The Ascent of Nanda Devi

In 1934, after 50 years of trying, mountaineers finally gained access to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary in the Garhwhal Himilaya. Two years later, an expedition led by H.W. Tilman reached the summit of Nanda Devi. At over 25,000 feet, it was the hightest mountain to be climbed until 1950. 'The Ascent of Nanda Devi,' Tilman's account of the climb, has been widely hailed as a classic. Keenly observed, well informed and at times hilariously funny, it is as close to a 'conventional' mountaineering account as Tilman could manage.