Everest & Oyu

To all lovers of nature, adventure, and adrenaline sports! You hold in your hand a book that was written because of my desire to share with others the kind of experiences that Pvery mountain climber dreams of. This book is addressed not only to mountain climbers, but to all who would imagine themselves in our shoes, struggling over the ice, snow, and rocks. For some of you, my story can light the wward on your own ay for n path to the endless circle of the great mountains. Understand, however, that there's no going back, Once you've gotten the urge, you'll soon find that hardly a day goes by when you won't find yourself, for a little while, inyour mind's eye, somewhere far away. Your soul has gone wandering again, back to the -thing it loves,- a love thai is boundless. My aim has been to describe the preparations, everyday concerns, and difficulties of the entire journey in as much detail aspossible, You'll go back day by day with me on our expedition, planning it and living it as we did. I wish you a pleasant time, re-living alongside us those sixty-five days of audacity in the face of nature, which in the end tolerated my presumption, and permitted me to climb to the top of the Goddess Mother of the Earth: