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Alex Lowe Remembered

October 6, 1999 -- A six-man team, including Alex Lowe, was attempting to climb and then make the first ski descent of 26,291-foot Shishapangma in China on the Tibet. The team's plan was to summit the mountain from an advanced base camp at 18,000 feet and immediately make a ski descent of the same route they climbed, called the Swiss/Polish Route, primarily consisting of a direct 2,200 meter, 45-degree couloir.

On October 5, at 9:20 am Nepal time, according to the report on MountainZone, the climbers split into two groups on opposite sides of the glacier to do some reconnaissance of their planned route. While on the glacier, a huge avalanche began to slide and traveled 6000 feet towards them. The approximately five-to-eight-foot-deep slide struck one of the groups, which included Lowe, Conrad Anker, and cameraman Dave Bridges. Anker was tossed 100 feet and sustained some injuries. The team searched through the avalanche debris for Lowe and Bridges for 20 hours to no avail; Lowe and Bridges are presumed dead.

The December issue of Outside magazine will feature a special tribute to Alex Lowe, complete with a detailed report on the Shishapangma expedition and the avalanche that took his life. The tribute will also include a memoir written by Lowe's friend, Outside contributing editor Bruce Barcott, who wrote Outside's definitive March 1999 cover story on Lowe; and a host of quotes about Lowe from members of the climbing community.

Below is a brief excerpt from Barcott's forthcoming article, and a few of the comments that poured in to Outside magazine in the last week, some of which will appear in the collection of quotes.

These pieces will be available in full in the December issue, which will be at newsstands on November 16 and online on November 23.

Shishapangma
Details on the scene of the tragedy

Outside Radio
An interview with Alex Lowe in Seattle, September 1997

The Mutant and the Boy Scout Battle at 20,000 Feet
A profile of Alex Lowe, from the March 1999 issue of Outside

Trango: Stalking the Biggest Wall
A report on Alex Lowe's most recent climbing achievement

It Takes Three to Trango
An update

Memorial Fund Established: A fund has been established for Alex Lowe's three children. Those interested in making a donation can send it to: Fund for the Children of Alex Lowe, Care of Norene Bancroft, US Bank, 104 East Main Street, Bozeman, Montana 59715

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