I wanted to achieve something essential in life, something that is not measured by money or position in society. The mountains are not stadiums where I satisfy my ambitions to achieve. They are my cathedrals, the houses of my religion. In the mountains I attempt to understand my life. They are the way I practice my religion. In the mountains I celebrate creation, on each journey I am reborn.

Anatoli Boukreev

About Anatoli Boukreev

Portrait of Anatoli Boukreev

Anatoli Nikolaevich Boukreev (Russian: Анато́лий Никола́евич Букре́ев; January 16, 1958 – December 25, 1997) was a Soviet and Kazakh mountaineer who made ascents of 10 of the 14 eight-thousander peaks—those above 8,000 m (26,247 ft)—without supplemental oxygen. From 1989 through 1997, he made 18 successful ascents of peaks above 8,000...