Mountaineer to share epic survival story at Webster talk

A climber who survived after breaking both legs while descending a mountain in Pakistan is to tell his incredible story in an appearance in Arbroath.

Doug Scott slipped on the abseil below the summit of the Ogre in Pakistan’s Karakorum almost 40 years ago while on a trek with Chris Bonington.

The pair’s tale has since entered mountaineering folklore as one of the most dramatic survival stories.

Their climb had already pushed the boundaries of what had been achieved before at that altitude. But it was the subsequent descent from the summit in the dark, during which they turned a catalogue of disasters into a triumph, that took them into the history books.

Scott broke both legs just above the ankles as he fell, as well as losing his spectacles and ice axe.

He and Bonington were forced to spend the night on a snow patch, warding off frostbite. Bonington then went on to alert their team-mates, while Scott crawled out on his hands and knees.

Storm-battered and starving, they managed to carry on regardless, while their remaining strength dwindled. Bonington managed to smash his ribs while abseiling and later contracted pneumonia. With the aid of Mo Anthoine and Clive Rowland, the pair finally reached base camp eight days after their ordeal began.

Mr Scott will recount the drama during an event at the Webster Memorial Theatre on October 25. Tickets cost £25. Signed framed mountaineering prints will be auctioned with proceeds going to support the ongoing post-earthquake reconstruction work of Community Action Nepal.