Everest: Expedition to the Ultimate

by Reinhold Messner

* Messner is the most highly acclaimed climber in mountaineering history
* Includes updates on recent events plus a history of Everest ascents
* Features full-color photographs

Reinhold Messner, with his partner Peter Habeler, was the first to summit Everest without the aid of supplemental oxygen. In this riveting retelling of that climb, Messner says, "Everest by fair means -- that is the human dimension, and that is what interests me . . . In reaching for an oxygen cylinder, a climber degrades Everest. . . . A climber who doesn't rely on his own strength and skills, but on apparatus and drugs, deceives himself."

In this mountaineering classic, Messner recounts the thoughts of a mountaineer during the climb of his life. Messner's compelling chronicle conveys the exhaustion, despair, and exhilaration of mountaineering in the death zone, interwoven with spectacular color photographs. This edition includes Messner's reflections on the latest Everest disasters. A must-have for any reader of adventure narratives.

Genres: Nonfiction, Adventure, Mountaineering, Travel, Climbing, Memoir, Sports

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Reinhold Messner (born September 17, 1944) is an Italian mountaineer and explorer from South Tyrol, often cited as the greatest mountain climber of all time. He is renowned for making the first solo ascents of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen and for being the first climber to ascend all fourteen "eight-thousanders" (peaks over 8,000 metres above sea level). He is the author of at least 63 books (in German, 1970–2006), many of which have been translated into other languages.

Reviews

[Jule Wendler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Konnte man mal ganz gut nebenher lesen, war aber nichts Besonderes. Das ganze Sherpa Geschäft und der leichtfertige Umgang mit dem Tod haben mich wirklich nachhaltig erschüttert. Generell merkt man ab und zu, dass die Erzählung etwas schlecht gealtert ist, weil die ganze Expedition basically aus weißen Männern in der Midlifecrisis bestand, die sich erst an die Grenze zum Tod bringen mussten um sich wieder zu spüren.

[Anand · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a book that tells a story of the expedition. This is an expedition report document. The book is made with the tape recorder notes that Reinhold takes while he is on the climb. This shows how a person feels each day as it.

There is no drama or anything added to make it more interesting to read. I absolutely loved to read every page of the book, along with references to the expedition notes that is included from other efforts on Everest.

If you are someone interested in true climbing adventures, this is a book for you. If you are looking for a adventures reading book, this probably a wrong option to pick up.

[Deepak Raja Nadarajan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting account of the first successful climb of Mount Everest without artificial Oxygen. It is written out like a personal diary/record. Reinhold Messner clearly doesn't try to educate the readers about the geography of Everest, the route map and camps nor does he try to capture our interests by narrating it like a story. The book is just a collection of events and the emotions that Reinhold went through while "climbing by fair means". I found both the main story and the supplementary accounts interesting.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read many, many books on mountaineering over the years. This one was a little unusual in that the author did quite a bit of quoting from earlier mountaineering memoirs, including some I'd never read, so that was quite interesting. And the book had many photographs in it, which is always a plus. While I didn't think Messner's writing was particularly good, he did include a level of detail about the day-to-day experience on the mountain that many don't provide. Overall, a good addition to the mountaineering oeuvre, but nothing particularly outstanding.

[Sandeep Chopra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Messner is an amazing man. He has written many books, and this one is amongst his finest. There is only one thing better than this book - the feat he describes and makes us live through in this book. It's no mean feat, and it had to be him. The only other person who has probably achieved this was Mallory. But the world wasn't fortunate enough to have him tell us about it.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a lucky mom, having my son be an avid climber in the Canadian Rockies and all over the world, he has an extensive library of Mountain Climbing and adventurous stories. So , when I visit, I just glance through and read them all , in my 3 week visit. Yeah for Climbing , but not in such high altitudes where people die! This sport is for FIT and strong individuals who do not mind Pain and exhaustion!

[milind · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always wanted to read the realtime experience of the ultimate adventure of climbing Everest. Not disappointed in the least with Messner's account.

Highly recommended for anyone who wants to know what it means to be at the limits of your endurance and teetering on the brink of death with just a small false step.

[Stefan Mitev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Райнхолд Меснер е легендарен италиански алпинист, който първи изкачва всички 14 осемхилядници, първи изкачва Еверест без кислород (1978 г.) и първи изкачва Еверест сам (1980 г.). Той е автор на над 80 книги. В "Експедиция до крайната точка" ни представя кратка история на най-високия връх на Земята. Тонът му е носталгичен и на места тъжен. Алпинизмът коренно се е променил от времената на пионерите. Сега е жертва на комерсиалното общество и наподобява "панаир на суетата". Лесно може да откриете снимки на "опашки" от хора към върха. Богати туристи плащат, за да бъдат отведени с помощта на шерпи и водачи до най-високата точка. Вече водеща е не мотивацията и силата на тялото, а финансовите възможности на хора, търсещи лесна слава, за която не са подготвени. Обезопасените пътища към върха са вече (относително) достъпни, което неминуемо води до комерсиализиране с неприятни последици. Все повече отпадъци се изхвърлят по различните маршрути. Ако захвърлените кислородни бутилки се подредят една до друга ще бъдат по-високи от самия връх.

Книгата разглежда ключови събития от историята на "покрива на света". През 1924 Джордж Малори и Андрю "Санди" Ървин атакуват все още непокорения връх, но така и не се завръщат в лагера. Едва през 1999 г. тялото на Малори е открито. И до днес има хора, които вярват на (конспиративната) теория, че всъщност Малори и Ървин са първите, покорили Еверест. Продължават да се органзират експедиции, които търсят тялото на Ървин и предполагаемия негов фотоапарат със снимки от върха. Райнхолд Меснер отделя специално внимание и на събитията от 1996 г., описани в популярната книга "В разредения въздух" на Джон Кракауер, когато две комерсиални експедиции завършват с поне пет трупа поради лошо планиране, логистика и търсене на славата на всяка цена.

Единствената ми забележка е, че Райнхолд Меснер изглежда вярва в съществуването на Йети, което звучи несериозно. Но иначе препоръчвам книгата на всеки, който се интересува от пътешествия, история, география и постигане на трудни цели.

[Kartik Srinivas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reinhold Messner is the Messi of mountaineering.

I used to go hiking, and always dreamt of having thrilling adventures in the mountains.
I first began to research about high altitude mountaineering after an Israeli friend of mine climbed to Advanced Base Camp at Everest in 2015. My friend was in the thick of it all, when the earthquake happened.

But, I digress.

This book is brilliant, because it highlights how athletes look at risk differently than the rest of us. Fascinating, this book is a must read for anyone who likes the altitudes. You climb the mountain with Messner on this one. Plus, Messner is a surprisingly good writer. He writes with an earnestness, that several accomplished authors are unable to capture.

Great read.

[lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book about the first ascent of Everest without oxygen. Also a virtual encyclopedia of the history of a mountain which has become the ultimate climb for many, from experienced mountaineers, of which Reinhold Messner is one of the most renowned, to the modern day expedition climber. He provides us with excerpts from the journals of the original climbers to Hillary and Tenzing Norgay to present day. My only disappointment was he dwelt so much on all that historical information that he left little space for the description of his own achievement.

[Zane B. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mana 4. grāmata par Everesta iekarošanu, šoreiz no pasaulslavenā ceļotāja Reinholda Mesnera - pirmais cilvēks, kurš uzkāpa Everestā bez skābekļa maskas, iekarojis visus pasaules astoņtūkstošnieku kalnus un šķērsojis vienatnē Antarktīdu.
Lai gan ievadā ir paskaidrots, kā grāmata tika uzrakstīta galvenokārt no paša autora ekspedīcijas laikā veiktā mutiskā ieraksta atšifrējumiem, tomēr, man jāsaka, diemžēl rakstīšanas stils ir briesmīgs. Tas nav tikai burtiski, tas ir patiešām atvienots un haotisks, tāpēc ne tikai patiesajam ekspedīcijas stāstam ir ļoti grūti izsekot, bet tas arī padara lasāmvielu pilnīgi neizteiksmīgu. Zinu, ka Mesners ir uzrakstījis citas grāmatas par savām ekspedīcijām, un es ļoti gribētu tās izlasīt, bet es tagad nezinu, vai gribu saskarties ar vēl vienu nogurdinošu lasīšanas pieredzi kā šī.
Vienīgais, kas mani atturēja šai grāmatai piešķirt 1 zvaigznīti, bija fakts, ka Mesners ir alpīnisma leģenda, nevis rakstnieks.

[Carina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm glad I read this but I do think you need to be an armchair mountaineer (or an actual mountaineer) to fully appreciate this. Herr Messner is not natively an English speaker and at times it was obvious this was a translation, parts are taken verbatim from recorded conversations, so at times this does read oddly. However as someone who never wants to climb higher than Ben Nevis (though I now realise that visiting Hungerburg in Innsbruck put me around 1,000 metres higher than that... But that was mostly via cable car), reading the transcript of these conversations at altitude made the oxygen deprivation come alive in a way.

I enjoyed the inclusion of articles and essays on other Everest ascents at the end, it helped bulk this out and make it feel a bit more... More. A lot of Everest books focus on one event or climb, or attempt, so having one include others both before and after was a nice change and felt well rounded.

[Dace Znotiņa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pēc Gašerbruma ekspedīcijas izlasīšanas nākamais loģiskais solis ir Everests. :D Tā kā jau iepriekš lasīts par šo ceļu augšup, tad bija interesanti lasīt cita kāpēja citu laiku piedzīvojumus. Man nepietiek zināšanu, lai novērtētu, kāds bija alpīnistu ekipējums tajā laikā, bet pēc pievienotajām bildēm un aprakstiem var noprast, cik ļoti piedzīvotais ir ārpus jebkādām robežām, ko parasts cilvēks varētu piedzīvot mūsdienās kaut kur savā apkārtnē. Ir jāizkāpj ļoti, ļoti ārpus komforta zonas, tik ļoti, ka tas visai pasaulei šķiet kaut kas neiedomājams un neiespējams, lai mēģinātu aizskart tās sajūtas, kas varētu būt radušās šādas ekspedīcijas laikā. Iesaku tiem, kam patīk piedzīvojumi caur grūtībām.

[LaCabins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Che dire di questa spedizione? Un'avventura al cardiopalma dal primo all'ultimo metro. La fase iniziale di studio e avvicinamento alla più alta montagna della terra è egualmente importante per capire cosa spinge queste persone a rischiare la vita per un'impresa. Messner è indubbiamente uno dei più forti alpinisti al mondo, nonchè uno dei pochi sopravvissuti alle sue stesse spedizioni. Non manca di sottolineare come intelletto e studio siano fondamentali per riportare a casa la pelle, soprattutto in momenti in cui la lucidità viene soppiantata dall'ambizione.
Grande lezione di alpinismo e di vita.

[Mahendra Rathod · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book about the first summit of the Everest without Oxygen by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler. The book provides the background, logic, chronology and psychology of the climbers who attempted this near impossible feat.

Reinhold Messner is one of the greatest mountaineer in the world. This is a good book which recounts his story from his audio transcripts. Good read of mountaineering enthusiasts. If you are not aware about mountaineering jargons and topographies, you may not understand a lot of things.

The book also provides a brief history of other expeditions on the Everest starting from 1920s.

[Don Libes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read a few other Everest books including, of course, Krakauer's Into Thin Air, and the intimidating but magnificent 672-page Into the Silence by Wade Davis. Messner's book, despite having been written 45 years ago, is still a worthwhile contribution and complementary to the others I have read.

I'll leave the details to others here who have already written excellent reviews with good explanations why this one is so different. I'll just add that despite the outcome never being in doubt, it was a page-turner and I had to stop reading all the other books I was in the middle of until I could finish this one. 5 stars!

[Malvina Vega · Rating 2 out of 5]

Тази книга за мен е доказателство на това, че писането не е за всеки. Но вероятно прекалено надъхан от природата си да покорява Меснер се е впуснал в нещо, което изобщо не му се отдава. Моята гледна точка е, че щеше да е по-добре Меснер да беше оставил професионален писател да събере и подреди мислите му. Мъка е. Мъка е да се чете за иначе впечатляващите му алпийски постижения. Не стигнах и до средата, но си я пиша в кредита, защото да четеш мъчна книга дори до половината си е все едно да прочетеш две добре написани книги

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confusing to read at times due to a variety of narrators. Multi page photos were randomly dropped in the text with seemingly no consideration.

Amazing view into an incredible feat! I enjoyed it, but would have loved it if only there had been an editor.


“Such a mass of paper scrawled with meaningless things. The comments and news are repeated from one letter to the next, and they all want answering. I prefer to lie back comfortably in my tent, alone, watching the shadow patterns of the clouds on the thin canvas.”

“I feel much better for spending my mornings like this, than in doing something; to me it doesn’t seem like time wasted, more like a gift of time.”

[Mehtap exotiquetv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reinhold Messner. Eine Legende. Er hat bis jetzt alle Achttausender bestiegen und auch der Mount Everest gehört dazu.
In diesem Buch wird ein kritischer Blick auf den Massentourismus am Mount Everest gegeben. Das dieser Berg gefährlich ist und ungeeignet für Unerfahrene, hat in den letzten Jahrzehnten wenig davon abgehalten, dass sich Menschen jeglicher Art aud diesen Berg rangetraut haben. Ob blind, Bergsteiganfänger oder Kranke. Alle wollen die Luft auf über 8000 Metern einatmen.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. I don’t think this was written as a book with the audience in mind. It felt like Messner only put this book together for his own purposes as it was mainly diary entries. I enjoy reading about Everest so I still gave it 3 stars but I’m not sure I feel the same excitement he does for conquering Everest with no oxygen. I would argue that if you are willing to sacrifice everything and everyone around you for the sake of completing a personal goal then the goal has less value.

[Jean Dupenloup · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Messner book machine churns out another dreary volume.

It’s an absolute pity that as fine an alpinist as Reinhold Messner is such an abject writer.

I’ve read of few of his books now and though the accomplishments described in them are always breathtaking, the prose is usually diametrically opposed in quality.

Here’s to hoping he hires a biographer!

[LudekLacko · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Everest bez kyslíkové masky jako věčná idea, jako utopie. A navíc tušení, že úspěchem se něco ztrácí...."
Jak píše autor v doslovu, zpráva o výpravě, to není román. Ale i tak je kniha velmi čtivý popis prvního výstupu na Everest bez použití podpůrných prostředků. Messner nechodí hory" dobývat ", ale vše to podniká s cílem dozvědět se něco o sobě samém. To co dokázal je obdivuhodné.
Autorovy příběhy nejsou jen suchopárné popisy expedic, vždy otevře své nitro a myšlenky... mám rád jeho knihy.
" Kdo není ochoten vydat napospas něco ze sebe, nemá ani co říct."
Velmi doporučuji.

[Bookcrazy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meine Meinung bezieht sich auf die Hörbuch-Version
-------------------------------------------
Interessanter Vortrag von Reinhold Messner. Er erzählt von den ersten Besteigungen des Everests und natürlich von seinen Besteigungen. Hätte gerne die Bilder zu seinen Erläuterungen gesehen.

2- 2.5 Sterne

[Wandering Wizard · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unimbellished, straight, matter-of-factly account of one of the greatest climbing feats of the modern era. Not recommended for people looking for a spine-chilling, thrilling, suspenseful account of horrors and heroism on the mountain. For everyone else, a must read!

[Ricardo Valencia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a good book, the only thing that was weird to me is how it was finished, just when they returned to base camp and that’s it, was missing a significant close but is an expedition book so... fair enough

[A.L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book. Lots of detail on other expeditions as well as on Messner's, as well as the accounts of the other teams attempting Everest at the same time. He manages to make climbing Everest feel like a supremely calm activity, a contrast to most books about climbing this mountain.

[Matija · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moj drugi Messner, skoro jednako dobar kao i Gola planina, doduše s manje dramatičnih situacija. Za sve alpinističke entuzijaste, velika preporuka. Odlične fotografije, pogotovo za knjigu staru preko 40 godina. Još samo da se malo bolje uredio raspored opisa i fotografija.

[Blue Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a incleible story and drama.

[Lazar · Rating 5 out of 5]

"(...) Noću se ponekad budim i obuzima me osećaj potpune praznine koju je u meni ostavilo ispunjenje mog konačnog sna - popeti Everest bez maske."

"Najviši vrh si zaradio, vinski podrum uskoro!"

[Lynda Watts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting account of his Everest summit.