Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster

Krakauer recounts the historical moment where Mount Everest, then designated as peak XV, was calculated to be 29,002 feet above sea level—the highest in the world–this has now been revised to 29,028 feet. The peak was named after Sir George Everest—the prior surveyor general of Northern India—by Sir Andrew Waugh, the general surveyor in 1865.

After expeditions reach the North and South Poles, intrepid explorers turn their attention to Mount Everest. The first British expeditions approach from the Tibetan (rather than Nepali) side of Everest, as Nepal at this time is closed to tourists. Edward Norton reaches 28,126 feet before he retreats in 1924. There is conjecture over whether George Leight Mallory and Andrew Irvine reach the peak in 1924. They do not return, and the discovery of Mallory’s body in 1999 at the base of a significant drop suggests that they did not attain the summit. Nepal opens its borders in 1949. In 1953 the summit is finally reached by Edmund Hillary, a mountaineer from New Zealand, and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali Sherpa, with the use of bottled oxygen. This news creates global jubilation, particularly in the British Commonwealth.

Krakauer details more recent Everest history, which he is personally connected with; he was inspired as a young boy when his family friend Willi Unsoeld summited Everest via the previously unclimbed West Ridge in 1963. By the time Krakauer reaches his twenties, climbing is his obsession; he works seasonal jobs to fund trips to renowned mountains in America and Canada. Despite aspiring to climb Everest as a child, as a young adult Krakauer and his fellow climbers increasingly view Everest with contempt; Everest is no longer climbed only by talented and experienced mountaineers. Instead rich individuals with less climbing experience pay to join commercial enterprises, where experienced mountaineers assist them. To deal with the influx of tourists, and to stem the increasing pollution around Everest, Nepal charges exorbitant fees for expeditions to access the mountain.

In 1995, Outside magazine approaches Krakauer with the proposition that he should join an Everest expedition—traveling as far as base camp—to write about the increasing commercialization of Everest. Krakauer instead suggests that if the assignment is delayed 12 months, he will train and attempt the summit. The magazine agrees; Krakauer will participate in Rob Hall’s 1996 Everest expedition.

Krakauer flies to Kathmandu. He observes the profile of Everest from his plane’s window and is struck by the immensity of his goal. Andy Harris, a guide from Adventure Consultants, meets him at the airport. The two bond as they wait for another client—Lou Kasischke—to find a missing bag. Kasischke, Harris, and Krakauer travel to a hotel in Kathmandu. They meet Rob Hall, co-founder of Adventure Consultants, a guided hiking service that Hall established with fellow climber Gary Ball. Ball died on an expedition with Hall on one of the world’s tallest peaks: Dhaulagiri. Hall continued running Adventure Consultants in spite of Ball’s death and the negative press, which guided commercial hiking tours often receive from those who believe that money should not be able to buy access.

Krakauer and other clients signed onto Hall’s expedition: Lou Kasischke (53, American), Yasuko Namba (47, Japanese), Beck Weathers (49, American), Stuart Hutchison (34, Canadian), John Taske (56, Australian), Frank Fischbeck (53, Hong Kong), and Doug Hansen (46, American), travel to the village of Lukla via helicopter. They are accompanied by Andy Harris; Rob Hall; Helen Wilton, the base camp manager; and Caroline Mackenzie, the expedition doctor. Krakauer feels some misgiving over some of his teammates’ inexperience.

Krakauer and the team trek through Himalayan landscape dotted with hamlets and surrounded by soaring mountains and ice pinnacles. They head toward Base Camp. At the Khumbu Lodge in the Sherpa town of Namche, Krakauer meets the expedition's third guide: Mike Groom, a taciturn 33-year-old Australian mountaineer. The group is made up of a range of personalities; some dominate the conversation with conservative viewpoints not shared by Krakauer, especially Beck Weathers.

Krakauer describes the economic structure of Sherpa society, the ethnic group which inhabits the Khumbu, a series of valleys south of Mount Everest. These individuals, who are largely devout Buddhists, traditionally conduct trade between India and Tibet. With the increased tourism to the area drawn by Mount Everest, their economy now largely caters to the needs of tourists. The climbing Sherpas assist expeditions in load bearing, route-finding, and climbing Mount Everest. Working as a climbing Sherpa is a lucrative role. As much of Nepal is impoverished, the role is popular in spite of the extreme risk. Many Westerners are surprised by the Westernization which has influenced the region; Sherpas are usually dressed in Western clothes, rather than traditional robes.

At Tengboche, Krakauer is taken to meet the Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist scholar. Unexpectedly, the Rinpoche produces a photo album to show Krakauer of photos taken on a recent trip to America. The group also stops for a night at a non-for-profit clinic in Periche, which was established to treat altitude-related illnesses after dozens of hiker deaths. While there, Hall says that a major disaster on Everest in the near future is inevitable.

The group ascends through the Khumbu Glacier to reach the dirty and crowded village of Lobuje. The group are forced to wait here for days longer than anticipated when Hall and Groom must hurry to Base Camp to help rescue an injured Sherpa, Tenzing. Krakauer grows particularly close to Doug Hansen, as well as to guide Harris, who tells Krakauer about his home in New Zealand with his beloved partner, Fiona McPherson.

Tenzing is airlifted from Base Camp to Kathmandu. Hall gives the rest of the expedition members permission to leave Loubje and continue towards Base Camp. The team is relieved to leave Loubje, which is unhygienic and overcrowded. Taske, Harris, and Kasisike come down with intestinal ailments, and Krakauer develops a hacking cough.

After a day of hiking, the group reaches Everest Base Camp, consisting of over three-hundred sprawling tents in an icy, rock-strewn environment at 17,600 feet. Krakauer finds that Base Camp does not live up to the reputation of being polluted and dirty; he instead celebrates the efforts of lawmakers and mountaineers who have successfully cleaned up the site. Krakauer reencounters Scott Fischer, leader of the Mountain Madness expedition company. Fischer, who had wanted Krakauer to join his expedition and not Rob Hall’s, is a renowned and daring mountaineer who has survived many unbelievable falls.

Krakauer and his teammates struggle with adjusting to the high altitude at Base Camp. Many suffer from gastrointestinal reactions, headaches, and breathlessness. Teammates correspond with family and friends, such as Hansen, who corresponds with his children and new partner.