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The North Face of the Eiger was long notorious as the most
dangerous climb in the Swiss Alps, one that had claimed the lives
of numerous mountaineers. In February 1966, two teams - one German,
the other British-American - aimed to climb it by a new direct
route. Astonishingly, the two teams knew almost nothing about each
other's attempt until both arrived at the foot of the face. The
race was on. John Harlin led the four-man British-American team and
intended to make an Alpine-style dash for the summit as soon as
weather conditions allowed. The Germans, with an eight-man team,
planned a relentless Himalayan-style ascent, whatever the weather.
The authors were key participants as the dramatic events unfolded.
Award-winning writer Peter Gillman, then twenty-three, was
reporting for the Telegraph, talking to the climbers by radio and
watching their monumental struggles from telescopes at the Kleine
Scheidegg hotel. Renowned Scottish climber Dougal Haston was a
member of Harlin's team, forging the way up crucial pitches on the
storm-battered mountain. Chris Bonington began as official
photographer but then played a vital role in the ascent. Eiger
Direct, first published in 1966, is a story of risk and resilience
as the climbers face storms, frostbite and tragedy in their quest
to reach the summit. This edition features a new introduction by
Peter Gillman.
When John Dunlop gives Judy Scott a lift to Glencoe on his
motorbike, both are surprised when a relationship develops. But for
John all passions must be relegated to the demands of the big
climb. The focus soon shifts to the Alps where he teams up with the
American climber Jack McDonald. Their careful planning goes awry
and a major first ascent bid turns into an intense struggle
bringing disaster and tragedy. Calculated Risk is a fictional
portrayal of the world of mountaineering, of climbing the most
demanding routes at a time when climbing was still emerging from
its primitive inter-war and post war austerities and such routes
were a stark struggle against the elements. The realities and
tensions of big-time climbing, firmly focussed on the Alps and the
Himalaya, are revealed with greater clarity through the medium of
fiction. Dougal Haston was among Britain's leading mountaineers. A
controversial figure, he began climbing in Scotland, putting up
numerous new routes before moving on to bigger mountains and
ascents of Annapurna, Everest and Denali. He was part of the team
which, in 1966, made a directtissima ascent of the North Face of
the Eiger. In 1967, Haston became Director of the International
School of Mountaineering at Leysin in Switzerland. He wrote
Calculated Risk in 1977, shortly before his death while skiing
above Leysin - an accident strangely foretold in the book.
In his own words Dougal Haston covers the years from his childhood
in Scotland, where his love of climbing was first sparked, through
to his development into perhaps the most formidable climber of his
generation; his reputation was forged by his successful ascents of
familiar peaks by unfamiliar routes (of which the most famous was
the Eiger Direct). Infused throughout with his passion for climbing
and his great determination to succeed, In High Places is a
compelling and eye-opening portrait of the climber as a young man
and a must read for all those with an interest in mountaineering.
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