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Comment by isaachawley | Hacker News Reader

Annapurna - Maurice Herzog. One of my favorites.

Rock climbing: I was very happy about all the coverage around the Dawn Wall project, with Caldwell and Jorgeson. A big part of that climb was finding ways to do it safely, protected all the way. Great contrast with all the free solo hype that had gotten so much coverage before.

One of the worst experiences of my life was trying to spot and move pads around for a buddy trying to climb a super-highball in the Buttermilks. Horrifying. I didn't want to help but nobody else was around.

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When I read Annapurna: First Conquest of an 8000-meter Peak many years ago I was blown away by the story which was both a huge victory in that era of mountaineering but also a personal tragedy for Herzog. This book together with Touching the Void and Eiger Dreams by Jon Krakauer are very captivating books even if you are not so much into mountaineering.

However, I have later read True Summit: What Really Happened on the Legendary Ascent of Annapurna by David Roberts which provides a different perspective on the Annapurna expedition.

And to reply to the grandparent post: Joe Simpson has written a number of books and while they are not specifically about safety culture they often touch on the ethics and dilemmas of high altitude climbing just as Touching the Void did by telling a story where the rope was cut.

Interesting! Would you compare Roberts' book with Boukreev's response to Into Thin Air, The Climb?

Honestly, it's many years since I read these books so my memory is a bit hazy, but from what I remember Boukreev's book was a response to what he saw as Krakauer's criticism of his actions as a climbing leader during the fatal 1996 Everest disaster.

Roberts is more like a historian with the perspective that Herzog perhaps wasn't so heroic after all but instead, despite poor leadership and reckless decision-making, was saved by his companions that were the true unsung heroes of the expedition.

The first book is a rebuttal, the second is trying to reveal what really happened many years ago.

Oh man, my thoughts on Free Solo are multiple and conflicted and I would love to discuss it! Unfortunately, I should get some actual work done today :-(

Thank you for the recommendation.

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