Book Review: Surviving Logan by Erik Bjarnason and Cathi Shaw
Imagine the worst storm you’ve ever experienced. With winds whipping by at full force creating wind chill temperatures of roughly -56 degrees C (68 degrees F), you’re trapped on an exposed col on one of the highest peaks in North America. Now imagine after 20 hours, the wind rips out the ice screws anchoring your tent, tears your tent apart, and blows most of your gear and your over mitts away into oblivion. There you are left on the mountain and totally exposed to the elements, would you survive?
Erik Bjarnason did. Surviving Logan is Bjarnason’s inspiring story of survival, rescue, and recovery after his nightmare like experience on Mount Logan. Erik Bjarnason was a firefighter and dedicated member of North Shore Rescue. In May 2005, he joined the North Shore Rescue’s 40th Anniversary Expedition to summit Mount Logan in the Yukon Territory of Canada. The team was comprised experienced mountaineers and SAR professionals who were enjoying their Mount Logan experience until a powerful storm trapped Bjarnason and two other climbers on the exposed Prospector’s Col in an extratropical cyclone.
As you’ll learn in Surviving Logan “On Logan, the nature and severity of a storm cannot be predicted.” After 20 hours, the “arctic hurricane-like conditions” ripped their tent apart and blew Bjarnason’s mitts away. Stuck in the storm with barely any gear, the trio struggled to survive. Bjarnason who suffered from frostbite was stuck in the elements for 6 hours while his teammates dug a snow cave for shelter. “It was almost unthinkable that anyone could survive those conditions, especially without supplies or shelter,” yet somehow all three climbers survived.
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When the storm subsided, the trio of stuck climbers made contact with their teammates who had faired better in the storm due to their location. Rescue efforts were difficult with all of the new snow on the mountain, but with the help of their teammates, North Shore Rescue, the Alaskan Air Guard, Denali National Park and the Canadian Park Service the rescue effort was a success. Eventually a Lama high altitude aircraft came to the rescue and the team members were flown to the hospital in Anchorage. Incredibly, they all survived the epic storm.
As you can imagine, after an event like this the journey to recovery is a rocky road. A wise doctor advised Bjarnason that “the only one who can limit what you can do is yourself.” Bjarnason took these words to heart. Despite losing all of his fingers and one of his thumbs, Bjarnason was determined to not let his loss hold him back. Within 13 months, Bjarnason re-qualified for his job as a firefighter and summited Mount Elbrus – the highest peak in Europe.
Bjarnason’s near-death tale is one that any mountain enthusiast will appreciate. Whether it’s his passion for the climbing experience, his detailed description of his frostbite and fight for survival, or his heroic and inspiring journey to recovery. Surviving Logan is a book that is definitely worth reading. It will not disappoint. Two thumbs up!
Buy Surviving Logan on Amazon.com
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