New York, 1974, 1st edition. 207 pp, 93 ills. Accounts of two American Dhaulagiri expeditions in 1969 and 1973. In 1973, Lou Reichardt and John Roskelley made the fourth ascent.
Dhaulagiri I is an immense 26,795' peak of rock and ice in central Nepal. It is the sixth highest in the world, and was one of the last to be climbed. Between 1949 and 1960 many countries attempted expedition climbs, finally the Swiss prevailed and named the mountain 'Mountain of Storms.' This book is a chronicle of the American expeditions of 1969 and 1973. The book is an unusual account of both attempts, one tragic, the other mixing triumph with failure, each extraordinary in what it reveals about the 'mountain' in our minds. This collaborative telling by climbers Andrew Harvard and Todd Thompson is an excellent book. DJ, Near Fine-Fine.
After its discovery in 1808 by the western world, Dhaulagiri became known as the highest mountain in the world. This lasted for 30 years before being usurped by Kangchenjunga.
Dhaulagiri was first climbed on May 13, 1960 by Kurt Diemberger, Peter Diener, Ernst Forrer, Albin Schelbert, Nyima Dorji and Nawang Dorji of a Swiss/Austrian expedition. This was also the first Himalayan climb supported by an airplane. The airplane, a Pilatus PC-6, crashed during the approach and was later abandoned on the mountain.
