Himalaya Spring 2019: Peruvian Climber Perishes on Makalu, Solo Summit on Ama Dablam.

Posted on May 9, 2019 by Kraig Becker

With high winds still buffeting the Himalaya I fully expected today to be a day where there wouldn’t be much news to report. Sadly, that isn’t the case and while there is some good information to share, there is also more tragic news to report as well.

Yesterday, Peru’s most prolific and famous climber Richard Hidalgo was found dead in his tent in Camp 2 at 6600 meters (21,635 ft) on Makalu. The climber had been helping the rope fixing teams on Tuesday and appeared to be in good health and spirits. In fact, he was getting ready to make a summit push on the mountain over the next few days without the use of supplemental oxygen. Hidalgo was discovered by Sherpas working with Seven Summit Treks as they were preparing to head higher. He was 52 years old.

Hidalgo’s goal was to climb all of the 8000-meter peaks without the use of bottled Os. He had already knocked off Cho Oyu, Manaslu, Annapurna, Shishapangma, Gasherbrum II, and Broad Peak. He had also attempted Everest on five separate occasions, but hadn’t quite added that to his list yet. His ambitious plans included getting the other eight mountains before 2021 when Peru celebrates the 200th anniversary of its independence.

As is always the case with these kinds of stories, our thoughts are with his friends and family in these trying times.

Andrzej Bargiel Aims to Ski K2 – Diary part 1.

I invite you to tracking the fate of expedition

in the Diary : Andrzej Bargiel Aims to Ski K2.

Andrzej Bargiel departured for his next adventure. This time, the aim will not be any of the eight-thousanders. Nevertheless, the goal that the Polish extreme skier set for himself is even more ambitious than the previous ones. “This is definitely the most challenging expedition of my life” – he confirmed.

The aim of the expedition is to conquer five highest peaks of the former Soviet Union, which is a prestigious mountaineering award called “Snow Leopard”. This is also the title name of the expedition. Previously some hundreds of climbers won the trophy but Bargiel wants to achieve this goal in his own style. By using skis on his way up as well as during the descents, he aims to break few speed records. The uniqueness of this project is greatly enlarged by the fact that the expedition involves the presence of the CANAL + DISCOVERY crew – a strategic partner of the project – that will create a documentary series illustrating Andrzej’s struggles with an ambitious and dangerous challenge. The premiere of the series “Andrzej Bargiel – Snow Leopard” will take place in autumn on CANAL + DISCOVERY channel.

The Snow Leopard Award includes five peaks reaching over 7000 meters. The first one, which Andrzej will face, after landing in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek and transfer to the city of Osh, is situated in the Pamir range – Lenin Peak (7134 m). On the easiest of the five peaks the polish skier will probably spend the most time, passing the monotonous process of acclimatization. After a succesful summit, the crew will fly to Tajikistan to challenge the last two peaks on the list: Korzeniewski Peak (7105 m) and the highest peak of the country and the Pamir mountains – Communism Peak (7495 m). It is still commonly known under its former Soviet name, although since 1998 its name has been officially changed to Ismoil Somoni Peak.

As fourth in line comes Pobeda Peak situated on the boarder between Kyrgyzstan and China, the highest peak in the mountains of Tien Shan, which is also considered to be the most dangerous one. Last, but not least, is Kazakhstan’s highest Khan Tengri (7010 m) with its capricious weather.

Andrzej Bargiel – 25 June at 21:06

We finally made it to Gasherbrum II basecamp. Weather is good and cold (-10C) so we are getting ready for going up. On the pics few more shots from trekking. Stay tuned for more updates ✌🏻

Dotarliśmy do bazy pod Gasherbrum II, gdzie przeprowadzimy aklimatyzację 😎 wysokość ~ 5000m. Ciepło nie jest, bo termometr wskazuje -10 stopni Celsjusza. Pogoda sprzyja, więc szykujemy się do akcji górskiej ✊🏻

Fot: Marek Ogień Photographer

Andrzej Bargiel – 22 June at 21:06

We have reached Urdukas Camp, which is situated near by stunning Trango Towers….

Dotarliśmy do Urdukas, obozu położonego w otoczeniu przepięknej grupy wież Trango.

Andrzej Bargiel Aims to Ski K2.

Andrzej Bargiel shredding up the slopes in La Grave, France.
Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

Polish ski mountaineer Andrzej Bargiel is again heading to the Karakorum to try to become the first person to complete a ski descent of K2.

Ski-mountaineers have tried to descend K2 in the past, sometimes with fatal consequences. Italian Hans Kammerlander had planned an attempt in 2001, only to turn around 400 meters from the summit after watching a Korean climber fall past him to his death. Nearly a decade later, in 2010, Swedish ski-mountaineer Fredrik Ericsson died after a fall near the infamous bottleneck section. Kammerlander has said that “somebody will do it, but he’ll need a lot of ability and a whole lot of luck”.

Andrzej Bargiel climing in La Grave, France.
Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

This is Bargiel’s second attempt. Last season he abandoned due to high avalanche and rockfall risks. The video below shows some teaser footage from the build-up to the 2017 expedition.

Bargiel is a seasoned extreme athlete who has previously skied Shisapangma and Broad Peak. This year, before attempting K2, he intends to acclimatize by climbing and skiing down Gasherbrum II, the lowest and most accessible of the 8000m peaks in the Karakorum.

16/06/2018, Bargiel landed in Skardu, the last stop in Pakistan before the Karakorum.

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* source: – https://explorersweb.com/

** see also: – Spring 2018 Himalayan Recap.

– 15 days Nepal Everest Base Camp Trekking .

– Overview of Trekking Routes in Nepal.  Expedition in Nepal with Nepal Trekking Routes (Ama Dablam, Annapurna, Makalu, Manaslu, Pumori)

– Nepal Celebrates 65th Anniversary of First Ascent of Mt. Everest.

– Today is 65th Anniversary of Everest’s First Ascent.

Latest Headlines – avalanche killed 19 climbers and Sherpas.

An earthquake-triggered avalanche slammed into hundreds of tents at … least 61 people injured and a total of 19 climbers and Sherpas dead.

1. Mount Everest avalanche triggered by Nepal earthquake kills 18: reports

Updated 26 Apr 2015, 12:32am

Photo: Building damage at Lobouche, a small settlement near Mount Everest, after a deadly earthquake in Nepal. (Twitter: David Arvan)

Related Story: Powerful quake hits Nepal, more than 1,300 dead

Map: Nepal

An Indian army mountaineering team has found 18 bodies on Mount Everest, an army spokesman said, after a massive earthquake in Nepal unleashed an avalanche on the world’s tallest mountain at the start of the main climbing season.

The earthquake hit Nepal and north India on Saturday afternoon, killing more than 1,300 people and collapsing buildings in Kathmandu.

Nepal’s Tourism Ministry could only confirm 10 deaths, but spokesman Gyanendra Shrestha said the death toll could rise, and that the avalanche had buried part of the base camp.

He said two tents at the camp had been filled with the injured.

More than 1,000 climbers had gathered there at the start of the climbing season, including about 400 foreigners.

One of those killed was Dan Fredinburg, a Google engineer based in California.

External Link: Everest tweet

He died as a result of head injuries when the avalanche hit, according to a statement from the mountaineering company that had taken him to base camp.

Climbers on the world’s highest mountain have pleaded for help, saying an avalanche has destroyed camps and sent slabs of ice crashing in a “huge disaster”.

“An avalanche from Mt Pumori has hit the base camp, burying a part of it,” Nepalese tourism official Gyanendra Shrestha said.

“We don’t have the details yet, but 10 have been reported dead so far, including foreign climbers.”

“We are trying to assess how many are injured. There might be over 1,000 people there right now, including foreign climbers and Nepalese supporting staff.”

Romanian climber Alex Gavan said on Twitter that there had been a “huge avalanche” and “many, many” people were up on the mountain.

“Running for life from my tent. Everest base camp huge earthquake then huge avalanche,” he said.

“Huge disaster. Helped searched and rescued victims through huge debris area. Many dead. Much more badly injured. More to die if not heli asap,” he later tweeted.

Another climber, Daniel Mazur, said Everest base camp had been “severely damaged” and his team was trapped.

“Please pray for everyone,” he said on his Twitter page.

Carsten Lillelund Pedersen, a Danish climber, said about 40 people were being treated in a makeshift hospital at a tent at base camp.

He said many of those injured had back injuries from being hit by rocks and ice when running from the avalanche.

The poor visibility after the first avalanche meant it was “difficult to see the following avalanches, and there are so many – maybe one every five minute – that I have stopped counting”, Mr Pedersen said on Facebook.

* more…

• http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-26/nepal-earthquake-triggers-deadly-mount-everest-avalanche/6422142

* see also :

1. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/12/mount-everest-sherpa-disaster-one-year-on

2. www.cnn.com/2014/04/18/world/asia/nepal-everest-avalanche/

3. www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-27075638

4. www.cbsnews.com/…/earthquake-triggered-avalanche-kills-sherpa…

5. http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2016/02/01/everest-2016-welcome-to-everest-2016-coverage/

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