K2 La Montagne Inachevée (1980)

To reach the second summit in the world culminating at 8611 meters above sea level on the Sino-Pakistani border, the K2, by its south-west ridge, the most difficult, this is the objective that Bernard Mellet has set himself, at the end two years of meticulous preparation. It was the last French national expedition. 3 million budget, 1,400 porters, 25 tons of equipment including 850 kg of oxygen... All financed by the remains of the Annapurna treasure and the sales of Maurice Herzog's book. To overcome the 8760 meters of this royal but still virgin road, he selected fourteen men among the elite of the moment. During the expedition, Jean-Marc Boivin will take off in a hang glider from Camp IV of K2, at an altitude of 7600 meters. A feat which will ultimately be the only one of this expedition completed in bad weather, at 8,500 meters and which will lay the foundations of high-level mountaineering in the 1980s and 1990s: versatility.