In 1937, Mount Lucania was the highest unclimbed peak in North
America. Located deep within the Saint Elias mountain range, which
straddles the border of Alaska and the Yukon, and surrounded by
glacial peaks, Lucania was all but inaccessible. The leader of one
failed expedition deemed it "impregnable." But in that year, a pair
of daring young climbers would attempt a first ascent, not knowing
that their quest would turn into a perilous struggle for survival.
"Escape from Lucania" is their remarkable story. Classmates and
fellow members of the Harvard Mountaineering Club, Brad Washburn
and Bob Bates were two talented young men -- handsome, intelligent,
and filled with a zest for exploring. Both were ambitious climbers,
part of a small group whose first ascents in the great mountain
ranges during the 1930s and 1940s changed the face of American
mountaineering. Setting their sights on summitting Lucania in the
summer of 1937, Washburn and Bates put together a team of four
climbers for the expedition. But when Bates and Washburn flew to
the Walsh Glacier at the foot of Lucania, they discovered that
freakish weather conditions had turned the ice to slush. Their
pilot was barely able to take off again alone, and there was no
question of returning with the other two climbers or more supplies.
Washburn and Bates found themselves marooned on the glacier, more
than a hundred miles from help, in forbidding and desolate
territory. Eschewing a trek out to the nearest mining town --
eighty miles away by air -- they decided to press ahead with their
expedition. "Escape from Lucania" recounts Washburn and Bates's
determined drive toward Lucania's 17,150-foot summit under constant
threat of avalanches, blinding snowstorms, and hidden crevasses.
Against awesome odds they became the first to set foot on Lucania's
peak, not realizing that their greatest challenge still lay beyond.
Nearly a month after being stranded on the glacier and with their
supplies running dangerously low, they would have to navigate their
way out through uncharted Yukon territory, racing against time as
the summer warmth caused rivers to swell and flood to unfordable
depths. But even as their situation grew more and more desperate,
they refused to give up. "Escape from Lucania" tells this amazing
story in thrilling and vivid detail, from the climbers' exultation
at reaching the summit to their darkest moments confronting
seemingly insurmountable obstacles. It is a tale of awesome
adventure and harrowing danger. But above all it is the story of
two men of extraordinary spirit, inspiring comradeship, and great
courage. Today Washburn and Bates, now in their nineties, are
legends in climbing circles. Bates co-led 1938 and 1953 expeditions
to K2, the world's second-highest mountain. Washburn, whose record
of Alaskan first ascents is unmatched, became founding director of
Boston's Museum of Science and is one of the premier mountain
photographers in the world. Some of his remarkable images from the
1937 Lucania expedition are included in this book.
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