If you are into mountaineering books, Dark Summit is one to read. I have been intriqued by why climbers are so obsessed with climbing the higher peaks over 8000 meters. Iam an avid hiker and climb only moderate peaks. I became obsessed myself with the tragedy of 1996 with Scott Fischer and Rob Halls' group and why in the face of danger would a client or climber risk their lives to bag the ultimate summit. In So many unseem factors led to their demise. Dark Summit tragedy strikes again ten years after the first one in 1996. As in the first, there are remarkable similarities that occur though under different circumstances. As the story unfolds, author, Nick Heil does a wonderful job in portraying the events as they happen. I wanted to continue reading to find out what happened next and didn't want to put the book down. Like many of the other mountaineering books I read, I wanted to seek out answers to questions in my mind such as why do climbers put their body through so much torture and pain to what it must feel like being in the death zone. There are many complexies to solving the puzzle. This is one book that evokes interest in the quest of obtaining the ultimate dream of summiting mountains that seem to be like pillars that connect earth to the heavens. You will not be disappointed.

I am fascinated by some things that people do, such as climbing the highest mountain or going to depths of the oceans, and the risks they are willing to take for experiences most of us will never have.

Of course I always assume that the people and situation are being done by experts, in situations where there is some control to the extent possible, but as this books sshows that is not always the case.

Like any book where you read about times when it seems if things were done differently just a bit, another outcome could happpen, this one raises questions and shows potential failings in the system and people which could have avoided unfortunate outcomes.

Hopefully people take heed of books like this for the future, but as pointed out many things have been known about for awhile, such as who and how people can climb Everest. Very well written book and I highly recommmend it to anyone who is interested in Everest and stories surrounding one the the goals people only usually dream about.

I enjoyed this book. It chronicled the 2006 year with fairly good detail. If you want a much more indepth review of Lincoln Hall's ordeal, read "Dead Lucky."

While I will draw short of calling this book "equal" to INTO THIN AIR, it certainly stands on its own as one of the BEST books ever written about Everest and in particular about the 2006 climbing season. Well written, well researched, and completely thorough. This book goes beyond the 2006 season and delves into the history of Everest, the men and women who have climbed the mountain, and the reasons behind their passions. It gives fair representation to ALL the individuals involved including the often maligned Russell Brice. The conclusion should be that Brice did all that was possible and even went beyond the call for climber David Sharp and his family. Each climber who sets foot on Everest knows the score. Come prepared, come equipped, pay attention, or you're going to die. This book is a great companion to the Discovery DVD series "Everest - Beyond The Limit". HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

About a year or so ago I read Michael Kodas [High Crimes] and gave it
a bad review. The reason was that the journalist - Michael Kodas - was
so much in the book that any objectivity disappeared.
Anyways, in the comments to my review somebody suggested this book.
And, yes, this is the way these stories should be written - the
author is not in the picture, the writing is engaging and interesting,
I think he is trying to be as objective as possible, his research
in preparation for this book is extensive. Bottom line - a great book as
far as my opinion goes.
My only note is that the author explains some things about
altitude sickness, about Everest, etc, that I already know based on
previous books, so this was a little boring for me - but this makes the
book more self-contained and thus I think this was the right thing to do.

A stunning addition to the Everest bookshelf, Heil writes about the 2006 climbing season, the second-deadliest since the 1996 disaster. This time, there was no crippling storm and no stranded teams - but forty people walked past a dying man just below the summit without stopping. Heil presents a thorough and amazing look at what the circumstances were, and ponders the question - what ethics exist at the roof of the world?

I just finished this book, which was interesting enough to finish in under a week. It seemed to be a balanced treatment of the subject, and I liked the contrast of the author just wanting to get back to his tent at base camp rather than continue to look for a drunk, compared to what it must be like in the death zone.


I do disagree with a couple of pages where he waxes for the good old days of gentlemen climbing with high ethics etc. The book about the Americans first successful climb of K2 paints a bit different picture of the good old days. In particular the author of that book relates how they feared they would be doing a body recovery rather than a summit. To their surprise, the "body" was walking down on their way up! He related how they could not help him since they did not bring a rope! Not sure how they intended to do a body recovery. Somehow he walked down, while the other two summited. The rest of that book is filled with intrigue as they jockey for position to be one of the few who might get a summit chance, probably similar to Brice's experience with the British team, which this book just hints at?

Not mentioned when talking about what effort, risk and expense should be made (or can be made) to save someone on Everest, is how some die nearby for lack of a few dollars of antibotics, or at least that is what one person who worked over there in a decompression chamber told us, though even he did not draw that comparison.

I was interested to learn of one of the more recent years on Everest where events ended tragically. I wasn't familiar with this particular story until I read the book. It's another good book for my collection.

First off, let me talk about my qualifications to write this review. My name is Brett Merrell and I was on Mt Everest in 2006 as part of the Himex expedition written about in this book. I am writting this review so that you people can buy a book knowing that it tells and accurate story.

Nick Heil has restored my faith in journalists. This book is accurate and 99% objective. Nick tells the true story of Everest and the people that live in its shadow. Not since "Into Thin Air" have I read a book that paints such a clear picture of the good, bad and ugly of Mt Everest. Although my personal opinion of Russ Brice and the Discovery Channel is completely negative, I can say that Nick's description of Russ Brice is mostly accurate.

Attention readers! If you want a book that tells the truth about an Everest expedition then buy this book! Nick spent countless hours of research. He asked all the tough questions and he actually became part of the 2007 Himex expedition and climbed to 23500 feet on Mt Everest. Most importantly, Nick Heil took all the facts and emotions and then documented them accurately with heartfelt words.

BUY THE BOOK. It is a real Everest story. I received nothing and will receive nothing for writing this review.

Brett Merrell

very good book... i got caught up in this after reading kraukaer's (sp) book, and although this one is not to that level, i enjoyed it

If you watched the documentary, you will enjoy reading a more behind the scenes look at what was going on during the filming. That is the pro of this book. Unfortunately, it is filled with many more cons.

The writing is not fluid, becomes quite boring at times, needs copy editing (as many others have already pointed out with firm examples) and, most bothersome to me, doesn't really hold true to its book summary. The book itself jumps around tremendously from one Everest season to another rather than staying with the one it summarizes. While this is done for background on how the mountain became "controversial" it lends itself more to a dissertation on the seasons of Everest rather than the issue most people will buy the book for - namely the death of David Sharp.

In addition, it is written almost as propaganda in support of Brice (the guide in charge of expedition that was filmed). I am a fan of Brice, feel he has done amazing things on Everest for many many teams rather than just his own. His actions this particular season needed no justification and while this is said in the book, the author spends considerable time trying to convince his readers of the same. I found it irritating that he kept trying to defend Brice (who, again, needed no defending) rather than just telling the story.

Final verdict: if you enjoyed the television show, you will enjoy reading more about the season events on Everest. If you are a reader of adventure books or Everest chronicles, you'll likely find this book exactly what it is - a quick, thrown together analysis by someone grabbing on to the very commercialism of Everest he complains of.

I pre-ordered this book immediately after watching The Discovery Channel documentary: "Everest Beyond the Limit". It is an excellent companion to the documentary giving very insightful information on the tragedy of 1996. I really re-evaluated how I felt about Russell Brice and the sherpas through this book. It is always fascinating to read about this world on Everest that most of us cannot ever visit. I almost felt like I was reading about a story from another planet! If you love Everest but cannot ever climb it, buy this book to visit this amazing place...it is a wonderful read and a perfect addition to my ever growing mountaineering library.

For the reader fascinated by Mt. Everest, this book provides a very interesting status report on the current commercial climbing scene there. It seems each year that the present permit system continues it is a set-up for tragedies such as what happened to British climber David Sharp plus incredible survival stories like that of Australian Lincoln Hall. As anyone knows who has been there, Everest has a magical allure but at the same time the margin for error or inadequate preparation is slim. The account of 2006 on the Northeast ridge makes for riveting reading. At the same time, the account points out a glaring need for change such as a quota system and some serious climbing prerequisites. Philosophically does one really want to stand in line on a route where progress is slowed and risks increased by some "climbers" who probably shouldn't be on the mountain in the first place. On Everest, the stakes are too high.

In 2006, eleven climbers died trying to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. The most famous fatality was David Sharp who was left near the top still alive while forty other people continued their ascent. One week later, Lincoln Hall was left to die at the same spot that Sharp died; he survived that night without shelter leading to speculation re Sharp.

Nick Heil investigates the true story of what went wrong on the Everest climb in the deadliest year since 1996. He makes the case that some ruthless commercial operators are making increasing access available but at the cost of dramatic increase in risk. Readers will be hooked by Mr. Heil's passion for mountain climbing while horrified by the avarice of some to take advantage of the obsession of many advocates to claim they reached the top of the world. The author points out rescue is usually impossible and can endanger others; while he also defends operator Brice who was accused of abandoning Sharp to die on the mountain's Death Zone. However, Mr. Heil also rips less conscientious operators like the guide who failed to assist a confused Thomas Weber, who other climbers felt could be rescued. This is chilling yet fascinating as Mr. Heil provides a lucid account of the deaths on the DARK SUMMIT.

Harriet Klausner

The story is captivating and well-told, but the text needs a serious round of copy-editing.

You may recall books like "Into Thin Air," which recounted the 1996 disaster on Mount Everest. From those accounts, we know the weather was a central factor in the horrific events that played out. In 2006, the body count was just as bad, but the weather was fine. With the weather not part of the death equation, why did so many people die on Mount Everest in 2006?

Dark Summit holds many clues, because it provides a detailed narrative of about the various tragedies of 2006 and what led up to them. Given what went on, it's surprising that the body count wasn't even higher.

In the ten years that followed the 1996 disaster, the two national governments (Nepal and China) that control access to Everest failed to institute such basic safety measures as limiting access to qualified personnel. In the industrial safety arena, a "qualified person" is one who meets certain minimum competence standards for the task at hand. This concept is conspicuously absent from the management of access to Everest.

Another basic safety measure would be the formation of permanent rescue teams, which would be present and on standby during the climbing season. Nobody has set up a fund for this, though the sheer number of people shelling out money to climb Everest would easily make that possible.

Nor do we find any formal contingency plans or evacuation plans. It seems that everyone involved is, every year, surprised that people show up. And they appear to be surprised further still that danger exists on Everest--gee, what a concept. Apparently, the increasing number of corpses littering the mountain doesn't translate into the idea that it's dangerous to be on the mountain.

Because of this failure to connect these really huge dots, the death toll in 2006 was on par with that of 1996. Same drill, different year.

Construction safety managers like to say, "Safety is no accident." The thought behind this pithy saying is that safety occurs because you plan for it and follow your plan. Safety doesn't happen by accident. It happens because you follow a proper safety plan.

On Everest, however, we see that the overall safety plan for 2006 wasn't even accidental--there wasn't one. Nor did all of the Everest "climbers" make their safety their personal responsibility. It seems clear (in hindsight) that most of the expedition companies put summiting first and worried about safety second. The high body count, then, is no surprise at all.

A couple of expedition companies, such as Himex, put safety first and make a point of getting clients back alive. That's part of their DNA. Their philosophy is a bit more complex than the idea that real mountaineering is purely about summiting at any cost. Those very companies have been pilloried for not doing enough to "save" people whose own actions (or lack thereof) put them in their predicaments to begin with. The "logic" is that those who have planned are supposed to bail out those who gambled.

Climbers are a particularly safe bunch (I know because I are one!). A climber follows certain rituals and procedures, period. For example, climbers check each other's harnesses before each ascent, even if they have already done so a dozen times that day. Except for a few risk-seeking superstars, a real climber asks, "What are the dangers and how do I protect myself?" A real climber is looking forward to climbing many more times in the future rather than dying on this one climb. The climbing culture involves layers of safety practices. The quickest way for a climber to be ostracized by other climbers is to act cavalier about safety.

In many climbing settings, access is contingent upon following safety protocols. Violate these, and you are permanently banned. As we can tell from the bodies strewn on Everest, that isn't the case everywhere.

Everest is increasingly populated with climber wannabes who have no business being there. They are climbing way beyond their ability level, both figuratively and literally. In doing so, they endanger not just themselves but others. They tend to compromise the expeditions of people who would otherwise have been able to summit and descend safely. And, as we are seeing, many of these wannabes go up but don't come down.

A few Everest-related Websites tell stories about the various tragedies, near misses, and other consequences of the hubris that is now standard for Mount Everest expeditions (not all, but most). Unfortunately, many pundits blame a few specific people who, when you look at the actual facts, and circumstances, are not at fault. They weren't the ones who showed up unqualified, unprepared, under-equipped, and out of shape.

Those sites, then, aren't helping prevent future calamities. But, they have the power to do so. They can post articles that point out the system problems, and they can provide a means for people to collaborate on on implementing the solutions. It seems a shame that they don't use that opportunity.

Solutions to the major deficiencies are reasonable and achievable. For example, why haven't the larger expedition companies formed an Everest Association that has rules for participation? And that provides full-time rescue teams? If there's one thing you can say about governments, it's that they like to suck up money. So such an association could kick a percentage of its membership fees to the two national governments that control access to Everest. Those two governments could then make association membership a mandatory condition for access. Heil doesn't prescribe this in his book, and given both his in-depth knowledge and and high credibility that seems like a wasted opportunity.

Unlike most commentators, Heil avoids finger-pointing as he brings us his account of the 2006 fiasco. He focuses on accurately portraying the events. What emerges is a dark tale of the dark summit, with details that allow the reader to have a clear picture of what transpired. Unlike some others who have told the story, Heil does very solid reporting. Reading his account, I could not help but feel the tagline under the title means just what it says--the true story.

And what a story it is. When you look at some of the people who were there, it's small wonder that this particular season was so tragic. Some examples include:

*A double amputee.
*A guy whose bones had been screwed together following a motorcycle accident.
*An out of shape guy with a condition that renders him blind at high altitude.
*A guide with only one previous 8,000 meter ascent (and that one didn't go well).

During climbing season, Everest is so crowded that people pile up dangerously at points all along the climbing routes. Unqualified "climbers" are struggling, due to a lack of expertise, a lack of preparation, a lack of fitness, a lack of experience, or some combination thereof.

Increasingly (as Heil shows), the population on Everest represents a slice of upper middle class dreamers and thrill-seekers rather than real climbers. When these dilettantes get in trouble, they can't just snap their fingers for assistance. Which is why so many of them suffer profound disfigurement or even die. Whose fault is that? Who should assist them?

Heil brings up some interesting questions, regarding responsibility for others on Everest. Here's one to ponder. Suppose you spent several years to prepare to summit Everest. You've climbed several 8,000 meter peaks, thus earning your stripes. Now you've trained especially hard for the past several months and spent $50,000 in expedition fees for this one climb. It's your fourth attempt.

Another person, who has only negligible mountaineering experience, shows up with little preparation and even less equipment. This person paid a no-name expedition company $7500 for a no-frills package and that means pretty much no support.

You have a one-day window to summit before a storm hits, and you know you can make it. But as you start out on your final day, you encounter Mr. No Frills. He's catatonic and can't move. Do you stop to help him down?

The short answer is no. Not because you will blow $50,000 that this person probably can't pay back, but because you are barely surviving at that altitude yourself. At 29,000 feet, your body is eating itself up and you have the most dangerous part--the descent--ahead of you. Your coordination, strength, and mental focus are all way below par. Nobody carries a dead body or a non-moving person down from the higher altitudes, because they can't. Which is why the dead are just left there.

So you can choose to do what you came to do, or you can choose to give it up for a rescue effort that has almost no hope of succeeding. You know that the attempt could cost you your fingers, even if you manage to survive. The other person, who shouldn't be there, will probably die anyhow.

By understanding the challenges facing people on Everest, you better understand those whose behavior might otherwise seem as cold and unfeeling as the mountain itself. Heil tells the story as it happened, giving the reader a sense of actually being there. He provides plenty of detail about what happens to the human body and the mind at the higher elevations, so that you get a sense of just how incapacitating it is to be there. Everest is not a test of climbing skill so much as it is a test of endurance at the outer limits of possibility.

I found the book engrossing and highly informative. The author didn't take any cheap shots at anyone or push his personal agenda. Nor did he sensationalize--given what really went on, he didn't need to. The reality was sensational enough. Heil provided rich detail and told the story in a way that kept me turning the pages.

Dark Summit could have been an excellent book, but it misses the mark due to mechanical errors in the text. I close this review with an explanation of my opening remark about the need for copyediting. I encountered mistakes like:

*"Sharp" used in place of "sherpa" (capitalized as shown).
*"marshall artists" instead of "martial artists"
*A large number of misspellings.
*Some parallel sentence structure, which is confusing.
*Some composition errors that rendered a few sentences incomprehensible.
*Miscellaneous scraps of text appearing completely out of place (copy and paste errors?).

Heil worked as a magazine editor. In the enthusiast magazine industry, the title "editor" doesn't mean "one who edits." It means "subject matter expert who writes articles that someone else must edit." That editing work should have been done on this manuscript before publishing it. Heil comes across as a great verbal story teller and a solid researcher with high standards of editorial integrity. But a good copyeditor should have cleaned up this text to prevent the mental gymnastics that interrupted the flow of this intriguing story.

Dark Summit is a welcome addition to Everest literature. Heil writes in an even-handed tone, and attempts to give a balanced view of what happened in 2006. Heil examines the deaths of David Sharp, Thomas Weber, and the near-death experience of Lincoln Hall. Weber's death, I feel, remains most puzzling and bizarre. Russell Brice and Himex receive extensive coverage.

Dark Summit is well worth 8 hours of your time and $17.

Strengths: This is generally a well-designed book by Henry Holt. The book has a very readable type face, and sports several outstanding photos. Heil offers a more nuanced perspective on Russell Brice and Himex than offered by his detractors. Good bibliography.

Weakness: Heil's writing is readable indeed, but Heil does not come across as a naturally gifted writer (compare: Michael Kodas [High Crimes] is a much stronger and fluid writer). This book would have benefited from another round of editing.

Examples:
p. 137
"Within the next hour, Sharp would have climbed the last dihedral, cresting a gently sloping corniced ridge, the summit straight ahead. If the crossing the last section of the ridgeline appeared difficult--and what didn't at such altitude?--even more difficult would be returning to the world below with the business unfinished. The summit wasn't the end of the journey, but it was its culmination--the cure for the things that had gnawed inside him for so long."

p. 182
"They harped on the old oxygen bugaboo--faulty equipment (7 Summits Club had swapped out about a third of its regulators during the trip), the unreliability of refilled canisters--but the thrust of the editorials was becoming less about technical issues and more about the ethic behind the action."

Heil also engages in speculation in various places of the book regarding David Sharp, and parts of the book appears to be a summary of the excellent Everest series on Discovery.

Reference to Joe Tasker's body on p.42 needed an elaboration, and contrary to the index, Tasker is not mentioned on pages 43-45.

Dark Summit is a welcome addition to Everest literature. Heil writes in an even-handed tone, and attempts to give a balanced view of what happened in 2006. Heil examines the deaths of David Sharp, Thomas Weber, and the near-death experience of Lincoln Hall. Weber's death, I feel, remains most puzzling and bizarre. Russell Brice and Himex receive extensive coverage.

Dark Summit is well worth 8 hours of your time and $17.

Strengths: This is generally a well-designed book by Henry Holt. The book has a very readable type face, and sports several outstanding photos. Heil offers a more nuanced perspective on Russell Brice and Himex than offered by his detractors.

Weakness: Heil's writing is readable indeed, but Heil does not come across as a naturally gifted writer (compare: Michael Kodas [High Crimes] is a much stronger and fluid writer). This book would have benefited from another round of editing.

Examples:
p. 137
"Within the next hour, Sharp would have climbed the last dihedral, cresting a gently sloping corniced ridge, the summit straight ahead. If the crossing the last section of the ridgeline appeared difficult--and what didn't at such altitude?--even more difficult would be returning to the world below with the business unfinished. The summit wasn't the end of the journey, but it was its culmination--the cure for the things that had gnawed inside him for so long."

p. 182
"They harped on the old oxygen bugaboo--faulty equipment (7 Summits Clob had swapped out about a third of its regulators during the trip), the unreliability of refilled canisters--but the thrust of the editorials was becoming less about technical issues and more about the ethic behind the action."

Heil also engages in speculation in various places of the book regarding David Sharp, and parts of the book appears to be a summary of the excellent Everest series on Discovery.

Reference to Joe Tasker's body on p.42 needed an elaboration, and contrary to the index, Tasker is not mentioned on pages 43-45.