Ghosts of K2
K2 is almost 800ft shorter than Everest, yet it’s a far harder climb. Many great mountaineers became obsessed with reaching its summit, not all of them lived to tell of their adventures. Capturing the depth of their obsession, the heart-stopping tension of the climb and delving into the controversy that still surrounds the first ascent, Mick Conefrey delivers the definitive account of the ‘Savage Mountain’.
From drug-addicted occultist Aleister Crowley to the brilliant but tortured expedition leader Charlie Houston and, later, the Italian duo who finally made it to the top, Conefrey resurrects the tragic heroes, eccentric dreamers and uncompromising rivalries forever instilled in K2’s legacy. This is the riveting, groundbreaking story of the world’s deadliest mountain.
Mick Conefrey is the author of Everest 1953, How to Climb Mont Blanc in a Skirt and The Adventurer’s Handbook. An internationally recognized filmmaker, he has produced several BBC documentaries on mountaineering and exploration, including the prize-winning ‘The Ghosts of K2’. He lives in Oxford.