In 1985, two British mountaineers, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, began climbing the nearly 21,000-foot Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes. They were successful in their ascent of the previously unclimbed West Face, however, disaster struck on the descent when Simpson slipped down an ice cliff, landing awkwardly and crushing his tibia in the knee joint, causing a fracture of the right leg. Touching the Void is the 1988 short story written by Simpson, whose powerful and well-written tale tells a story full of adventure, survival, isolation, trust and friendship. Joe Simpson was born in 1960 in Kuala Lumpur in the Federation of Malaya, where his father was stationed in the British Army. From an early age he was fascinated by rock climbing. At 14 he read The White Spider by Heinrich Harrer, which told the story of the first ascent of the Eiger north face by Harrer and his team in 1938. The book also tells the story of Toni Kurz, a German mountaineer who, together with his companions, he tragically died attempting the north face. Despite the objective dangers of mountaineering described in the book, the story aroused a passion for the mountains in the young Simpson. In their early twenties, in 1985, Simpson and Yates set a goal to climb Siula Grande, a treacherous peak whose summit reaches nearly 21,000 feet above sea level. The mountain is part of the Waywash mountain range, which resides in the Andes of Peru. Simply put, Simpson climbed because it was fun. The freedom found in fleeing civilization to strike and conquer a wild peak like Siula Grande was second to none for these men. Simpson wrote in his diary: "It seems ominously remote and exhilarating at the same time... without hordes of climbers,... middle of paper... er, and despite feelings of bitterness, resentment, panic, isolation, etc., the two managed to remain calm and in control as they attempted to get down the mountain. If their positions had been reversed, I believe the outcome would have been the same, although this is just my conjecture. Yates has received a lot of criticism from the climbing community for his decision to cut his climbing partner's rope. There really was no other choice, though, and to this day Simpson still defends Yates' decision. Despite the obvious dangers presented in this true story, he doesn't I can deny the allure of embarking on a mountaineering journey of my own. I'll start small though. Simpson and Yates were highly skilled climbers when they began climbing the west face of Siula Grande - and their route up the mountain has never been successfully completed by anyone. more to date..