While you wouldn't expect climbing an 8000-meter peak in winter to be a popular activity, there have been 178 expeditions (as of 2019) to the Himalaya and Karakoram during the cruelest season to do just that. Polish alpinist, Voytek Kurtyka, termed the practice: 'the art of suffering.' The stories here range from the French climber Elisabeth Revol's solo winter attempt of Makalu, to American Cory Richards and his dramatic effort on Gasherbrum II with famed Italian alpinist SimoneMoro and Kazakh hard man Denis Urubko. Award-winning author Bernadette McDonald traveled extensively to interview many of the climbers featured in this book - including Revol, the climbing partner of Tomek Mackiewicz, and Anna Mackiewicz, his widow, meeting them just a few months after Mackiewicz's death on Nanga Parbat. McDonald's many personal relationships with profiled climbers and her ability to tap into emotions and family histories lend Winter 8000 an intimacy too often lacking in mountaineering histories.
Specifications
- Fromat: Paperback
- Dimensions: 288 pages, 15.24 x 2.03 x 22.86 cm
- Published: Sept 1, 2020
- Publisher: The Mountaineers Books
- Language: English
- Item weight: 408 g
About the Author
Bernadette McDonald, A.O.E., was the founder of the Banff Centre for Mountain Culture and has authored eleven books on mountain culture and mountaineering. Her work has been published in eighteen countries and has received many awards, including the Banff Grand Prize, the Boardman Tasker Award, Kekoo Naoroji Award and the American Alpine Club Award. She has received the Alberta Order of Excellence Award and the King Albert Award for her contributions to mountain culture. She is an honorary member of the Himalayan Club and the Polish Mountaineering Association, and has been appointed a fellow of the Explorers Club. When not writing, Bernadette climbs, skis, hikes, paddles and grows grapes.
