Anderl Heckmair has died aged 98. He is best known for leading the famous 1938 ascent of the North Face of the Eiger (left) which marked the climax of the race to climb the great north faces of the Alps. Read the excellent obituary by Stephen Goodwin in the Independent.
Shit, I never even knew he had died! If you (or anyone else) has not done so, read "Anderl Heckmair: My Life as a Mountaineer". Very inspirational. In the 30s he and his circle of friends had the choice between drawing unemployment benefit in the cities, or heading for the hills and scraping a living in huts. They did the latter.
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