Sherpa: The Memoir of Ang Tharkay

The first English translation of Ang Tharkay’s scarce book ‘Mémoires d’un Sherpa’. One of the greats of the golden age of Himalayan mountaineering, Ang Tharkay (1908-1981) had an illustrious climbing career in the company of Eric Shipton, Bill Tilman, and Maurice Herzog. His expeditions included Kanchenjunga (1931), Everest (1933, ‘35, ‘36, ‘38, ‘51, ‘62), Nanda Devi (1934), Kabru (1935), Garhwal Himalaya (1936), Karakorum (1937, ‘39), Chomiomo (1945), Pauhunri (1945), Annapurna (1950), Cho Oyu (1952), Dhaulagiri (1953, ‘78), Nun Kun (1953), Rosenlaui, Switzerland (1954), Makalu (1954), and Kamet (1955).

Ang Tharkay was also one of the very few Sherpa from those early days to tell his own story – the story of a young man from a poor village who, like many of his companions, repeatedly risked his life for a few rupees and the chance at more work next year. Ang Tharkay, however, stood out, quickly earning the trust and respect of the ‘sahibs’ with whom he climbed. When the French team wanted s Sherpa to organize their Annapurna expedition they sought him out.
Never before published in English, this is Tharkay’s memoir – a curious blend of innocence and insight, of adventure and hardship, offering a priceless glimpse into the lives of the local guides and porters upon whom depended all mountaineering successes in the era. With few exceptions, their personal stories have been unknown to Western readers, until now.

Tharkay was awarded the French Legion of Honor, and was in the first group of Sherpa to formally receive the Himalayan Club’s prestigious Tiger Badge.