15 INTERESTING EVENTS THAT OCCURRED DURING 2018 IN THE WORLD OF MOUNTAINEERING
by Climbing Trail News / Read the Original Article Here
2018 is over, folks! Before we gear up for the climbing season in brand new 2019, we’d like to round up some of the most important events that occurred in 2018. The initial list compiled by our team turned out to be too long, so we decided to break it up into a few parts to give our readers a break!
Without further ado, here’s part one:
1. Let’s promote adventure sports in North East India
Anshu Jamsenpa, India’s first female mountaineer to scale Mount Everest twice in the span of 5 days, is looking to promote adventure sports in India’s northeastern states.
Jamsenpa, who has achieved this impressive feat once before in 2011(it took her 9 days then), is also the first Indian woman to have scaled Mount Everest five times.
2. Four new peaks named after former Indian PM
Four Himalayan peaks situated in the Raktvan Valley, Uttarakhand, have been named after the former Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The peaks are located at an altitude of 6,557, 6,566, 6,160 and 6,100 metres respectively, and are named Atal-1, 2, 3 & 4.
3. Nine members of South Korean expedition perish in Nepal
Five South Korean climbers, and four sherpas were confirmed as dead on 13th October, 2018. The climbers had been caught amidst a strong storm at the Mount Gurja base camp.
Rescue officials noted that there was total destruction at the base camp, with many bodies scattered around in the debris.
4. Ben Dare traverses a new route on Mount Percy Smith, New Zealand
Ben Dare has made a first solo ascent on a new route on the Southwestern face of Mount Percy Smith in New Zealand.
The new climb, “The Promise”, goes up the mountain from the right side of the original route, “On the Dark Shore” to reach the summit.
5. Nearly 8.5 tonnes of garbage collected from Mount Everest
Around 2.3 tonnes of human faeces, 5.2 tonnes of household waste, and one tonne of mountain trash has been removed from Mount Everest in the past year.
Chinese officials have started a policy of giving every climber garbage bags to return with at least 8 kg of rubbish, along with fines for anyone who fails to collect the set amount. Nepal has also started similar policies regarding the removal of garbage from Mount Everest since 2014.
6. Reaching the highest points in 50 US States…in 21 days?!
There are only 273 people have touched the highest point in every US state. Colin O’Brady is not only one of them, but he’s also the fastest.
An athlete from Portland, Oregon, he has completed this impressive feat in just a little over 21 days!
7. Greek Mountaineers rejoice
56-year-old Antonis Sykaris has become the first Greek to climb three out of the fourteen highest peaks in the world! He has climbed Mount Everest, Mount Kansenuga, and most recently, Mount Manaslu. Sykaris climbed Mount Manaslu with fellow Greek climber Giorgos Marinos.
8. France imposes a limit of 214 climbers per day on Mont Blanc
France has set a limit of 214 climbers per day on Mont Blanc, starting 2019. This has been put in place to avoid overcrowding routes on one of Europe’s highest peaks. Officials say that many climbers turn up unprepared, and often pose a hazard to themselves. These new rules should provide some relief to both climbers and authorities.
9. K2 conquered twice in 24 hours by Irishmen
Two Irishmen climbed K2 within a span of 24 hours in two different expeditions.
Noel Hanna, from Northern Ireland, and Jason Black, from County Donegal have become the second, and third climbers of Irish nationality to conquer the second highest mountain in the world.
10. French Alps being hit with climate change
Rising temperatures have melted many a glacier in our world.
The French Alps, long a symbol of beauty in continental Europe, is no stranger to climate change. The Mer de Glace, the biggest glacier in France, has suffered the most, with almost 40 metres melting off each year.
11. Jim Bridwell dead at 73
Jim Bridwell, a celebrated mountaineer, has died of kidney failure, and Hepatitis C at 73. He traversed through very daring routes in various peaks around the continents.
12. Spaniards traverse new route on Mount Langdung
Spanish mountaineers Pablo Ruix, Jesús Ibarz, and Edu Recio have traversed a new route on Mount Langdung in Nepal, that took six days in October 2018.
Mount Langdung is situated in the Rolwaling valley, and was a virgin peak until the winter of 2017. A team of guides from Nepal made the first expedition to Mount Langdung in the winter of 2017.
13. New Mountaineering Institute founded in China
A new mountaineering institute was founded in Wuhan, China in 2018. The institute is a collaboration between China University of Geosciences at Wuhan and the Chinese Mountaineering Association.
14. Liv Sansoz conquers 82 Alpine peaks
French climber Liv Sansoz completed the expeditions to Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey, and Grand Pilier d’Angle with Roger Schaeli on 11 September 2018.
With these two summits under her belt, she has not only joined an elite club of women who have conquered the highest peaks in the Alps. She is also the first French woman to have completed all 82 alpine four-thousander peaks.
15. The first transgender woman on all seven summits!
Erin Parisi came out as a woman in 2016 after living as a man for nearly 39 years. While recovering from surgery, she set herself a new goal: to climb the Seven Summits as a transgender woman. In 2018, she has conquered Mount Kosciuszko , Mount Kilimanjaro, and Mount Elbrus. Who knows, someday she might be the first transgender woman to complete all seven of them!
