Mountaineer Harish Kapadia, ex-editor of The Himalayan Journal, has climbed more than 30 Himalayan peaks. Pic/Atul Kamble

Any adventurer daring an expedition into the Himalayas would be aware of the perils of taking on its steep and treacherous terrain. It's possibly why survival stories from these lofty mountains always make for the best reading material, especially when planning explorations in this region. One such story - documented as the most daring yet - took place 26 years ago, and involved a group of Indo-British mountaineers, who were climbing several peaks in the Panch Chuli group in Kumaun, Uttar Pradesh. It was sometime towards the end of expedition, that leading British mountaineer Stephen Venables had a fall, which left him immobile at about 21,000 ft on the slopes of Panch Chuli V. A helicopter had to be arranged, and the pilot had to use great manoeuvring skills before he could attempt a successful rescue. Recalling the experience, AV Saunders, who was part of the team, would later write: "The rotor tips inches from snow, and not much more above our heads. One mistake from the pilots, and Venables and I would be salamied."