“We have discovered our own iced-up El Dorado: untouched massifs and walls, all covered in a winter coat,” Marcin Tomaszewski wrote today from Greenland.
The Polish climber and partner Pawel Haldas are enjoying the wildness of Greenland and basking in “finally, real winter”, namely -36ºC.
The pair flew to the town of Ummaannaq, then snowmobiled to their targeted range with their climbing gear and supplies. They have chosen a line up an ice-covered rock face that they describe as “Greenland’s El Cap.” They’ll start the climb tomorrow and may not report again until they return to the base.
The climbers have not revealed the exact face they want to climb, but the distinctive peak behind them, which overlooks Ummaannaq, is likely not it.
…maybe somewhere up this face. Photo: Marcin Tomaszewski
Denali: Jost Kobusch retreating?
Meanwhile, in Alaska, Jost Kobusch’s track shows something unusual. Yesterday, he checked in from Camp 1 near the base of Denali’s West Buttress. He had been progressing for three days “through difficult terrain, large crevasses, and zero visibility with a 67kg sled, which is not the easiest to pull,” he said.
The German, who intends to solo Denali in winter via the West Buttress and the Messner Couloir, also mentioned some health problems to his home team.
Jost Kobusch’s progress on Denali since Monday.
Kobusch’s furthest point was registered today at 15:15 Alaska time. His track showed that he had returned to the day’s starting point just 90 minutes later.
Kobusch’s track showed steady progress today from 11 am until 3:15 pm, but then a (very fast!) retreat back to where he had started skiing at the beginning of the day.
We are waiting to find out if there is something wrong with his tracking device or if he really turned around. If the second, he is two days from his original landing point, where a plane can pick him up.
K2’s retrieval mission: Txikon in
A trekking team led by Louis Rousseau left Askole for K2 Base Camp on February 6, according to Jasmine Tours. They plan to retrieve the body of Australian Matthew Eakin, who perished on the mountain last summer.
Eakin’s remains lie slightly above Advanced Base Camp. His family hoped that they could recover him, thanks to the drier conditions in winter. However, the body is currently buried under snow after an avalanche. There are nine people on the retrieval team, including some with winter climbing experience.
The recovery team before their departure for K2 last Monday. Photo: A. Ali Porik/Jasmine Tours
This may include Alex Txikon. The Basque climber flew to Pakistan today and planned to drive immediately to Askole to catch up with “a group of people” heading toward K2’s Base Camp. It is unconfirmed whether it is the retrieval team he is joining.
Alex Txikon’s today at a winterly Skardu airport. Photo: Alex Txikon
