Thirty years have passed since the 1996 Everest disaster that Jon Krakauer recounted in his book, Into Thin Air. Photo: Andreas Gäbler//Unsplash
Jon Krakauer became a millionaire by writing about his experience during the 1996 Everest disaster that claimed eight lives. But, 30 years after the release of his book, Into Thin Air, he says he’d throw it all away and not go on that expedition if he could rewrite history.
Speaking with climber Alex Honnold on the Climbing Gold podcast, Krakauer called his Everest accent the “worst decision I ever made” and his “one big regret in life.”
“I contributed to the chaos and the tragedy,” Krakauer said. “I had severe PTSD that I didn’t even know about for 20 years…”
It isn’t the first time that Krakauer has expressed his regret for the role he played in the events that led to that deadly day on Everest. Even in the book, he admits that having a journalist on the mountain created competition that may have pushed his guides to make unsafe decisions.
Speaking with Honnold, Krakauer said that the PTSD he suffered hurt his personal relationships and made him an angry person.
“Survivor’s guilt is a heavy thing,” Krakauer said. “I wouldn’t admit I had it, but I did big time. And it really messed up my relationship with my wife for a long time. So yeah, I have struggled mightily to deal with what happened on Everest as I think many others (have).”
Krakauer said, having done the trip, he’s glad he wrote the book, but he’s clear that the book and the success that followed weren’t worth it.
The catastrophe “really f%#ked me up and I can’t reconcile with that,” he said. “And I don’t know if I ever will.”
