Is the Annapurna Circuit still a Must-See? The descent went really well and we passed a lot of people on their way up. Whichever way you look at it, it’s an extraordinary peak even without its extraordinary history. When he came to the overhanging part, we encouraged him to dig a vertical tunnel in order to avoid a massive fall. What happened to Alison Hargreaves on K2? Soon it seemed clear that someone would have to get very tired and wet by digging a tunnel [through the mushrooms] on the last pitch. Hiked in the area twice – the first time had fantastic weather and the … They started just to the right of ‘Motivaciones Mixtas,’ crossing it after three pitches to tackle a stunningly steep 300-meter pillar. The trail is well marked and ascends smoothly from El Chaltén: The Everest avalanche: how did it happen? Yet for many people Kennedy and Kruk are heroes. Kennedy and Kruk didn’t think they shouldn’t be used at all, and even attached to some of Maestri’s. Another climbing writer said they had done a great service and said he was saddened “to see them receive so much criticism for what I consider to be an altruistic act”, pointing out that nobody has a “right” to climb Cerro Torre, and there are many easier mountains for less skilful climbers. They report high quality climbing, with five pitches in the 5.12 range (7b).”. Meanwhile the history of Cerro Torre is still being written. A lot of people with limited abilities are still making it up—good for everyone as long as no one gets hurt. While plenty of people have climbed the Southeast Ridge using Maestri’s bolts, until last month, when Kennedy and Kruk chose to avoid them yet still made the ascent in a very rapid 13 hours, nobody had ever climbed it by “fair means”. I’ll be using ice axe, crampons, down suit, fixed ropes, mountaineering boots and supplementary oxygen for my attempt on Everest this spring, but I draw the line at being short-roped (having a Sherpa drag you up the mountain on a one metre cord). Climbing Cerro Torre , Patagonia via the Ragni Route. Please see the privacy statement for more information. What's the world's best mountain for cheating? Is this the world’s strangest summit cairn? While most people agree Maestri should never have put the bolts there in the first place, opinion is hotly divided about whether they should have been removed, and even more so about the manner of their removal, by two climbers on one side of the debate taking the decision unilaterally. 90 per cent of the ascents since have been via this route, where climbers have some 400 bolts they can choose to attach to most of the way to the summit. The via ferrata routes in the Italian Dolomites even have aluminium ladders and steel cables to attach to as permanent features on sheer rock faces. Routes in Cerro Torre. Edoardo Saccaro did an amazing job digging his way up. Is the first winter ascent of K2 a turning point for Sherpa mountaineers? The Cuillin Traverse - to do or not to do? Similar to yourself I’m more of a hiker but we were recently doing some of the trails near El Chalten so it’s been fascinating to stumble upon your post and find this slice of controversy. Dreams of Maiella: a shepherd’s life in the Apennines. But more on that later…. If you climb a peak that collapses in an earthquake, did you still climb it? While most people these days regard Maestri’s 1959 climb to be a hoax, there are still many people who believe he did climb it. Where do I stand? Ascent Into Hell by Fergus White: An authentic account of climbing Everest, Beyond the Nevis watershed, part 2: the Grey Corries, Beyond the Nevis watershed, part 1: the eastern Mamores, The world’s most stupid navigational error, 5 surprising, educational facts about Everest, all for a good cause, 10 facts about Everest success and death rates, based on scientific data, When Joe Brown went hunting for Inca treasure in Ecuador’s Llanganates Mountains. For 40 years the Compressor Route as it’s now known (though perhaps not for much longer) has been the de facto normal route up Cerro Torre. I doubt I would ever have been tempted by the Compressor Route, and now Cerro Torre is definitely not an option for me. Among several beautiful climbs completed so far this season—the new route opened by Brette Harrington’s team on Torre Egger, first envisioned by and dedicated to Marc André Lecrerc, for example—a new route on Aguja Standhardt, climbed by several of the Spiders of Lecco, stands out as one of the finest. The Cerro Torre is located in a four mountain chain; Cerro Torre, Torre Egger, Punta Herron, and Cerro Standhart. A brief introduction to Kilimanjaro’s volcanic crater, The Everest Politics Show is out now in paperback, Kilimanjaro: returning to the crown of Africa, Book review: A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush by Eric Newby. Their plan was to follow Maestri’s route to the Col of Conquest between the two peaks, and then climb Egger’s steep south face to its unclimbed summit. Goddess of Turquoise: my attempt on Cho Oyu, Implementing WordPress for an adventure travel company. They are the ones who climbed Cerro Torre; we were merely standing on top of it. Also see photos and tips from visitors. The first part had a natural half pipe and was quickly ascended. Cerro Torre has a great climbing history behind it, hiding big mysteries and keeping great achievements. Which is harder, the Second Seven Summits or the first one? The great great grandfather of mountaineering, To drill or not to drill? A truly dreamy climb! There are no further details but this update will certainly add fuel to the controversy which has followed the bolt chopping carried out recently by Jason Kruk and Hayden Kennedy. Why do outdoor brands constantly dick around with perfectly good gear? Cerro Torre has three rime ice mushrooms to climb on the Ragni route, and the key is finding the natural ice tunnels that are sculpted by the wind, and provide the easiest and most secure way to climb up and through the billowing, loose rime shrooms. Introduction to the Apennines – Part 5: Monti della Laga, Why I don’t give away free books to readers in exchange for reviews. These are easy peaks from a technical point of view, very different from Cerro Torre and Fitzroy, but they would be true mountaineering expeditions. Right at the top we met Belgian friends Nicolas Favresse and Sean Villanueva—they too had opened a new and difficult route on another aspect of the mountain. Yet there’s much circumstantial evidence to suggest Maestri’s claim is plausible. World firsts are meaningless, personal firsts are profound. The Abruzzo Quartet: an autumn feast of mountains, Seven Steps from Snowdon to Everest: read the complete prologue, Book review: The Ghosts of K2 by Mick Conefrey, The first ascent of the Southwest Face of Everest, The Snowdon Horseshoe: Britain's classic hill walk, Snowdon's Pen-y-Gwryd Hotel: a little piece of Everest history, BREAKING NEWS: People with size 14 feet can no longer climb Mount Everest, I'm giving The Chomolungma Diaries away FREE, and here's why, Everest the Movie: my review of the Hollywood blockbuster, Monte Amaro, a mountain worth drinking to, Seven Steps from Snowdon to Everest: a writer's journey to a perfect book cover. Swearing in travel writing: when is it acceptable? Cerro Torre rises in Argentine territory at the eastern edge of the Patagonian Ice Cap 50 miles north of Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park. On his Instagram account Patagonia Vertical, Rolando Garibotti provided info about the new line climbed by the Belgian aces. After hours of digging he came down wet and tired from the exhilarating venture, which included a 10 meter whipper that had us all a bit stressed. Poo in the Everest region: is it such a big problem? The Ennerdale Horseshoe: a Lake District gem, Cotopaxi, a short climbing history: a teaser from my next book, Kangchenjunga base camp trek: Oktang and the south side, Kangchenjunga base camp trek: Pangpema and the north side, UK readers: Seven Steps from Snowdon to Everest available for less than a quid, In memory of Chongba Sherpa of Tate, a high-altitude superstar, Revised edition of The Manaslu Adventure available from all good e-bookstores, Drohmo Ri, the world’s easiest 6,000m peak? My second audiobook – Feet and Wheels to Chimborazo, narrated by Philip Battley. The best weather forecast is to look out of your tent, On parasitic climbers; Manaslu's serac maze, A monsoon trek and first foray onto Manaslu, 8 useful web tools for expedition base camp, Drukpa Kunley's Rhubarb: an extraordinary Himalayan vegetable, 5 reasons why Bhutan is *NOT* worth the $200 per day tourist fee, 5 reasons why Bhutan *IS* worth the $200 per day tourist fee, All experience is an arch: a traveller's motto, Backpacker’s Britain: walking guides for people who like it tough, The Rhinogs: Snowdonia’s best kept secret. More unskilled people will come to give it a try, there will be more guided ascents, more drones. It is a “fourteen-pitch free route on the southeast pillar of Aguja Standhardt. If there is … Few people dispute the use of ropes, harnesses, carabiners and rock shoes in climbing. Even those who accept the use of bolts are divided as to how much use of them constitutes fair means. Maestri, the only survivor, was found in a state of near delirium days later, muttering confusedly that he and Egger had been successful. [..] If the parties below didn’t seem very psyched on seeing us passing ahead, our presence felt welcomed up there. In fact, it would be another 55 years before anyone would successfully climb one (Herzog and Lachenal on Annapurna). As Della Bordella noted, another beautiful first ascent was completed by the Belgian duo of Nico Favresse and Sean Villanueva O’Driscoll. It had been obvious for a long time that the experience had been changed beyond recognition from what we had expected. The incendiary nature of the actions of these three climbers are such that some forum threads have attracted quite literally thousands of comments, and it’s very difficult to work out what’s going on. Maestri’s notes on the climb are somewhat sketchy, but his descriptions of the extended fore summit and ice mushrooms lining it bear a similarity to conditions which would require a remarkably prescient imagination to have invented. Peak bagging the Cuillin ridge on Scotland’s Isle of Skye, The strange life and death of Kim Chang-ho, An introduction to ExplorersWeb, the adventurers’ website on a new journey, Banished to Room 101: the Inaccessible Pinnacle, The first ever successful Everesting of Everest, Islands in the Snow is now available as a paperback, 7 countries with mountains on their flags, Cycling the North Coast 500: a teaser from my next book, The great Nepal helicopter rescue fraud: an introduction, 5 stepping stones on the path to high altitude, Introduction to the Apennines – Part 3: Abruzzo National Park, Revised digital edition of Islands of the Snow is now available. This face has some of the most incredible ice formations to be found anywhere in the world. As you can see, there’s no easy answer to this question, but one thing is certain: there are plenty of people out there who feel very strongly about it and aren’t afraid to say so. There are two independent lines to the summit, one up the Southeast Ridge and the other up the Ragni Route on the west face. Become a member to unlock this story and receive other great benefits. 1975: Jim Donini’s Ascent of Torre Egger Refutes Maestri’s Claim . Is it OK for mountaineers to miss a puja? As mentioned earlier, another storyline of note this season is the number of climbers on certain routes. We encouraged Christophe Ogier and waited. Humboldt and Boussingault on Chimborazo: how high did they climb? Is disaster reporting becoming too violent? Pesce shared details in several Instagram posts, reprinted and edited below as one long description with permission: The route was in mega conditions, [unbelievably] good snow all the way but impossible to place good protection regularly. For 40 years the Compressor Route as it’s now known (though perhaps not for much longer) has been the de facto normal route up Cerro Torre. Der Cerro Torre ist aufgrund seiner steil aufragenden, glatten Granitwände, die im oberen Bereich größtenteils mit Raureifeis bedeckt sind, und der extrem widrigen Wetterbedingungen n… Required fields are marked *Lively discussion is welcome, but if you think your comment might offend, please read the commenting guidelines before posting. What was the highest mountain in the world before Everest was discovered? Nirmal Purja’s ascent of all fourteen 8,000m peaks: why is it controversial? I once trekked in the Fitzroy region of Argentina, and walked up a glacier very close to the foot of Cerro Torre. Is the mountaineer Phil Crampton Richard III's distant relative? This website uses cookies to track how it's being used. Ojos del Salado at last: climbing the world’s highest volcano, A short scramble up Rumiñahui, the stone-faced Inca warrior, Beautiful places are more crowded, but the world is getting better, not worse, A doctor’s advice on surviving the death zone, Introduction to the Apennines – Part 4: Sirente-Velino. The first unquestioned ascent of Cerro Torre was made in 1974 by his compatriot Casimiro Ferrari. The Lukla flight: is it really that scary? Hunter), Tenzing Norgay Biography to Become Netflix Film, Genesis: Our First Pro Comp Was the Most Conflicted. Nepal earthquake: who should I donate to? Create a personalized feed and bookmark your favorites. We all instantly knew we would top out. Still, psyched to have simul-climbed most of the 1,300 meters with Jorge. Many of the doubters point to the fact that all subsequent attempts to use the Maestri-Egger route have failed, but a quirk of the weather meant conditions in 1959 made climbing the higher reaches of the mountain favourable. It wasn’t until much later that doubts began to be expressed. In 1975, American climbers Jim Donini, Jay Wilson, and John Bragg made the first ascent of Torre Egger next to Cerro Torre. Placing nuts (wedge-shaped bits of metal threaded with a wire you can attach a carabiner to, and hence secure yourself with a rope) into cracks in the rock, is regarded as acceptable because they can be removed by the climber coming up last. Indeed, there’s now a new chapter which has only just opened. After a few hours sleep we quickly realized there were a lot of people above. An ascent of Imbabura, the dragon-back of Otavalo, Wanda Rutkiewicz: the mountaineer’s Google Doodle, Fuya Fuya, the most exciting mountain in Ecuador. What mountain summit has the world’s longest view? The Ragni route is one of the most coveted routes in the range for obvious reasons and everyone wanted to make it to the top as early as possible. Italian climbers have a special relationship with the Patagonian spires, as their countrymen—members of the historic and renowned mountaineering association, Ragni di Lecco (the Spiders of Lecco)—made the first, undisputed climb of Cerro Torre in 1970. As mentioned earlier, another storyline of note this season is the number of climbers on certain routes. Maestri is best known for controversy surrounding climbs on Cerro Torre in Patagonia---his debunked claim of the first ascent of the peak in 1959, and his subsequent Compressor Route on it in 1970---but his other achievements in and around Europe make him a standout figure in world climbing. The use of bolts is more contentious because these need to be drilled into the rock, and hence become a permanent feature of the route. Ragni climbers went on to write many more legendary ascents into the mountains flanking Cerro Torre. What do Prince Philip, an Everest summiteer and a Nepali rock star have in common? Credit: Trekkingbg. For many years following his 1959 climb, Maestri was taken at his word: that he climbed this fiendishly difficult tower of rock, and that his climbing partner Toni Egger, who reached the summit with him, was killed in an avalanche during the descent. Any true "fair means" ascent is tainted by the use of any of the existing hardware, even a single piece, so I don't buy the "mountain consecrated" argument. Join Active Pass to get Climbing magazine, access to exclusive content, thousands of training plans, and more. Climbing big mountains isn't everyone's cup of tea, The Eighth Summit: the highest mountain in Central America, Frank Smythe is more interesting than George Mallory, How not to do a mountaineering presentation, Everest's most extraordinary false summit claim, George Mallory was murdered ... by Jeffrey Archer, The Epic of Everest - Captain John Noel's film of the 1924 expedition, The first winter ascent of Broad Peak - a tribute, Book review: Everest The First Ascent by Harriet Tuckey. Pingback:Climbing in Patagonia – Torres del Paine, An Interlude – Hiking, Hills and Highlands. Although his first ascent is disputed, it’s for his second attempt that he gained notoriety. Rival climber Carlo Mauri, who made an aborted attempt of his own on the mountain and vowed never to return there, later published an article implying the peak had never been climbed. These conditions meant obviously little to no chance of success on the East Wall of Cerro Torre, not mentioning the danger of being hit by some of these blocks of ice, which would inevitably detach themselves from above in good and warm weather. The line I imagined runs along the north edge of the mountain, parallel and about a hundred meters away from the Festerville route that I had already climbed with Bernasconi and Luca Schiera in 2013. If you keep reading then we assume you're OK with this. Why are mountaineering book covers so terribly dull? The mountain is Cerro Torre, and the central character in its story is an Italian climber called Cesare Maestri, now in his 80s, who claimed its first ascent in 1959, then returned in 1970 for a second go in extraordinary circumstances. Learn how your comment data is processed. Just because you disagree with my opinion doesn’t mean you need to hate me or denigrate me personally. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Maestri first claimed to have climbed the mountain in 1959 with the Austrian guide Toni Egger, who died during the climb. The Ascent of Rum Doodle vs. One respected climbing historian asked the question “should we flatten the Pyramids because they were built with slave labour?”. The route follows a system of very logical cracks and the pitches slide one after another in a spectacular way. Begangen von uns am 3-6.01.2016 Routenverlauf und Zustieg. 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Rising above the Southern Patagonian Ice Field on the border of Chile and Argentina is a narrow finger of rock 3128 metres in height that for over 50 years has been a source of controversy among the climbing community. I’d very much like to tow a sledge across the ice cap and climb Cerro Lautaro and Cerro Moreno on the other side. Kennedy and Kruk, January 2012 Historically in UK climbing circles bolts tend to be frowned upon, while in continental Europe they are more often tolerated, but this may be because much of the rock in the UK is brittle and more easily destroyed by a bolt, while in the Alps it is often firmer. … The overhanging dihedral in the middle of the route is unforgettable, and is then followed by a perfect crack 100 meters long, with tens of meters in a row of interlocking hands. Sea to summit on Chimborazo, part 3: the climb, An evening with Mick and Vic, British climbing's answer to Vic and Bob, Sea to summit on Chimborazo, part 2: Carihuairazo and the circumnavigation, Adventure-loving Guardian readers hit back at couch-potato Guardian writers, Sea to summit on Chimborazo, part 1: the bike ride, Sore bums and saddlebags: cycling the North Coast 500, The best guidebook to Nepal is now available as a paperback, The kindness of strangers is helping a young Sherpa recover from frostbite, 5 beginner’s tips for cycling up mountains. After three months of bad weather and failed attempts, the climbers and their film crew left, but about 60 new bolts and 700 meters of fixed lines remained. Despite having a clear goal in our mind—to try to overcome the dihedral of the British route on the Eastern Wall of Cerro Torre, which stopped our 2019 attempt—we discussed for a long time between us on what to do. It was a beautiful moment. Why did a Chinese team climb Everest during the coronavirus pandemic? I wouldn’t recommend you read it, though. Robson in British Columbia. What’s the highest mountain in the solar system? How to recover from a big altitude misjudgement, A short escape to Ecuador to climb some of its more obscure peaks, 10 great books about mountains that have nothing to do with climbing, What the North Coast 500 has in common with Everest, An ascent of Aukštojas Hill, the highest mountain in Lithuania. Alana Chapko: Seattle, Washington $300 to climb the Kain Face of Mt. Compressor route on Cerro Torre Graphic by the Guardian. Didn’t know this interesting piece of Patagonian history. Two strange plants of the Colombian paramo, Cocuy Circuit trek: You say cojones, I say cojines. Der Cerro Torre (spanisch: Turm-Berg) ist ein 3128 Meter[2], nach anderen Quellen 3133 Meter[3] hoher Granitberg, der sich im Nationalpark Los Glaciares am Rande zum Campo de Hielo Sur an der argentinisch-chilenischen Grenze befindet. A thread about Cerro Torre on one climbing forum has an astonishing 1800 comments on it and counting. It was a few years ago that, during my visits and climbs in the Cerro Torre range, I had been intrigued by an unclimbed line on Aguja Standhardt. For several days prior to their ascent a storm rocked the mountain. Yesterday 22/01/2012 David Lama made the first free ascent of the Compressor Route on Cerro Torre, Patagonia. The upper part of the route proved easier but no less beautiful, and after a cold but spectacular bivouac under the first ‘peak’ of Standhardt we reached the actual summit on the morning of February 8. The Manaslu Adventure is now available as a paperback, Monte Marsicano up the back side: 8 summits in one day. Great post. Sign up to my mailing list to receive new blog posts and a free ebook... My quest to reach the furthest point from the earth's centre starting from sea level: a hilarious caper about a wannabe cyclist and mountaineer... My journey from hill walker to Everest climber: a must-read for aspirants and armchair fans... For more info about my books and writing see my, A short history of Nanga Parbat, the Naked German Mountain, Cerro San Lorenzo and the Patagonian summer.
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