May 29 2008
Happy Mount Everest Day!
Today is the 55th anniversary of the very first ascent of Everest. I’ve been reading a book, Mountains of the Mind, that is a great read and today seemed like a pretty good day to mention it. The book attempts to answer the question “why do all of these people risk their lives to climb mountains?”. Even today climbing Mount Everest is dangerous. 55 years ago it was completely insane. Gear wasn’t as good, technology wasn’t as advanced, and getting help if something went wrong was much, much tougher. Hillary and Norgay were tough, tough dudes
The book works its way through the philosophical history of mountaineering. It talks about how humans first thought of the world and how mountains went from being seen as annoying obstacles to thrilling adventures. It’s a great read for the history, the psychology, and the stories from the mountains.
