RD est mort

[G-spotter]

Rene Desmaison died yesterday.

[Raindawg]

He was a truly great alpinist.

 

"Guide de haute montagne – 50 ans d’alpinisme

Précurseur du grand alpinisme hivernal

114 premières dans les Alpes et les Montagnes du monde

14 expéditions dans la Cordillère des Andes

9 films - 8 livres"

(http://montagne-virtuel.com/evenements/ice2005/Hommage_rene_DESMAISON.pdf)

 

[Buckaroo]

That's so nice to hear...

 

well not that he died, but how he died...

 

of old age and not on a climb, after all the sad climbing deaths this year.

 

now if more of us can just emulate him

[AlpineK]

At least in the words of his song I don't think Neil Young agrees with you, but I don't know how Neil feels in the real world. I agree that fading away is better than burning out.

 

RIP

[Bigtree]

"According to your medical checkup, you are dead." — A doctor to René Desmaison after he was rescued off the north face of Grandes Jorasses, having spent 342 hours without food or water.

 

Sounds like another tough guy whose book I'll have to read (342 hours in Large Jorasses).

[Bug]

Nasty hardman stuck it out to a graceful end.

Well done.

RIP.

[Bill Slugg]

I've been reading translations of the reports on him. They say that he split from the Chamonix Guides in 1966 after he rescued two Germans off of the Dru. It seems somebody made some money by reporting to Paris Match. I can't make sense out of it. Who pissed off whom?

 

The Guides pulled me off of the Auguille du Midi in '70, is how come I'm interested.