On June 11, Dani Arnold, well-known for his solo speed ascents in the Alps, added another to his resumé. The Swiss mountain guide climbed the three ridges of Switzerland’s 2,985m Salbitschijen in 9 hours, 36 minutes, and 55 seconds. Most people take that time just to do one of them.
Arnold started early on June 11 at the Salbit hut (2,105m), according to Alpine.de. He first ascended the south ridge, then the west ridge, and finally the east ridge. This is the fastest known ascent of the three ridges together.
The Salbit ridges are among the most beautiful in the Alps. The east ridge has moderate difficulty (up to 5a), but the south and west ridges are long and difficult. In soloing all three of them, Arnold did 1,500m of climbing up to 6b.
Dani Arnold tops out on Salbitschijen. Photo: Screenshot
Arnold switched back and forth between climbing shoes and mountaineering boots and crampons, according to Alpine.de. Arnold says that the remaining snow made going down from the summit quicker but it required care in order not to get soaked for the next climbing sections.
Indeed, during the second descent, the snow got into his chalk bag, so Arnold had to climb the last ridge without chalk. ”
That was careless of me,” said Arnold. “Luckily, I saved the east ridge, the easiest one, for the end.
“It was important to me to do everything alone and without support, so time was not the focus,” he added.
Dani Arnold. Photo: Dani Arnold
