Everest and Shisha Pangma expeditions

Some of you asked me a few days ago what happened to the expeditions I talked about in my previous post. Well, Alberto Iñurrategi, Juan Vallejo and Mikel Zabalza had to turn around in their attempt to crown the Everest in alpine style along the corridor of the Japaneses. Two avalanches on their tents made them rush back to the base camp after losing their tent, a piolet, and spending part of the night huddled into a hole dug in the snow. Yet three days later they wanted to return to attack the summit.

Bivouac in the corridor of the Japanese (source: desnivel.com)

On the other hand, Juanito Oiarzabal made it to the central summit of Shisha Pangma (8,008 m) but not to its main ridge (8,027 m), after three hours trying to equip the 150 meter ridge that separates the two summits. A very complicated pass connected to the bad weather made him turn around. Still, Juanito wants to return to the top, maybe next year, to meet his 2x14 project.

Juanito Oiarzabal (source: desnivel.com)

Finally, Edurne Pasabán's group spent the night in the bivouac Scott, at 6,200 meters, and returned to Shisha Pangma base camp (southwest side). The night was very cold and scary, because it was snowing until 2 or 3 in the morning, which triggered landslides and rock falls very close to where they were. The next morning they decided to terminate their acclimatization, as the snow fell during the night made the ascent route dangerous. They returned to base camp where they rest in hopes of good weather to go to the summit.

Alfaro and Casas in the midst of the snowstorm (source: rtve.es)

Himalayan weekend

This is a very interesting weekend in the Himalayan area. On one hand, Edurne Pasabán, Ferrán Latorre, Asier Izaguirre and Alex Txikon have reached Camp 1 (bivouac Scott, 6,200 m - 20,341 feet) in their way to the summit of Shisha Pangma, the penultimate mountain for Edurne to ascend and become the first woman climbing the 14 eight-thousands on the planet. Along this weekend, they will continue with their acclimatization and preparing their way to the top. They will go up to around 6,700 m (21,980 feet) and then down to the base camp where they will sleep on Sunday night.


Asier and Edurne during their acclimatization in Shisha Pangma at 6,200 m (source: rtve.es)


At the same time, Juanito Oiarzabal, who holds the world record for most ascents of mountains over eight thousand meters, is also currently in Shisha Pangma in its north side, and this weekend will attempt to summit.


Juanito Oiarzabal and Roberto Rojo "Gorri" at the summit of Makalu in 2008 (photo: collection Roberto Rojo)


Moreover, the Naturgas Hornbein'09 expedition attempts Everest in alpine style through the Hornbein corridor. This is probably the most difficult climbing route to the roof of the world. In fact, this route has only had seven ascents and only one in alpine style (the Swiss Erhard Loretan and Jean Troillet in 1986). The other five climbers did it using oxygen and fixed ropes. The members of Naturgas Hornbein'09: Juan Vallejo, Mikel Zabalza and Alberto Iñurrategi have already started the attack to the summit, hoping to reach this point on Sunday.


Video of Alberto Iñurrategi, Juan Vallejo and Mikel Zabalza at 7,500 m in their last outing of acclimatization.

We hope they can all meet their targets and return safely to base camp.

14 x 8.000 with Edurne Pasabán

Until just 22 years ago, no human being had managed to climb the 14 highest peaks on the planet. It was the October 16, 1986 when Reinhold Messner, regarded by many as the best Himalayan all time, completed the ascent to the fourteen eight-thousands without using oxygen and in traditional style. Today, only 14 men have managed to climb the 14 highest peaks in the world. By contrast, no woman has achieved this goal at the moment, although three are close to overcoming this challenge: Edurne Pasabán, Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and Nives Meroi. All of them still have three peaks to ascend. The Austrian Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner has the Kangchenjunga, K2 and Shishapagma. To the Italian Nives Meroi, the remaining ones are the Kangchenjunga, Annapurna and Makalu. And to the Spanish Edurne Pasabán, the Kangchenjunga, Annapurna I and Shishapangma. From this blog, I wish the best to the three of them and that their dreams will be soon fulfilled.

Edurne Pasabán Lizarribar was born on August 1, 1973 in Tolosa (Guipúzcoa), Spain. She is technical industrial engineer and has an MBA by the ESADE Business School in Barcelona. She worked for several years in the company of her family, dedicated to building machinery. At present, she's director of a restaurant/country house in the Basque town of Zizurkil. In addition, acts as a consultant and lecturer for different companies in the field of motivation, planning and teamwork, using the knowledge and experience acquired by the extreme situations lived in her expeditions to the Himalayas.

Her fondness for the mountains comes from a very young age. In 1989, when she was 16, traveled to the Alps for the first time, where she did the Mont Blanc (4,810 m - 15,781 feet), Matterhorn (4,478 m - 14,692 feet) and Monte Rosa (4,614 m - 15,138 feet). At the age of 17, she reached the summit of Chimborazo (6,310 m - 20,702 feet) in the Andes. Since then, she has proved to have the necessary physical and mental abilities to perform these complex and dangerous expeditions.

In 2001, Edurne conducted her first major climb, reaching the summit of the world's highest mountain, Mount Everest (8,848 m - 29,029 feet) and thereby initiating the Himalayan ascents. In the spring of next year, 2002, rose the top of Makalu (8,463 m - 27,766 feet), and in the autumn of that year, the Cho-Oyu (8,201 m - 26,906 feet). In 2003, again in the spring, she climbed Lhotse (8,516 m - 27,940 feet), and in late July, and in 7 days, reached the summit of Gasherbrum II (8,035 m - 26,362 feet) and Hidden Peak (8,068 m - 26,470 feet), also known as Gasherbrum I. In July 2004, she succeeded in crowning the top of the second world's highest mountain, K2 (8,611 m - 28,251 feet) and staying alive, thus breaking the curse that seemed to pursue her predecessors, since all women who had reached the summit of K2 so far, have died on its descent or climbing other eight-thousands. The conquest of this mountain had a high price for Edurne, as it cost the amputation of two of her toes' phalanges by freezing. The price was even higher for his fellow of expedition Juanito Oiarzabal (best Spanish alpinist of all time) because it involved the amputation of almost all his toes. Despite these injuries, Edurne climbed up the Nanga Parbat (8,125 m - 26,657 feet) in July 2005, and the Broad Peak (8,047 m - 26,401 feet) in the summer of 2007. In May 2008, she topped the Dhaulagiri (8,167 m - 26,795 feet) together with the Ecuadorian Ivan Vallejo Ricaurte, who achieved with this ascension his dream of reaching the summit of the 14 highest peaks in the world. The last eight-thousand conquered by Edurne was the Manaslu (8,163 m - 26,781 feet) at the beginning of October 2008.

Edurne is currently preparing her next expedition, with the aim of conquering the Kangchenjunga (8,568 m - 28,110 feet), the third highest mountain in the world. Of this, she would only have two more peaks to conquer, the Annapurna (8,019 m - 26,309 feet) and Shisha Pangma (8,046 m - 26,398 feet). Perhaps at that time Edurne Pasabán will become the first woman in the world that reaches the 14 eight-thousands, the 14 highest summits on the planet. Hopefully she will do, and that in the meantime, the Mother Goddess of the World will protect her in her way.

This is a video of Edurne on the summit of Broad Peak (8,047 m - 26,401 feet) in July 2007: