Api. The veteran 71-year-old climber, Piero Ghiglione organized a very small Italian expedition which climbed Api (23,399 feet) in northwestern Nepal. However, the expedition ended in tragedy. After the four climbers had established their base camp at 13,000 feet, in the Chambia Valley, discouraged by bad weather and the difficulties of the mountain, they began their journey home. While crossing a crude bridge, Dr. Roberto Big- nami fell into a mountain torrent and was drowned. The weather improved and the climbers returned to the mountain. On June 14th, Giuseppe Barenghi, Giorgio Rosenkrantz, and the sherpa, Gyalgen, left Camp 3 at 20,175 feet for the summit, along with Ghiglione, who stopped at 21,650 feet. Clouds covered the peak as the leader returned to Camp 3. It stormed all night. Rescue attempts by Ghiglione and porters on June 15th and 16th failed, and all descended to the base camp. On the 17th, Gyalgen staggered into camp, nearly snowblind and badly frostbitten. He told how at the end of the morning of the 14th, they had reached the eastern summit of Api, which is lower than the main peak. Since Rosenkrantz was exhausted, Gyalgen stayed with him while Barenghi continued alone. After the wind had risen and he did not return, Gyalgen set out to find him. He did not climb very far because he saw one set of tracks that led to the summit and another set coming back that ended at the edge of a crevasse. Gyalgen did his best to help Rosenkrantz, but the latter’s condition was so bad that they made little progress before they had to bivouac for the night in a crevasse. The next day, in the continuing storm, Gyalgen carried his sahib, who had badly frozen feet, over a third of a mile before bivouacking again in a crevasse. Rosenkrantz died during the night. Gyalgen struggled on to the high camp which had been evacuated a short time before. He then staggered on through the whole night to the base camp.