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Against The Odds

Himalayan Spy Mission | The Dome | 3

Against The Odds

Wondery

Cassie De Pecol, History, Society & Culture, Dolby, Mike Corey, Dolby Atmos, Atmos

4.77.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 February 2023

⏱️ 47 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Two years have passed since the team of Indian and American elite climbers lost a nuclear-powered spying device in the Himalayas. Now, as China continues to test its nuclear weapons, the climbing team is given one last chance to complete their mission. This time they have to bring a new spying device up a different mountain. But as they summit the 22,000 foot peak called Nanda Kot, they’ll face avalanches, severe weather, and a shocking last-minute setback.

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hey, Prime members, you can listen to Against the Odds at Free on Amazon Music. Download the app today.

0:06.9

This episode of Against the Odds contains depictions of violence. Please be advised.

0:20.2

Captain Mohan Singh Kohli wipes snow from his goggles as he struggles down a steep slope.

0:27.2

He's 18,000 feet up the Himalayan mountain Nunda Cote. He's freezing, and the driving snow means he

0:34.7

can barely see more than a dozen feet ahead of him. He hopes the climbers following behind are

0:40.8

keeping him in their sights. It's May 24th, 1967, and Kohli is supposed to be heading up Nunda Cote.

0:49.8

Instead, he and his fellow climbers are racing down the mountain toward the safety of base camp,

0:56.6

where they can wait out this punishing storm. Kohli is the most accomplished mountain climber in

1:02.8

India. He led the first expedition to put Indian men on top of Mount Everest, but this expedition

1:10.1

is proving more difficult than he expected. He didn't think his second attempt to carry a plutonium

1:16.5

powered spine device up a Himalayan mountain would be easy, but their awful luck along the way

1:22.4

has made a tough job almost impossible. Kohli looks behind him, and he can barely make out a couple

1:30.0

of his men a hundred feet further up the slope. He tries to signal to them to check that everyone is

1:36.3

okay, but he's not sure they see him through the snow. Kohli and his team had been on Nunda Cote

1:43.2

for 20 days, and they're nearly out of time to complete this mission before the start of

1:48.1

monsoon season. At that point, heavy, constant snowfall will make it impossible for them to continue.

1:56.5

Kohli's bosses are running out of patience, but he won't risk anyone getting stranded in a blizzard

2:02.3

on his watch, so he's ordered them down the mountain, and this time they're lugging the heavy

2:08.3

spine device with them. After losing their first device on Nunda Davy, Kohli's not letting this one

2:14.8

out of their sight. Augusta Wind hits him in the face, tugging at the icicles that have formed

2:22.0

on his beard. He's so frustrated with the weather and the mistakes they've made along the way,

2:27.8

but at least he's headed to a lower elevation and a warm tent.

...

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