Scrambles Amongst the Alps describes the nine years from 1860 to 1869 that Edward Whymper spent climbing in the Alps. Whymper made dozens of first ascents and acquired a reputation as one of the best in the field of alpine mountaineering. Whymper made seven attempts at summiting mountaineering's Holy Grail of the time - the Matterhorn. He succeeded on his eighth attempt becoming the first to reach its peak. This success came at a terrible cost, as four of his companions fell to their deaths on the descent. It was a tragedy that would cast a shadow over the remainder of his life. Edward Whymper was an English mountaineer, explorer, illustrator, and author. Whymper also made first ascents on the Mont-Blanc massif and in the Pennine Alps, Chimborazo in South America, and the Canadian Rockies. His exploration of Greenland contributed to an advance in Arctic exploration. Publication 1937