Andrew Brash, a Calgary teacher and climber, has chased his climbing dreams for more than 20 years. These include some of the highest and impressive mountain conditions in the world, including Tibet, Pakistan, China, Alaska, Kazakhstan, Nepal, and Chile.
In May 2006, Andrew and his teammates created international headlines by stopping 200 metres below the summit of Mt. Everest. They stopped to assist Lincoln Hall an Australian climber. Hall was laying in the snow, and nearly dead. Hall’s team thought he had died and his team had left him along the trail. He spent the long cold night by himself in the death zone above 8,600, on the mountain.
Hall began suffering from altitude sickness as he was descending from cresting the summit the day before. Hall’s team mates had declared him dead. They continued without him. There are reports that more than 40 other climbers passed him without helping. His family had already been informed about his death over satellite phone.
Twelve hours later dead, Brash and his teammates came across Hall on their way to the Mt Everest summit. Brash and his teammates helped Hall down the mountain, even though they had limited oxygen supplies. Thankfully Lincoln survived. Andrew’s summit goals had to wait. He was recently recognized and awarded an honorary degree by the University of Calgary for his part in the rescue that saved an Australian climbers life.
Brash returned to Mount Everest in the spring of 2008. Their team was forced to the Nepali side of the mountain because Chinese officials had closed access to Tibet. They feared Olympic protests on the mountain. His return expedition in turmoil, the adventure on Everest will have to wait another for another time.
Andrew is well known in climbing circles with many climbers mentioning that Andrew Brash has one of the most fascinating climbing resumes in Canada. Numerous articles and photographs have been published in:
- The Canadian Alpine Journal,
- Climbing Magazine,
- The American Alpine Journal,
- High Mountain Sports,
- On the Edge Magazine,
- Explore Magazine and
- National Geographic Adventure Magazine,
- He was profiled in Gripped Magazine.
