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Chapter 2:

Striving for the Summit

At 8:00am Bishop and Jersted finally start out. They still haven’t had any breakfast, but want to get going. Bishop would later describe their progress that morning as a “slog.” They are moving at a “monotonous, dreary pace.”

It is a clear but windy day. They are wearing sunglasses and hats to protect them from the blinding sun. After so many weeks on the mountain, they are already quite sunburned.

CLOSER TO THE BURNING SUN
The sun is much more dangerous to people at high altitudes than it is at sea level. At sea level, where the atmosphere is thicker, more dangerous ultra-violet rays from the sun are absorbed. The atmosphere protects us from these rays. At high altitudes where the air is thin, more radiation from the sun reaches our skin. The other disadvantage on a mountaintop is that pure white snow reflects more sunlight onto a climber’s skin.

Looking out over the tops of other mountains, they see fluffy white cumulus clouds. Bishop and Jersted are attached to one another by a rope. Jersted leads the way. They are following the same path that two of their teammates took just three weeks earlier. It is common for climbers to summit in pairs. Going alone is considered too dangerous, and going with more than two people can slow down the effort.

In this part of the climb the ground is made up of shaky rock that is covered with snow and ice in some places. Soon, they will have to go directly up a long slope covered in snow. Bishop is not feeling well. He knows he is not at his best, but he keeps going.