Nando Parrado's story on the 72 days spent in the Andes and the long trek home may not have hit book shelves yet, but it has most certianly hit my heart. Outside magazine has an exclusive excerpt from Miracle in the Andes in their current issue with only a small fraction of the piece available online. For me the story is still fairly new, others may vaguely remember, some might find it hard to forget, but Outside names it one of the greatest epics of all time. The year was 1972 when a plane carrying a young Uruguayan rugby squad crashed in the Andes leaving the survivors stranded and forcing them to subsist on the bodies of their friends. Nando Parrado, hero of the saga, tells the awe-inspiring tale 34 years later in his book Miracle in the Andes to hit shelves on May 9, 2006. If the piece found online isn't enough for you make sure you scoop up the latest Outside for more or check out the Q&A with the author who touches on his recent return to the crash site, the book & movie Alive, as well his strange attraction to ice axes and crampons.

Filed under: History, Learning, Stories, South America, Argentina, Uruguay