Annapurna Middle Peak Ascent and Tragedy. Expedition leader Ludwig Greissl, Udo Böning and Heinz Oberrauch on October 3 took ten hours to climb from their 23,300-foot Camp V to the untrodden middle peak of Annapurna (8064 meters, 26,457 feet). Oberrauch descended that night to Camp V but Greissl and Böning bivouacked at 24,600 feet. On the morning of the 4th Klemens Wildemann and Winfried Trinkle climbed up some 20 minutes above Camp V to help the descending climbers. As they were traversing a 30° snow slope back towards Camp V, Trinkle slipped and fell 1300 feet to his death. Avalanche danger prevented the recovery of his body. Böning and Greissl had frozen hands and feet and were flown back from Base Camp to Kathmandu and Germany. Their route had been left of the Dutch Rib on the north face. A second group attempted the Dutch Rib but reached only 21,325 feet.

Günter Hauser, Deutscher Alpenverein