The reason: she was the mother of two young children. The press and critics within mountaineering communities created a narrative that accused her of “acting like a man” and attempting to “have it all.” As a leading professor of sport sociology at Brunel University in London put it: Alison’s “heroism was conditional upon her safe return to her children. No such demand is placed upon men: their deaths are the purest symbols of heroism.”
Nevertheless, she carried forth with a life dedicated to both climbing and her children. Writing in her journal at K2 Base Camp, Alison said, “It eats away at me—wanting the children and wanting K2. I feel like I’m being pulled in two.” Being a father to young children and a mountaineer himself, Scott respected Alison in a way others didn’t. At Broad Peak Base Camp, he and Alison chatted about kids and Everest. High-end coffee and booze flowed while satellite phones stayed busy as the K2 alpinists checked in with the outside world.
Chris and Keith watched at a distance, setting up their tent and planning to move higher onto the mountain. They’d come to Broad Peak at the same time as Scott’s team but planned to climb independently. Nonetheless, they couldn’t help noticing the staging going on all around. The Mountain Madness camp buzzed with life, and the expedition members and high-altitude support team looked comfortable with their surroundings and their leader. Scott’s energy radiated to those around him. Though they’d heard of his accomplishments, the Boskoffs felt secure in their own. They busied themselves preparing gear while absorbing the fact that they’d finally made it to the foot of an 8,000-meter peak. Camp itself was a mess of tents, each one serving a purpose for cooking, sleeping, or getting medical attention. Chris couldn’t get enough of taking in the scene and the divergent personalities of the climbers and support staff.
Scott seemed the antithesis of Chris but also a potential match. His charisma allowed him to easily navigate a multitude of personalities, while Chris guarded her privacy. She and Keith kept to themselves, focusing on their goal of summiting. In a sport that required patience and calculation, Chris worked to find the balance. Her determination was an asset but also a danger as she longed for a summit. Her hunger for the top meant she was prepared to persevere, but she was still apt to overlook small details that more seasoned climbers noticed. Meanwhile, Scott felt a symbiotic relationship with the mountains and was content to wait as long as it took for the perfect weather window to move higher.
During a day of rest, Scott invited Chris and Keith over to his camp nearby. “You’re pretty new at this, I hear?” he asked the couple as they pulled up camp chairs.
“Compared to you? Big time,” said Keith, with a laugh. His broad smile put Scott at ease. Both men were from the East Coast, animated as they spoke.
“I can tell you, the big peaks—there’s nothing like it,” Scott said. “I did Everest last year and am hoping to go back again next year.”
“You think you’ll stick with it?” Chris asked as she reached for the mug of coffee Scott offered her.
He’d been on expeditions with women before, but Chris’s aura was more purposeful. It was less about the trappings and more about the experience. “I don’t know,” he said. “It’s what I do and I do it well. I’ve got a company to run and it helps to get publicity for these big peaks, but there are plenty of other things I’d like to get done. I’ve got a couple of kids at home. They’d like to see more of their dad, and I’d love to be around for them more than I have been.”
“You know, Chris is going places,” Keith said. He looked at his wife, amazed at his good fortune. “We’ve got solid business experience between us. Wonder if we could help out somehow?”
“Oh yeah?” Scott waved to his guides who were organizing gear just beyond the tents, then focused on Chris. “You’ve not done any of the big peaks, but you’re a decent athlete and you feel okay up here at fifteen thousand feet?”
Chris shrugged. “Truth be told,” she said, “I suck at sea level. But I’ve got the right genes. I feel good, the altitude doesn’t bother me, and I’m fast.”
“You’ve got this,” Scott said, grinning. “Stick with us for the climb and then let’s talk about ways I can get you involved in Mountain Madness. I think I’d be decent at running a business if there weren’t other things I’d rather be doing.”
Raising her eyebrows, Chris glanced at Keith as he leaned back in his chair, smiling. “Sounds good,” she said. “We’re gonna make a push for the summit tomorrow and see what happens.”
“Tomorrow?” Scott cautioned, “You see those weather reports calling for wind and snow up top? Avalanche danger is real up there. Just chill down here for a bit. You’ve got oxygen for the final summit bid, yes?” He’d stopped paying attention to the guides, now compelled to understand the logic in Chris and Keith’s pushing for the top in the face of a possible storm.
“Yes to the weather reports and no to the Os,” Keith said.
“Suit yourself,” Scott said, “but take it easy up there. You don’t want your first to be your last.”
The Boskoffs thanked Scott for the coffee and returned to their tent to prepare for the next day. Their decision concerned Scott, but their resolve—especially hers—reminded Scott of himself.
WATCHING THEM LEAVE BASE CAMP the next day, Scott turned to another climber on his team.
“I don’t know, man,” he said. “The mountain doesn’t feel ready. The slopes are loaded—primed for avalanches. I’m not convinced they should be out there.”
“She’s strong, Scott,” observed the other climber. “Look at Alison. She just summited Everest less than three freaking months ago. No Sherpas. No oxygen.”
But Scott wasn’t worried about Chris. “It’s him,” he said grimly about Keith. “He loves that woman. I can tell. He’ll do anything for her, including going beyond where he’s capable of going.” Scott walked to the expedition’s high-powered telescope. Wrestling with it, he fixed the tripod securely between rocks and trained it on the steep cliff leading out of camp.
LEAVING BASE CAMP, CLIMBERS HAD options as to where they’d lay their heads each night. A series of camps, each consisting of no more than a few tents, led up the mountain. At roughly 6,000 meters sat Camp 1. A second camp was set up at 6,500 meters. Camp 3 was located at 7,100 meters. A fourth camp just above that, referred to as High Camp, was the last stop before the summit. In preparation for reaching the top of any high peak, climbers spend weeks on rotations going up and down the mountain between the various camps. Each rotation brings them to a higher camp until the final push to the top, known as the summit bid. This lengthy process helps the body gradually acclimatize. By spending days pushing their bodies to higher altitudes, then returning to a lower altitude to rest for several days, mountaineers adjust properly and more safely than a straight shot up the mountain which would result in almost certain death.
Keith and Chris had done their rotations and were prepared for their summit bid. They targeted Camp 2 for the first night. What looked like decent weather when they’d started the climb from base camp became gloomy. Night painted the mountain and with it, winds. As they huddled in their sleeping bags, the sounds of the storm grew. By morning, the fate of the couple for the next four days was solidified. Locked in, Chris and Keith were battered in their tent by 100-mile-an-hour winds. Combined with snow, the blizzard proved survivable yet kept the pair captive inside day after day.
Finally able to descend on the fifth day, Chris and Keith recounted the experience to Alison and Scott, who couldn’t believe they’d survived.
“She
