It’s time for our annual countdown of what ExplorersWeb considers the most interesting expeditions of the year. For the next 10 days, we’ll summarize our favorites and make a case for why we liked them so much. We’ll kick off with Christina Lustenberger and Guillaume Pierrel’s ski descent of the south face of Mount Robson.
On their own, both Lustenberger of Canada and Pierrel of France are remarkable freeride skiers. As a team, they are even more daring. After skiing down New Zealand’s Mount Aoraki-Mount Cook last year, the pair headed in 2025 to British Columbia in western Canada, to make the first ski descent of the south face of 3,954m Mt. Robson, the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
Double climb
Before skiing down Robson, the peak obviously has to be climbed, and that is a challenge in itself. Lustenberg and Pierrel did it — twice.
Raised in British Columbia, Lustenberger had been eyeing the south face of Robson for years. After Mount Cook, she felt she had found the ideal ski partner for the challenge.
The pair spent two bitterly cold days, February 12-13, climbing the peak’s Great Couloir (WI3), including a freezing bivy on a ledge. Their plan was to ski the couloir all the way down from the summit, but the weather worsened faster than expected.
“We got within 200m of the summit, and due to the storm pressing against us, we turned around…knowing we had a huge amount of terrain below us,” Lustenberger told ExplorersWeb at the time. “It was extremely hard to retreat when we were so close.”
In fading light, and eventually in the dark, the pair had to reverse technically difficult pitches, ski in poor snow conditions, and rappel seven pitches. They made it back to their base by 10 pm.
Progressing on steep terrain during the ascent of Mt. Robson. Photo: Blake Gordon
Back for more
At the time, both Pierrel and Lustenberger felt they were done, but 24 hours of rest and better conditions drove them back to the mountain.
On February 15, they went up and pitched their tent on the Dome (a subpeak). At first light on February 16, in the cold, they climbed the Kain Face (the southeast side) to the summit. It was not easy, as the climbers had to traverse up the upper 200m in unknown mixed terrain until they reached the highest point they’d managed two days before. “That was exhausting, physically and mentally,” Lustenberger said.
They were rewarded for their boldness with a bluebird summit day.
Luistenberg and Pierrel on the summit of Mt. Robson. Photo: Blake Gordon
However, they had little time to rest, with 3,000 vertical meters of descent ahead. Luckily, some fresh snow and the February sun on the face had improved the snow conditions for the descent down the Great Couloir.
3,000 meters down
The ski descent took them 3.5 hours, and again, the seven rappels on highly exposed terrain. As Lustenberger explained later, there was no break in the constant stress, as the entire ski line was highly exposed. While they were in the couloir, they were exposed to any rock or avalanche that fell from any altitude, as all would funnel down the tube-like corridor.
The two skiers, seen as tiny dots, on the huge south face of Mount Robson during the descent. Photo: Blake Gordon
Mount Robson is the highest peak of the Canadian Rockies and the most prominent peak in North America. It has been skied three times before, but the previous descents were down the North, or Kain, Face. Lustenberger was the first woman to ski down the peak.
The line of the ski descent on the south face of Mt. Robson, showing the skiers’ exposure to anything from above. Photo: Blake Gordon
Skiing background
Lustenberger noted that as a skier and an explorer, she has learned to look at mountains differently. That perspective has allowed her to complete some difficult lines around the world. In 2024, she skied down the Great Trango Tower in Pakistan, with Jim Morrison and Chantel Astorga, and New Zealand’s Mount Cook with Guillaume Pierrel.
Pierrel skied down Gasherbrum II in 2021. At home in the French Alps, he skied the North Face of the Dru near Chamonix and the Picco Luigi Amedeo on the Italian side of the Mont Blanc massif, with Vivian Bruchez.
Lustenberger and Pierrel at the provincial park sign on the Yellowhead Highway. Photo: Blake Gordon
On their second, successful climb to the summit, the skiers had a film crew with them, so they now have a film documenting the feat. After a premiere at the Banff Mountain Film Festival, the pair is presenting at several spots in Europe. Here’s a teaser:
