Interview with K2 Survivor, Wilco van Rooijen
National Geographic Adventure Blog, one of my favorite reads, posted this interview with K2 survivor and Dutch mountaineer Wilco van Rooijen last week. He describes the incident and days that followed after the ice shelf fell and gives us a more in-depth understanding of the fear and pain he experienced on the mountain while awaiting rescue.
K2 Survivor Wilco van Rooijen, In His Own Words (As Seen On National Geographic Adventure Blog)
Text by Kirkpatrick Reardon
Photograph by Ed Viesturs
If you listened to 
After almost a year on the road, Erin and I crossed the border from Bolivia and entered Peru, the final frontier in our world travels. We were headed to Cusco where we were eager to settle into one place for a few weeks and take some Spanish classes. We were a bit worn down from our illnesses and hard travels in Bolivia and looked forward to our stay in Cusco as an opportunity for learning, relaxing, and recuperating. Cusco is known as the archaeological capital of South American due to its history as the center of the pre-Columbian Incan culture. It’s also known as the “gringo” capital of the continent due to all of the world travelers it attracts. But we hoped to get a somewhat authentic experience by taking classes and staying with a Peruvian family during our time there.
The avalanche on K2 last week is being called the worst mountaineering disaster ever on the mountain, the world’s second-tallest peak. 11 climbers were killed as they tried to make their way across a treacherous section of the mountain called “The Bottleneck.” 
When I told my friends I was running the 
