ascent of K2CLICK HERE to download a sample from The Last Step * A mountaineering classic * Conflict, hardship, endurance, triumph -- it's all here in Ridgeway's extraordinary story In September 1978, Rick Ridgeway, Jim Wickwire, Lou Reichardt and John Roskelley stood atop K2, the first Americans ever to achieve this victory. Under the leadership of Jim Whittaker, they and their teammates had spent 67 days on the mountain, nearly all of them above 18,000 feet, where the stresses of high-altitude living, of monotonous food, of confinement in tiny tents for day after day of frustrating storms had worn them down to the core. The Last Step is Rick Ridgeway's inside story of this extraordinary expedition. It's about the people who, battered by the mountain and their isolation, overcame their individual fears, desire, and disappointments to work together to get somebodyñanybodyñto the top of K2. It's about the glorious success the team achieved, and about the perilous bivouac Jim Wickwire spent just below the summit without food, oxygen or shelter in temperatures of -40F. |
Contents
Dust From the Road | |
Bridge Over the Dumordo | |
The Book of Marvels | |
The Crystal Ball | |
The Snow Butterfly | |
Storms and Tempers | |
The Snow Dome | |
Problemas Grandes | |
Into the Death Zone | |
10 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Abruzzi approach march arrived Askole avalanche Baltis Baltoro Glacier Base Camp Bech Bill Sumner Bonington boots breathe Broad Peak carry to Camp chance Chris and Cherie Chris Chandler climb K2 climbers cold Craig Craig Anderson crampons crawled crevasse day’s descend Dhaulagiri Diana Jagersky direct finish Dusan Everest feeling felt fixed ropes frostbite gear glacier guys hard high altitude hiking hour hundred feet Hunza ice ax jeep Jim and Dianne Jim Whittaker Jim Wickwire Jim’s John Roskelley John’s jumar Karakoram knew looked Lou and Wick Lou’s minutes morning mountain moving night oxygen pack Pakistan parka peaks porters push radio reach the summit realized rest ridge Rob Schaller rock route Saleem seemed Skardu Skip sleeping slope snow dome stay steep storm stove summit pyramid summit team talk tent there’s thing thought thousand feet traverse trip wait warm weather weeks Wick’s wind yelled