Horrell, Mark Footsteps on the Mountain Diaries.

Read by Mark Horrell

This is the tale of Mark Horrells not-so-nearly ascent of Gasherbrum in Pakistan, of how one mans boredom and frustration was conquered by a gutsy combination of exhaustion, cowardice, and sheer mountaineering incompetence. He made not one, not two, but three intrepid assaults, some of which got quite a distance beyond Base Camp, and overcame many perilous circumstances along the way. The mountaineer Joe Simpson famously crawled for three days with a broken leg, but did he ever have to read Angels and Demons by Dan Brown while waiting for a weather window? But thats enough about Marks attempt; there were some talented climbers on the mountain as well, and this story is also about them. How did they get on? Heroes, villains, oddballs and madmen 8,000m peaks attract them all, and drama, intrigue and cock-ups aplenty were inevitable

Mode of access: World Wide Web