in June and July 1976 a group of twelve Flemings, nine climbers, a doctor, a journalist-explorer and a television cameraman, undertook an expedition to Peru to attempt the conquest of Huascaran, 6768 metres high. The first attempt was a failure, the expedition had tackled the southern side of the mountain which presented an extremely difficult path. The flemish climbers then decided to attack the mountain from the western side. With the help of a jeep lent out by the Peruvian army they moved to Tampa, a village at a height of 3960 metres. The conquest of Huascaran was attempted meanwhile by an American expedition enganged exactly on this western side. The Flemish climbers witnessed the dramatic failure of the American attempt which caused the tragic loss of four companions. After this sad event the Flemish climbers did not lose heart but finally reached the top of the mountain on July 26th 1976 after a hard fight.