Evening star., 1953-06-26


weother turned bad and they become
lost. :
left, on the edge of the Sickle.
On that point we were all agreed.
But it was very hard to find.
The wall of ice that gave 1t
such magnificent protection was
now ironical. for it hid the tents
from us. In mist like this we
should have to be right on top
of them before ws spotted them.
Now and again Terray took
off his boots and rubbed his feet; +;
the sight of our froSt-bitten
limbs had made him aware of
the danger and he had the
strength of mind to do some
thing about it. Like Lachenal,
he was haunted by the idea of
amputation. For me, it was too
late: my feet and hands, al
ready affected from yesterday
were beginning to freeze up
again.
Nothing to Eat.
We had eaten nothing since
the day before, and we had been
on the go the whole time, but
mems resources of energy in face
OF death are inexhaustible. When
the end seems Imminent, there
still remain reserves, though it
neds tremendous will power to
call them up. {"
Night was approaching, and
we were terrified, though none
OF us made any complaints.
Rebuffat and I found a way
that we thought we remembered
but were brought to a halt by
the extreme steepness of the
slope-the mist turned it into a
vertical wall. We were to find
next day that at that moment we
had been only 80 yards from the
camp. and that the wall was the
very one that sheltered the tent
which would have been our saliva
ton.
I'VE must find a crevasse."
I'VE can't stay here all nightr
Night had suddenly fallen and
it was essential to come to a de-
cislon without wasting another
minute; if we remained on the
slope, we should be dead before
morning. We would have to
bivouac. What the conditions
would be like, we could guess
for we all knew what it meant
to bivouac above $4,000 feet.
Falls in Crevasse.
With his ak Terray began to
dig a hole. Lachernal went over
to a snow-filled crevasse a few
yards farther on, then suddenly
let out q yell and disappeared
before our eyes.
We stood helpless; should we
or rather would Terray and Re-
buffat, have enough strength fol
all the maneuvers with the rope
that would be needed to get him
out? The crevasse was COM
pletely blocked up save for the
one little hole which Lachernal
had fallen through.
"Lachernal!"
Terray Jerked the rope vio-
lently.
I'm here!"
Anything broken?"
mo! It'll do for the night!
Come along"
This shelter was heaven-sent
None Of us would have had the
strength to dig a hole big enough
to protect the lot Of us from the
wind.
Walls of Ice.
The intense cold of this mi
mute grotto shriveled us up, the
inclosing walls Of ice were damp
and the floor a carpet of fresh
snow; by huddling together
there was just room for the four
Of us. Icicles hung from the
ceiling and we broke some of
them off to make more head
room and kept little bits to suck
it was long time since we
had had anything to drink.
That was our shelter for the
night. At least we should be
protected from the wind, and the
temperature would remain fairly
even, though the damp was ex-
tremely unpleasant. We settled
ourselves in the dark as best
we could.
AS always in bivouac, we
took off our boots; without this
precaution the construction
would cause immediate FROST
bite. Terray unrolled the sleep
ing bag which he hadh had the
foresight to bring, and settled
himself in relative comfort.
We put on everything warm
that we had, and to avoid contact
with the snow I sat on the movie
camera. We huddled close up to
each other, in our search for a
hypothetical position in which
the warmth of our bodies could
be combined without loss, but
we couldn't keep still for a Sec
ond.
Hands and Feet Freezing.
We did not open our mouths
signs were less of an effort than
words. Every man withdrew
into himself and took refuge in
his own inner world. Terray
massaged Lachenals feet; Re-
buffat felt his feet freezing, too,
but he had sufficient strength to
rub them himself.
! remained motionless, unsee-
ing. My feet and hands went on
freezing, but what could be done?
/ attempted to forget suffering
by withdrawing into myself, try
ing to forget the passing of time,
trying not to feel the devouring
and numbing cold which in
sidiously gained upon us.
Terray shared his sleeping bag
with Lachenal, putting his feet
and hands inside the precious
eiderdown. At the same time
lnA x1,ax,k ~ ,1,IaIn;nn