Walter Bonatti

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Walter Bonatti (born June 22, 1930) is an Italian born climber who set new standards in post-war Alpine climbing.

Bonatti was born in Bergamo, Lombardy.

Famed for his climbing panache, he pioneered little known and technically difficult climbs in the Alps, Himalaya and Patagonia. Among his notable climbs include a solo climb of a new route on the south-west pillar of Aiguille du Dru in August 1955. Bonatti was at the centre of a climbing controversy regarding the first successful attempt of K2 by Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni in 1954, where as a 24-year old he helped ferry oxygen cylinders to the summiteers at Camp 9. In the early 1990s, two summit photos proved his story that the climbers were using oxygen. Walter Bonatti was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur for saving the lives of two fellow-climbers in a disaster in the Alps. Bonatti is the author of a number of books about climbing and mountaineering.