No Shortcuts to the Top
Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks
by Ed Viesturs · first published 2006
50% recommend50% neutral
For eighteen years Viesturs pursued climbing's holy grail: to stand atop the world's fourteen 8,000-meter peaks, without the aid of bottled oxygen. As he recounts his most harrowing climbs, he reveals a man torn between the safe world he and his loved ones share and the majestic and deadly places where only he can go. A cautious climber who once turned back 300 feet from the top of Everest, but who would not shrink from a peak (Annapurna) known to claim the life of one climber for every two who reached its summit, Viesturs has an unyielding motto, "Getting to the top is optional. Getting down
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…Everest is considered as on the easier side for an eight-thousander [1]. Annapurna got %38 (2007 figures) [2] and K2 got %25 [3]. For some interesting discussion on Everest fatalities, try this one [4]. "No shortcuts to the top" by Ed Viesturs and the well known "Into thin air" by Jon Krakauer are two good books on the subject, if you want to read more. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight-thousander [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annapurna [3]…
on “Two Billion Pixel Photo of Mount Everest (can you find the climbers?)” ↗No Shortcuts to the Top is no longer a new book, but it's a great read, especially as something of a counterbalance to Into Thin Air.
on “Scaling the World’s Most Lethal Mountain in the Dead of Winter” ↗"No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks" by Ed Viesturs and David Roberts tells the whole career of Viesturs and a great account of his way of handling safety on the mountain. My whole family loved it,…
on “Into Thin Error: Mountaineer Ed Viesturs on Making Mistakes (2010)” ↗Ed Viesturs' biography, "No Shortcuts to the Top", covers this well - you can see how he saves money, works various jobs, and pursues sponsorships to fund his Everest, K2, and other big-mountain expeditions. He'd get a trip all organized, then it will…
on “Three American Climbers Solve the 'Last Great Problem in the Himalayas'” ↗I thought Escape from Lucania and by Roberts and No Shortcuts to the top by Viesturs were both good as well. I did not care for Roberts personal memoir On the ridge between life and death.
on “How Mount Everest killed George Mallory” ↗In _No Shortcuts To The Top_,[1] Viesturs gave more treatment to the topic of oxygen - I don't remember the exact quote, but he said something to the tune of: > I prefer to climb without oxygen, but when guiding groups up Everest,…
on “The Paradox of Doping in Mountain Climbing” ↗…could ever afford it. You know, one those idle "I'll do that someday thoughts" we all have. Once I hit the "I could afford this" point I started researching Everest...read Into Thin Air, Dark Summit, No Shortcuts to the Top, etc., watched every documentary I could get my hands on, even talked with one of the climbers featured on the Discovery series that featured Russel Brice's company. I've concluded that I'm not interested.…
on “Two Billion Pixel Photo of Mount Everest (can you find the climbers?)” ↗…is: are the seracs leaning forward or leaning back? It comes down to that." His account of the Annapurna climb and his earlier failed attempt on Annapurna is chronicled in his new book, Himalayan Quest: No Shortcuts to the Top. http://blog.stadum.com/2007/02/annapurna-most-dangerous-moun...
on “Scaling the World’s Most Lethal Mountain in the Dead of Winter” ↗…to wait years perhaps for the next opportunity it can be really hard to make that decision correctly. And picking a partner with not just all the skills bit also the same risk tolerance is vital. [1]: No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks (October 2006)
on “Three American Climbers Solve the 'Last Great Problem in the Himalayas'” ↗