The bodies of two legendary climbers who were lost to an avalanche in the Himalayas in 1999 have been discovered emerging from the blue ice of a glacier.
It was expected that someday the remains of famed climbers Alex Lowe and David Bridges would melt from the glacier where they perished and the day has finally come some 16 years later.
A press release by Conrad Anker, who was climbing with Lowe at the time and emerged with minor injuries, and Jenni Lowe-Anker, Alex Lowe’s wife at the time who married Conrad two years after the accident.
“Alex and David vanished, were captured and frozen in time,” Jenni said in the release. “Sixteen years of life has been lived and now they are found. We are thankful.”
The group was buried in a massive avalanche on October 5, 1999 while climbing the south side of Shishapangma. Anker and the others searched for the missing climbers but to no avail. The pair were discovered by fellow climbers David Goettler and Ueli steck who ran across their bodies while preparing for an ascent of the same mountain.
The remains they said were still encased in blue ice but beginning to emerge from the glacier. When they described the clothing and packs they appeared to be wearing to Conrad over the phone, he confirmed it was likely them. Conrad and Jenni happened to be in Nepal at the time after a month helping to build a training center for indigenous mountain workers.
The personal story of loss and how Jenni and Conrad came to find love was told in Jenni’s memoir Forget Me Not and also in the award-winning film Meru, which showed in theaters last year.
Photo credit: AlexLowe.org
