The massive fascination with mountains, not as objects for painting landscapes or places for walking, began in the 19th century. This was the so-called “Golden Age of Mountaineering”, when the mountains were not far away, not too high, and not too dangerous. But even then the first victims of mountaineering appeared. After all, the influence of height on a person has not yet been properly studied, professional clothing and footwear have not been produced, and only those who have visited the Far North knew about proper nutrition.
With the spread of mountaineering to the masses, its march across the planet began. As a result, competitive mountaineering began at the risk of life. And then the latest equipment, the most durable equipment, and the most high-calorie food stopped helping. Under the motto “As high as possible, and as quickly as possible”, dozens of climbers began to die. You can count the names of famous climbers who ended their centuries in a home bed on one hand. It remains to pay tribute to their courage and see in which mountains climbers die most often. It seems inappropriate to develop criteria for the "lethality" of mountains, so in the dangerous top ten they are located almost in random order.
1. Everest (8848 m, the 1st highest peak in the world) is at the top of the list out of respect for the title of the highest mountain on Earth and the massiveness of those who want to conquer this mountain. Massiveness also gives rise to mass mortality. Throughout the ascent routes, you can see the bodies of the poor, who never had a chance to descend from Everest. Now there are about 300 of them. Bodies are not evacuated - it is very expensive and troublesome.
Now, dozens of people conquer Everest per day in the season, and it took more than 30 years to make the first successful ascent. The British began this story in 1922, and they finished it in 1953. The history of that expedition is well known and has been described many times. As a result of the work of a dozen climbers and 30 Sherpas, Ed Hillary and Sherpas Tenzing Norgay became the first conquerors of Everest on May 29.
2. Dhaulagiri I (8 167 m, 7) for a long time did not attract the attention of mountain climbers. This mountain - the main peak of the massif of eleven more mountains with a height of 7 to 8,000 m - became an object of study and a place of expeditions only in the late 1950s. Only the northeast slope is accessible for ascents. After seven unsuccessful attempts to succeed, the international squad was achieved, the strongest in which was the Austrian Kurt Dieberger.
Dimberger had recently conquered Broad Peak with Herman Buhl. Fascinated by the style of the famous compatriot, Kurt convinced his comrades to make a march to the summit from the camp at an altitude of 7,400 m. The climbers were saved by the usually ruining weather. After 400 m of altitude a strong squall flew in, and a group of three porters and four climbers turned back. After conferring, they set up the sixth camp at an altitude of 7,800 m. From it, Dimberger, Ernst Forrer, Albin Schelbert and the Sherpas climbed to the summit on May 13, 1960. Dimberger, who had frostbitten his fingers during the unsuccessful assault, insisted that the rest of the expedition ascend Dhaulagiri, which took 10 days. The conquest of Dhaulagiri became an example of the correct organization of a siege-type expedition, when the skill of climbers is supported by the timely laying of routes, the delivery of goods and the organization of camps.
3. Annapurna (8091 m, 10) is the main peak of the Himalayan massif of the same name, consisting of several eight-thousanders. The mountain is very difficult to climb from a technical point of view - the final segment of the ascent is overcome not along the ridge, but just below it, that is, the risk of falling off or getting hit by an avalanche is extremely high. In 2104, Annapurna claimed the lives of 39 people at once. In total, according to statistics, every third climber perishes on the slopes of this mountain.
The first to conquer Annapurna in 1950 were Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal, who became the shock pair of a well-organized French expedition. In principle, only good organization saved the lives of both. Lachenal and Erzog went to the final segment of the ascent in light boots, and Erzog also lost his mittens on the way back. Only the courage and dedication of their colleagues Gaston Rebuffa and Lionel Terray, who accompanied the conquerors of the summit half-dead from exhaustion and frostbite from the assault camp to the base camp (with an overnight stay in an ice crack), saved Erzog and Lachenal. There was a doctor in the base camp who was able to amputate his fingers and toes on the spot.
4. Kanchenjunga (8586 m, 3), like Nanga Parbat, until the Second World War attracted the attention of mainly German climbers. They examined three walls of this mountain, and all three times failed. And after the war, Bhutan closed its borders, and the climbers were left with one route to conquer Kanchenjunga - from the south.
The results of the survey of the wall were disappointing - there was a huge glacier in its center - so in 1955 the British called their expedition a reconnaissance expedition, although in terms of composition and equipment it did not at all resemble reconnaissance.
Kanchenjunga. The glacier is clearly visible in the center
On the mountain, climbers and Sherpas acted in much the same way as the 1953 expedition to Everest acted: reconnaissance, checking the found path, ascent or retreat, depending on the result. Such preparation takes more time, but preserves the strength and health of the climbers, giving them the opportunity to rest in the base camp. As a result, 25 George Bend and Joe Brown emerged from the upper camp and covered the distance to the top. They had to take turns chopping steps in the snow, then Brown climbed 6 meters up and pulled Benda on a belay. A day later, on their way, the second assault pair: Norman Hardy and Tony Streeter.
Nowadays about a dozen routes have been laid on Kanchenjunga, but none of them can be considered simple and reliable, therefore the mountain's martyrology is regularly replenished.
5. Chogori (8614 m, 2), as the second peak of the world, was stormed from the beginning of the 20th century. For more than half a century, the technically difficult summit has discouraged climbers' attempts to conquer themselves. Only in 1954, members of the Italian expedition Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni nevertheless became the pioneers of the route to the top, which was then called K2.
As established by later investigations, Lacedelli and Compagnoni, before the assault, acted, to put it mildly, in an uncomfortable manner with fellow expeditionary Walter Bonatti and the Pakistani porter Mahdi. When Bonatti and Mahdi with great efforts brought the oxygen cylinders to the upper camp, Lacedelli and Compagnoni shouted to them through the snow ridge to leave the cylinders and go down. With no tent, no sleeping bags, no oxygen, Bonatti and the porter expected to spend the night in the upper camp. Instead, they spent the hardest night in a snow pit on the slope (Mahdi froze all his fingers), and the assault couple in the morning reached the top and went down as heroes. Against the background of honoring the conquerors as national heroes, Walter's furious accusations looked like envy, and only decades later, Lacedelli admitted that he was wrong and tried to apologize. Bonatti replied that the time for apologies had passed ...
After Chogori, Walter Bonatti became disillusioned with people and walked the most difficult routes only alone
6. Nanga Parbat (8125 m, 9) even before the first conquest, it became a grave for dozens of German climbers who stubbornly stormed it on several expeditions. Getting to the foot of the mountain was already a nontrivial task from a mountaineering point of view, and conquest seemed almost impossible.
What a surprise it was for the mountaineering community when in 1953 the Austrian Hermann Buhl conquered Nanga Parbat alone in almost alpine style (almost light). At the same time, the upper camp was set up too far from the summit - at an altitude of 6,900 m. This meant that the storming pair, Bul and Otto Kemper, had to gain 1,200 m to conquer Nanga Parbat. Kempter felt bad before the assault, and at 2:30 in the morning Buhl went to the summit alone with a minimum of food and cargo. After 17 hours, he reached his goal, took several photographs, reinforced his strength with pervitin (in those years he was a completely legal energy drink), and turned back. The Austrian spent the night standing, and already at 17:30 he returned to the upper camp, having completed one of the most outstanding ascents in the history of mountaineering.
7. Manaslu (8156 m, 8) is not a particularly difficult peak for climbing. However, for a long time, local residents, who chased climbers away, interfered with its conquest - after one of the expeditions an avalanche descended, killing about 20 and so few locals.
Several times Japanese expeditions tried to take the mountain. As a result of one of them, Toshio Ivanisi, accompanied by the Sherpa Gyalzen Norbu, became the first conqueror of Manaslu. In honor of this achievement, a special postage stamp was issued in Japan.
The climbers began to die on this mountain after the first ascent. Falling into cracks, falling under avalanches, freezing. It is significant that the three Ukrainians climbed the mountain in the Alpine style (without camps), and Pole Andrzej Bargiel not only ran up to Manaslu in 14 hours, but also skied down from the summit. And other climbers did not manage to return with Manaslu alive ...
Andrzej Bargiel considers Manaslu as a ski slope
8. Gasherbrum I (8080 m, 11) is rarely attacked by climbers - the peak is very poorly visible due to the higher peaks surrounding it. You can climb the main peak of Gasherbrum from different sides and along different routes. While working on one of the paths to the top, an outstanding Polish athlete Artur Heizer died on Gasherbrum.
The Americans, who were the first to set foot on the summit in 1958, described the ascent as “we used to chop steps and climb the rocks, but here we only had to wander with a heavy backpack through deep snow”. The first to climb this mountain is Peter Schenning. The famous Reinhold Messner first ascended Gasherbrum in the Alpine style with Peter Habeler, and then in one day ascended both Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II alone.
9. Makalu (8485 m, 8) is a granite rock that rises on the border of China and Nepal. Only every third expedition becomes a success (that is, climbing to the top of at least one participant) to Makalu. And the successful ones also suffer losses. In 1997, during the victorious expedition, Russians Igor Bugachevsky and Salavat Khabibullin were killed. Seven years later, the Ukrainian Vladislav Terzyul, who had previously conquered Makalu, died.
The first to enter the summit were the members of the expedition organized by the famous French climber Jean Franco in 1955. The French explored the north wall ahead of time and in May all members of the group conquered Makalu. Franco managed, having made all the necessary photographs at the top, to drop the camera, which flew down the steep slope. The euphoria from the victory was so great that Franco persuaded his comrades to put him down on a rope, and really found a camera with precious frames. It is a pity that not all incidents in the mountains end so well.
Jean Franco on Makalu
10. Matterhorn (4478 m) is not one of the highest peaks in the world, but climbing this four-sided mountain is more difficult than any other seven-thousander. Even the first group, which climbed (the 40º slope on the Matterhorn is considered gentle) to the summit in 1865, did not return back in full force - four of seven people died, including the guide Michelle Cro, who accompanied the first climber Edward Wimper to the summit. The surviving guides were accused of the death of the climbers, but the court acquitted the accused. In total, more than 500 people have already died on the Matterhorn.
