Edmund Viesturs, known as Ed Viesturs (born June 22, 1959) is one of the world's premier high-altitude mountaineers. He is one of only 26 people and the only one from the United States to have climbed all eight-thousander peaks. He has summited peaks of more than 8,000 meters for a total of 21 times, including Mount Everest seven times, which makes him the third person with most total summits, behind Phurba Tashi Sherpa Mendewa and the Spanish climber Juanito Oiarzabal who have reached 25 summits. He has reached all of the aforementionned summits without supplementary oxygen.[1]
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Born of Latvian and German descent in Fort Wayne, Indiana and raised in Rockford, Illinois, Viesturs moved to Seattle, Washington in 1977 to attend the University of Washington. It was here that he began his mountaineering career on the slopes of Mount Rainier.[2] Viesturs graduated from the University of Washington in 1981 with a BS in zoology[3] and eventually became a guide for Rainier Mountaineering, Inc. He later obtained a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree from Washington State University.
His interest in the Himalayas was sparked in high school by reading Maurice Herzog's account of the first climb of Annapurna. After climbing Kanchenjunga in 1989, Mount Everest in 1990 and K2 in 1992, Viesturs became an international mountain guide and was sponsored for full-time mountaineering. He served as a guide for Rob Hall's Adventure Consultants company during their 1995 Everest expedition.[4]
Viesturs was in the IMAX climbing team during the 1996 Everest Disaster.[5] He was featured in the Everest IMAX movie. Filming was delayed as a blizzard struck. The IMAX team postponed shooting and followed Viesturs up the mountain to aid the stranded climbers. The team ultimately decided to keep going and summitted Everest on May 23, 1996.
Viesturs's recent climbs have included Broad Peak and Nanga Parbat in 2003, Mount Everest (seventh time) in 2009 and Annapurna in 2005.
Viesturs climbs with partner Veikka Gustafsson.[6]
In 2005, Viesturs became the 12th person to summit all eight-thousander peaks. He was the first American to accomplish this feat.
On November 5, 2006, Viesturs completed his first marathon, the ING New York City Marathon, in 3:15:18.[7]
On August 17, 2007, Viesturs summitted Mount Rainier for the 200th time.[8]
On May 19, 2009, Viesturs summitted Mt. Everest for the 7th time.
Viesturs is a recipient of the David A. Sowles Memorial Award[9] from the American Alpine Club.
He is the first American, and 12th person overall, to summit all fourteen mountains over 8000 meters (collectively known as the eight-thousanders). He's the fifth climber to do it without bottled oxygen.
Viesturs also has summitted Mount Everest seven times,[10] a feat that has been surpassed by a number of Sherpas (Apa Sherpa in the lead with 21 summits[11]), and two western climbers: Gheorghe Dijmarescu (9), and Dave Hahn (13).[12][13]
He was a cinematographer in the 2003 film Trio for One, which told the story of French alpinist Jean-Christophe Lafaille's mission to climb Dhaulagiri, Nanga Parbat and Broad Peak in a period of two months.[14]
In October 2006, Viesturs published No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the Worlds 14 Highest Peaks, an autobiography that documented his 16-year journey summitting all fourteen eight-thousanders.[15]
He made a cameo appearance playing himself in the film Vertical Limit.[16][17]
He was a guest on the Daily Show on December 7, 2006, and appeared on The Colbert Report on March 14, 2007, where he agreed to plant a Colbert Report flag on top of Mount Everest the next time he went.[17][18] On July 2, 2009, he brought the Colbert Nation flag back from Everest's summit to the show.[19]
He was featured on the cover of Outside Magazine's thirtieth anniversary issue in 2007.[20]
In October 2009, Viesturs and David Roberts published the book K2: Life and Death on the World's Most Dangerous Mountain, which tells the story of six expeditions to the world's second tallest mountain.[21]