Everest Years

The last 15 years have been busy ones for Bonington: four expeditions to Mt. Everest, to the Ogre and K2 in the Karakoram, Mt. Kongur in China and Mt. Vinson in Antarctica. Two of his friends perished on the 1982 Everest attempt, another on K2, while Bonington suffered broken ribs and pneumonia as he escorted a companion with broken legs down the Ogre in a storm. He recounts these climbs in vivid detail: the search for a route on the southwest face of Everest; startling changes in the Nepalese villages (a three-story hotel with penthouse restaurant in Namche Bazar); the successful Norwegian expedition of 1985 when he finally reached the summit. In between travels, Bonington writes about his adventures (Everest the Hard Way, etc.) at his home in the British Lake District. The Antarctic trip was a bit of a lark for himhe joined an amateur, Dick Bass (Seven Summits, who was attempting to climb the highest peak on every continent. For readers who enjoy action and mountaineering adventure. Photos. (September 9)