Steve House and Cory Richards, Makalu 2009: High Altitude Pulmonary Edema

Steve House / 1 Min Read / Climbing

Proud west face_2

[The proud west face, October 2008. "My goal for this trip is to assessthe feasibility of a route out of the upper most (right hand) ice fieldin the center-right of this face. The top of the top ice field is about7,400 meters. I hope to get there and touch the headwall." Photo: ©Steve House]

Steve House called in this morning with the latest news from his Makalu expedition. It's hard to imagine drowning when you're 22,000 feet above sea level but that's what almost happened to Steve the other night in his tent at high camp.

Listen to Steve House – Makalu, May 14, 2009
(mp3 – 11:21 – right-click to download)

Steve mentioned carrying medicine for High Altitude Pulmonary Edema in a post he wrote back in 2007, but this is the first time he's experienced the condition himself. Our best goes out to Steve for a speedy recovery and hopefully some more time on the mountain.

Previous posts from the trip:
Makalu Again
Getting Acclimated

Author Profile

Steve House

Reinhold Messner called Steve House “the best high-altitude climber in the world today.” But for Steve, climbing is about process, not achievement. He says, “The moment your mind wanders from the climbing at hand will be the moment you fall.” Steve has earned Messner’s praise by leading the charge to climb bigger routes, from the Himalaya’s to the Canadian Rockies, faster and with less equipment than anyone before. He is the author of two books: Beyond the Mountain and Training for the New Alpinism: A Manual for the Climber as Athlete (cowritten with Scott Johnston). In 2012, Steve and his wife Eva cofounded Alpine Mentors a non-profit organization to mentor young climbers to safely become better alpinists.