Walter Bonatti was an
ItalianItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
mountain climber. He is noted for a solo climb of a new route on the south-west pillar of the
Aiguille du DruThe Aiguille du Dru is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps, lying to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley.The mountain has two summits:...
in August 1955 and the first solo winter ascent of the
MatterhornThe Matterhorn , Monte Cervino or Mont Cervin , is a mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Its summit is 4,478 metres high, making it one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The four steep faces, rising above the surrounding glaciers, face the four compass points...
north face in 1965.
Life and career
Bonatti was born in
BergamoBergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
. Famed for his climbing
panachePanache is a word of French origin that carries the connotation of a flamboyant manner and reckless courage.The literal translation is a plume, such as is worn on a hat or a helmet, but the reference is to King Henry IV of France...
, he pioneered little known and technically difficult climbs in the
AlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
,
HimalayasThe Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
and
PatagoniaPatagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
. At the age of 21, Bonatti in 1951 made the first ascent of the
Grand CapucinThe Grand Capucin is a rock pinnacle in the Mont Blanc Massif in Haute-Savoie, France....
, an extraordinary red granite pinnacle in the
Mont Blanc massifThe Mont Blanc massif is a mountain range in the western Alps. It is named after Mont Blanc, at 4,810.45 m the highest summit of the Alps. It is located in France , Italy , and Switzerland...
, from 20 to 23 July. This was the climb that brought him to public notice. Aged 18, he had made the fourth ascent of the formidable North Face of the Grandes Jorasses with very poor equipment over a period of two days. Among his notable climbs were a solo climb of a new route on the south-west pillar of the
Aiguille du DruThe Aiguille du Dru is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps, lying to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley.The mountain has two summits:...
in August 1955, the first ever ascent of
Gasherbrum IVGasherbrum IV is the 17th highest mountain on Earth and the 6th highest in Pakistan. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum massif.The Gasherbrums are a remote group of peaks located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram range of the Himalaya. The massif contains three...
in 1958 and the first solo winter ascent of the
MatterhornThe Matterhorn , Monte Cervino or Mont Cervin , is a mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Its summit is 4,478 metres high, making it one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The four steep faces, rising above the surrounding glaciers, face the four compass points...
north face in 1965. Bonatti was awarded the French
Legion d'HonneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
for saving the lives of two fellow-climbers in a disaster in the
AlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. He authored a number of books about
climbingClimbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...
and
mountaineeringMountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
. Bonatti died of pancreatic cancer. in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
on 13 September 2011 at the age of 81.
K2 controversy
Bonatti was at the center of a climbing controversy about the first ascent of
K2K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest...
by
Lino LacedelliLino Lacedelli was an Italian mountaineer.-Early life:Lacedelli was born in Cortina d'Ampezzo ....
and
Achille CompagnoniAchille Compagnoni was an Italian mountaineer. Together with Lino Lacedelli, on 31 July 1954 he was the first man to reach the summit of K2.-Biography:...
. Along with Hunza climber Amir Mahdi, he carried oxygen cylinders to Lacedelli and Compagnoni at Camp IX for the summit attempt. Bonatti was later accused by Compagnoni of using some of the oxygen, causing the climbers to run out of oxygen on summit day. Using this supplemental oxygen would have been impossible for Bonatti, as he had neither mask nor regulator. Bonatti would cite two summit photos to support his response that Compagnoni had lied about running out of oxygen in route to the summit. Although Bonatti's account of the bivouac is supported by Lacedelli in
K2: The Price of Conquest (2004), Lacedelli contends that the oxygen had in fact run out. However, he attributes this not to Bonatti's alleged use of the oxygen, but to the physical exertion of the climb causing the summit climbers to use more oxygen than expected.
Another aspect of the controversy was the Bonatti-Mahdi forced bivouac of July 30, 1954. Compagnoni's decision to place the final camp (IX) at a higher location than previously agreed caused the problem. When Bonatti and Mahdi climbed up to deliver oxygen to Compagnoni and Lacedelli for their summit attempt, Mahdi's condition had deteriorated. Unable to descend with Mahdi, Bonatti needed the shelter of Camp IX's tent. The tent was placed high up, over a dangerous traverse to the left - not at the agreed location. Unable to traverse safely to the tent, Bonatti and Mahdi endured a forced bivouac in the open at 8100 meters; it cost Mahdi his fingers and toes. Compagnoni gave the reasonable explanation that his decision to move the tent was to avoid an overhanging serac.
However, it is argued that he also had an ulterior motive: to avoid Walter Bonatti. Bonatti was in the best physical condition of all the climbers and the natural choice to make the summit attempt. If he had joined the summit team, he would likely have done so without the use of supplemental oxygen. If he had succeeded, any summit by Compagnoni would have been eclipsed. Although the Bonatti-Mahdi forced bivouac was not anticipated, Compagnoni intended to discourage Bonatti from reaching the tent. At 6:10 pm the next evening, Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli reached the summit of K2, using the supplemental oxygen Bonatti and Mahdi had brought them.
Ardito DesioCount Ardito Desio was an Italian explorer, mountain climber, geologist, and cartographer.-Early life:Desio was born in Palmanova, Friuli, Italy...
, in his final report, mentioned the forced bivouac only in passing. Mahdi's frostbite was an embarrassment to the expedition. The Italian government provided Mahdi with a small pension for his contribution and sacrifice on the first ascent of K2. Bonatti never reconciled with Compagnoni, owing to Compagnoni's allegedly false accusation that Bonatti used the oxygen intended for the summit attempt. He wanted to climb K2 "solo, alpine style, and without oxygen". He might well have succeeded. Two decades later,
Reinhold MessnerReinhold Messner is an Italian mountaineer and explorer from Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol "whose astonishing feats on Everest and on peaks throughout the world have earned him the status of the greatest climber in history." He is renowned for making the first solo ascent of Mount Everest without...
and
Peter HabelerPeter Habeler is an Austrian mountaineer. He was born in Mayrhofen, Austria.Among his accomplishments as a mountaineer are his first ascents in the Rocky Mountains. He was also the first European to climb on the Big Walls in Yosemite National Park.He began climbing with Reinhold Messner in 1969. ...
astonished the mountaineering world by climbing
Mount EverestMount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
without bottled oxygen.
Mountaineering achievements
- The north face of the Grandes Jorasses (1949)
- The east face of Grand Capucin (1951)
- The north faces of Tre Cime di Lavaredo
The Tre Cime di Lavaredo are three distinctive battlement-like peaks, in the Sexten Dolomites of northeastern Italy. They are probably one of the best-known mountain groups in the Alps...
in winter (1953)
- The southwest pillar of the Aiguille du Dru
The Aiguille du Dru is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps, lying to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley.The mountain has two summits:...
(The Bonatti pillar) (1955)
- Grand Pilier d'Angle
The Grand Pilier d'Angle is a buttress on the southern side of Mont Blanc in the Mont Blanc massif in the Val d'Aosta, Italy.The first ascent from the valley was by James Eccles with guides Michel Payot and Alphonse Payot on 30 July 1877 during an ascent of the Peuterey ridge, although the summit...
(with Tito Gobbi) (1957)
- Gasherbrum IV
Gasherbrum IV is the 17th highest mountain on Earth and the 6th highest in Pakistan. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum massif.The Gasherbrums are a remote group of peaks located at the northeastern end of the Baltoro Glacier in the Karakoram range of the Himalaya. The massif contains three...
: First Ever Ascent (1958)
- The Red Pillar of Brouillard (1959)
- Rondoy North - Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
(1961)
- The north face of the Grandes Jorasses in winter (1963)
- The north face of the Matterhorn: solo and in winter (1965)
Books
The Mountaineering Books of Walter Bonatti
- Le Mie Montagne (My Mountains), Walter Bonatti, Bologna: Zanichelli, 1961
- I Giorni Grandi (The Great Days), Walter Bonatti, Verona: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, 1971
- Magia del Monte Bianco (Magic of Mont Blanc), Walter Bonatti, Como: Massimo Baldini Editore, 1984
- Processo al K2 (Trial on K2), Walter Bonatti, Como: Massimo Baldini Editore, 1985
- La Mia Patagonia (My Patagonia), Walter Bonatti, Como: Massimo Baldini Editore, 1986
- Un Modo di Essere (A way of Living), Walter Bonatti, Milan: dall'Oglio Editore, 1989
- K2-Storia di un Caso (K2 - The Story of a Court Case), Walter Bonatti, Bergamo: Ferrari Editrice, 1995
- Montagne di Una Vita (Mountains of a Life), Walter Bonatti, Milan: Baldini & Castoldi, 1995
- K2-Storia di un Caso (K2 - The Story of a Court Case), Walter Bonatti, 2d ed. Milan: Baldini & Castoldi, 1996
- In terre lontane, Walter Bonatti, Baldini & Castoldi, Milano, 1998 [1st ed 1997]
- The Mountains of my Life, Walter Bonatti, Modern Library, 2001. ISBN 0-375-75640-X
- K2. La verità. 1954-2004, Walter Bonatti, 2005, Baldini Castoldi Dalai editore. ISBN 88-8490-845-0.
- K2. Lies and Treachery, Robert Marshall, 2009, Carreg Ltd. UK. ISBN 978-0-9538631-7-4.
Other
- On the Heights. Hart-Davis, 1964. ISBN B0000CMDRK
- Magic of Mont Blanc. Gollancz, 1985. ISBN 0-575-03560-9
- K2 (Italian). Baldini e Castoldi, 1998. ISBN 88-8089-072-7
External links