In a season plagued by bad conditions, flexibility has been the key: Ales Cesen of Slovenia and Lukas Woerle of Austria had no chance to climb their chosen peak in Pakistan’s Shimshal Valley, so they quickly found an alternative: 6,224m Cherireen Sar. It ended successfully, with a first ascent.
The pair spoke about the climb to ExplorersWeb from Karimabad, where they have stopped for some days of paragliding.
Plenty of Plans A and B
There is still a lot to climb in the remote Shimshal Valley, located in the northeast corner of Pakistan, bordered by the Wakhan Corridor to the west, China’s Xinjiang to the east, and India’s Ladakh to the southeast. It was exactly what Cesen and Woerle were looking for.
Accompanied by Woerle’s brother, Vincent, as cameraman, they came in mid-July to climb Khurdopin Sar, whose estimated altitude ranges from 6,076m to 6,320m. Several expeditions have attempted the mountain, but none have summited. Philip de Beger and Aleksi Mujirishvili were the last to try, in 2023. Unfortunately, a quick look dashed their hopes.
Cesen and Woerle at the beginning of the expedition. Photo: Vincent Woerle
“The approach to the face was in dangerous conditions, and we also saw huge cornices on the summit ridge,” Lukas Woerle told ExplorersWeb.
Nevertheless, the team spent a week acclimatizing near Base Camp. On July 28, they set off for Cherireen Sar, a peak with a milder summit ridge that might provide better summit chances. It didn’t start well.
The lower part of the climb was entirely on loose rock, in rain and wind. Photo: Lukas Woerle
Pouring rain
Rain started to pour as the climbers prepared their bivy spot at the beginning of the route, and a strong wind also blew.
“At 2:30 am, we set off anyway, hoping at least to check a bit of the route,” Woerle said.
They progressed carefully on unstable rock, which required their whole attention. Conditions improved with altitude. As dawn broke, “We were at 5,500m, [and] the weather cleared. It was then that we decided to go for the summit.”
In improving weather. Photo: Ales Cesen
The going was significantly easier when they finally stepped on snow and ice instead of rock. Soon, they progressed up the snowy summit ridge, summiting around 11 am on July 29.
The descent was more complex. “It was on the way down where we tackled the most difficult sections due to loose rock,” they wrote.
Objective danger
“Even though there are technically harder climbs in the area, this one was, in our opinion, quite demanding and serious,” the climbers told ExplorersWeb from Karimabad.
The problem was not so much the technical difficulty as the risks assumed.
The summit ridge, with the route marked in red. Photo: Woerle/Cesen
We were in a very remote area, and the conditions were hazardous, especially on the lower half of the climb. From Base Camp until 5,500m, we progress on very unstable, no-fall terrain, and were exposed to serious rockfall risks. In addition, there was no source of water in our bivouac place.
The descent was an endurance test for the climbers, since a simple slip could have fatal consequences. They had no break, physical or mental, and remained focused until they were safely in Base Camp after a 17-hour, nonstop climb.
Lukas Woerle confronts unstable rock on the way up. Photo: Ales Cesen
Son of a legend
Ales Cesen, 43, is one of the elite Slovenian climbers of the 21st century, but also a follower of a family tradition. He is the son of the legendary Tomo Cesen (one of the routes of K2 has his name).
Ales has won two Piolet d’Ors: In 2015 for the first ascent of the north face of Hagshu, in the Indian Himalaya, with Marko Prezelj and Luca Lindic; and in 2019, for the north ridge of the Karakoram’s Latok I with Tom Livingstone and Luka Strazar. Last year, he made one of the best climbs of the year: The West Ridge of Gasherbrum III with Tom Livingstone.
While acclimating on Gasherbrum II, Cesen and Livingstone met Lukas Woerle. “We joined forces there for a climb together up to 7,000m,” Woerle explained. Since then, Cesen and Woerle have climbed together in Europe.
The expedition was at risk earlier this year after Cesen injured his ankle, but he recovered in time for Pakistan.
Climber, paraglider, and skier Lukas Woerle, 32, became a local celebrity in Pakistan after he sacrificed his summit on Broad Peak two years ago to help a local climber stranded on the snow. In a year when another porter, Muhammad Hassan, died at K2’s Bottleneck, surrounded by over a hundred climbers on their way to the summit, Woerle’s selfless behavior stood out. Local authorities nominated him for a civil award and granted him a free climbing permit for the following year.
