Annapurna I | 2013 S Face
A Switzerland expedition to Annapurna I in 2013 via S Face, led by Ueli Steck. Summit reached on 9th October 2013. 2 members recorded.
Expedition Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ID | 8216 |
| Imported | 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634 |
| Expedition ID | ANN113301 |
| Peak ID | ANN1 |
| Year | 2013 |
| Season | 3 |
| Host Country | 1 |
| Route 1 | S Face |
| Route 2 | - |
| Route 3 | - |
| Route 4 | - |
| Nationality | Switzerland |
| Leaders | Ueli Steck |
| Sponsor | Annapurna South Face Expedition 2013 |
| Success 1 | True |
| Success 2 | False |
| Success 3 | False |
| Success 4 | False |
| Ascent 1 | - |
| Ascent 2 | - |
| Ascent 3 | - |
| Ascent 4 | - |
| Claimed | False |
| Disputed | True |
| Countries | USA |
| Approach | - |
| Basecamp Date | 2013-09-21 |
| Summit Date | 2013-10-09 |
| Summit Time | 0100 |
| Summit Days | 18 |
| Total Days | 20 |
| Termination Date | 2013-10-11 |
| Termination Reason | 1 |
| Termination Notes | - |
| High Point (m) | 8091 |
| Traverse | False |
| Ski | False |
| Paraglide | False |
| Camps | 0 |
| Fixed Rope (m) | 0 |
| Total Members | 2 |
| Summit Members | 1 |
| Member Deaths | 0 |
| Total Hired | 0 |
| Summit Hired | 0 |
| Hired Deaths | 0 |
| No Hired | True |
| O2 Used | False |
| O2 None | True |
| O2 Climb | False |
| O2 Descent | False |
| O2 Sleep | False |
| O2 Medical | False |
| O2 Taken | False |
| O2 Unknown | False |
| Other Summits | - |
| Campsites | BC(21/09,4100m),ABC(24/09,5000m),C1(30/09,6100m),Biv1(08/10,6800m),Smt(09/10) |
| Route Notes | Ueli Steck climbed the South Face almost entirely alone. Bowie arrived at BC on 22 September, a day after Steck had arrived there, on 30 September went up to the small tent Steck had already pitched at 6100m, descended to BC on 2 October, on the 7th moved to the bergschrund, on the 8th returned to BC, and then waited there for Steck to complete his climb while watching him through the long lens on his camera. Meanwhile Steck, from ABC, crossed the glacier at the foot of the face and started up it: on 1 October he reached 6100m, pitched a small tent there, thus establishing C1, on the 2nd he climbed up to 6500m and went down to BC. A few days of bad weather intervened, then on the 6th he was back in ABC, stayed there two nights waiting for avalanching to stop, and on the 8th at 5:30 am he moved to the bergschrund, went back to ABC, and finally set off up the mountain to C1, left the camp with only what he himself needed: a tiny tent, a sleeping bag, 60m of rope, a few ice screws and pitons, and some dry food. He climbed up the face to 6950m, but there was no place to bivouac so he went down to 6800m in a crevasse for shelter from the strong wind that had blown up. He now took up with him only a headlamp, batteries and a short rope, but no backpack. At 6:00 pm he started up the face and simply kept going till he reached the summit at 1:00 am of the 9th. He spent two minutes on the top, was back in C1, where he heated some water, and returned to ABC at 3:00 pm. He stayed the night there after drinking tea and whiskey and then descend to BC, where he took a shower in his tent. Steck described conditions on the face as "perfect": hard snow and not much exposed rock. His new line of ascent was between the Bonington route on the west and the Japanese route on the east. At about 7900m he joined the Bonington route. He had set a speed record and accomplished it in a solo ascent. Email from Don Bowie to Elizabeth Hawley - 24 Feb 2013 Earlier this year Ueli Steck and I exchanged a number of emails hatching plans to attempt a bold line directly up the south face of Annapurna I. Both of us had attempted Annapurna by the south face twice before on separate expeditions, for me the first in 2006 with a strong Polish/Slovak team, and then again in 2008 with a small international group including Inaki Ochoa before he died tragically near 7500m. While Ueli's prior attempts were made on the south face proper, mine took place on indirect variations near its eastern flank - perhaps more correctly the east ridge. Having spent two prior seasons on the east ridge, I knew that despite its somewhat complex approach and high exposure to avalanche danger, climbing Annapurna by the east ridge was well within my personal climbing limitations and would be an excellent alternative for Ueli and I in 2013 if the direct line up the south face was not feasible. I had some idea what the south face direct was like, and was certainly willing to give it look, especially with Ueli as a partner. Still, I knew that any route up the central section of the face would be a tough undertaking. On September 20th, filmmaker Jonah Matthewson and I finally arrived in Pokhara, Nepal after 4 long days of travelling from Bishop, California. Ueli warmly greeted us in the Hotel Barahi lobby, where we also met the photography dynamic duo Dan and Jamine Patitucci, who would also accompany us on the expedition. I met Dan and Janine some years prior when they lived in Bishop before moving to Switzerland, and it was great to see Ueli again since the last time we partnered on our 2011 Shishapangma Cho Oyu Everest expedition. It was great to be back in the Annapurna sanctuary again even though the memories and reminders of those tragic days in 2008 surrounding Inaki's rescue attempt and death were ever present. After arriving in base camp on the 22nd of Sept, I immediately came down with the proverbial Nepali chest infection that plagues me literally everytime I arrive in Nepal. Wanting to heal up a bit before going higher, Ueli set off alone to find a good spot for advanced base camp at the foot of the wall, while I recovered below. On Sept 26th I was finally feeling better and made the climb up to ABC with Jonah and Ueli. After a few days acclimatizing there at 5000m, Ueli and I decided to venture onto the face and try to establish C1. The two of us retraced the route that Ueli had flagged up the glacier to the bottom of the wall, climbed a short-pitched of vertical rock, and continued climbing up the right side of a subtle rock spur splitting the central face. In a few hours we discovered a descent ledge perched atop an unlikely rock outcropping near 6100m, and immediately went to work hacking out a small platform to pitch our tent. Strewn along the spur we found pieces of old, munky, 11 mm static rope and used a few lengths to anchor the tent in place. Ueli and I spent two nights acclimatizing at C1, and we watched out the tent door as the sea of clouds engulfed the entire sanctuary below all the while listening to the disturbing sound of rocks careening down the face above. I have to admit that observing the rockfall during those 2 days was quite intimidating - if not downright scary - even though our camp was safely perched on the spur where few rocks could reach us. I felt that the extremely mild temperatures would have to drop significantly for the face to soldify into safer condition. The second morning we took down the tent, stashed some gear, and down-climbed the lower face to the glacier. After securing our food and supplies at ABC, we descended the grassy slopes to the moraine and made the long trek back to the base camp. There we enjoyed a few days rest while waiting for another favorable weather window. In base camp Ueli and I spoke about the strategy of our summit push, and agreed that in order to cover the huge vertical distance in the shortest time possible we would have to climb quickly and unroped up most of the lower face to the bottom of the rock buttress which we guessed was around 7300m. After considering this for a few days, I knew that climbing unroped up and down that amount of terrain, at that altitude and difficulty, would be pushing the limits of my personal ability, and told Ueli how I felt. We talked about my concerns and Ueli was gracious but encouraging, asking if I'd have one more look at the face before making any decisions, to which I agreed. It was really cool to be able to communicate honestly about such things as friends do. Oct 6th we climbed back up to ABC, along with Dan, Janine and Jonah, with the intention of giving the face another try during a short weather window. We woke up early the morning of Oct 8th packed up our gear, and climbed quickly to the bergshrund at the foot of the face. Dan and Jonah accompanied us up the glacier, and as we waited for them to reach our stance Ueli and I had another discussion about things. Looking up the face from the bergshrund I reiterated my hesitancy to solo terrain above C1. Ueli then got that look in his eye the one I've become all too familiar with having been on 3 other 8000m expeditions with him. It was time, and he was going for it alone. I gave him some of my food, an extra bottle of water and the 5mm x 60m rope I was carrying. He packed up the extra gear, smiled and turned toward the face, climbing up the snow cone toward the vertical rock step: "See you, ah?" The three of us then backed away from the lower face toward the edge of the debris fields to gain a safer stance, where I insisted we wait until Ueli reached C1. We all took pictures and video of Ueli climbing up the lower wall, and in an hour and a half or so he crested the rock spur, traversing left at the height of C1. Once I knew he had safely reached our stash of gear and the tent platform, Dan, Jonah and I descended the glacier back to ABC. By the time we arrived at ABC Ueli had already left C1 and reached the second rock band on the face climbing up very fast and although just a tiny spec on the wall we could clearly see him with the naked eye. I unpacked my gear and leaned my sleeping pad against a rock, sitting down with a small stash of food, some tea, and my camera, to watch the action on the face above. All day we watched as Ueli ascended toward the main buttress headwall. By later afternoon he neared the bottom of the headwall, but the summit winds had picked up dramatically and spindrift avalanches began streaming down the face everywhere. We could see Ueli through the 500m lens and Jonah was able to periodically capture short video clips through breaks in the clouds. Through the big lens we watched as the avalanches grew larger in size and frequency, spilling down all over the face from above, and for the first time my anxiety increased for Ueli's safety. I knew that if the winds remained as they were near the summit perhaps 70-80 km/h or more, there was no way he would be able to reach to the top. Just before the sun set behind the Fang we watched as Ueli gained the headwall and disappeared into the rocks just right of the bottom of the central "Lafaille" couloir. A few minutes later he reappeared again and began down climbing to a small band of ice features, descending around 50-100 vertical meters. He then stopped, and through the lens we could clearly see him hacking at the face with his tools. I explained to Dan and Jonah that in 2008 we had found a crevasse at 7000m on our route near the eastern flank of face, and after a little exploring discovered it widened below into a room large enough for three tents to be pitched despite the steep angle of the external spindrift. I presumed Ueli had found something similar and was widening the entrance hole to get inside. Darkness fell on the wall and after losing sight of Ueli I suggested that he had either hunkered down for the night to descend in the morning, or had found a safe place to wait out the spindrift avalanches caused by the summit winds before continuing up. We ate dinner, retreated to our tents, and fell asleep as clouds shrouded the face. I woke up a few times during the night, the first around midnight and peered out my tent at the face above. In the darkness I could see the clouds had lifted and the summit wind banners were much smaller and the blowing snow had declined dramatically. I also noted that temperatures were significantly colder than our prior trip up the face. I felt much better about Ueli's safety and fell back asleep. The next morning I awoke just after first light to the sound of activity outside the tent, hearing Tengi's voice (who had come up from base camp to the day before) and Dan discussing if they could see Ueli. I heard them say they could see him down climbing, so I immediately got dressed and exited the tent. Once my eyes adjusted to the brightness of the morning I was able to see him descending the open ice and snowfield below the headwall, and I felt the last of the lingering nerves and heaviness lift from my chest. The skies above were clear and blue, and there were no signs of blowing snow or wind banners. Dan, Tengi and I quickly packed some food drinks and our cameras and headed up the glacier towards the face. A few hours later, just as we approached the halfway point on the lower glacier, I caught an orange flash of color around a corner, and a few seconds after saw Ueli appear on a serac platform just above me. He dropped down to my stance and immediately grasped, "We can go home now. Summit." I laughed loudly as we did the manly hug back-pounding thing, then I uttered a few friendly expletives and congratulated him for such an incredible achievement. I took out my camera and shot as much video as I could (stay tuned, we have a lot of great video from the expedition) while he sat in the snow drinking a coke, munching on food and sharing details about the climb. It was a very cool moment, and I couldn't have been more proud for Ueli. I want to apologize for not sending out any dispatches from the expedition, but it was part of our joint strategy to remain focused on the task at hand and to keep the expedition streamlined, simple, and somewhat understated. Despite not climbing above 6100m myself (or attempting our alternate route) it was very cool to have witnessed Ueli's climb, and I feel quite content with the decision I made regarding my own personal limitations. I'm thrilled for Ueli and for what he was able to accomplish, and comfortably embrace the fact that climbing Annapurna in the same manner he did is simply beyond my ability. Still, Annapurna will remain in place, magnificent, elusive and savage and perhaps on another occasion I will once again have the chance to lock horns with her. Success climbing the highest mountains is not found by achieving the summit, but in the stories told by those who encounter a certain confrontation with themselves found only under the shadow of the summits. What matters most is what we carry down with us, and the changes forged within. If we return unchanged or hide away our stories the mountains still remain as they are: rock, snow, ice, cold and disregard toward those who would conquer. Ueli Steck's website: Since our arrival our teamwork was perfect. We have installed our ABC at 5000 meters. Tenji and Nima always brought us some fresh food up there. The weather was great until October 3, 2013. Then right at my birthday October 4, 2013 - the weather became bad and we had a reason to go back to our base camp. A couple of days later, it was rainy, we went back to ABC. Don followed up later on. He wanted to wait until the weather would get better. It has snowed quite a lot and we decided to wait another day. We observed the wall. We wanted to know that was going on the wall. We all spent together the day. The weather was beautiful at ABC. The sun worked all day long so that the snow could harden. On October 9, 2013 at 05:30 am we started. Dan Patitucci and Jonah, Don Bowie and I. We moved to the foot of the face. Dan Patitucci and Jonah are responsible for the pictures. Finally all just fit. The weather was ok, but the wind was quite strong. Don Bowie, my partner, decided at the bergschrund not to enter the face. He said that it was technically too demanding to climb the face without rope. And this is the basic premise for such a route. From the bergschrund I climbed alone (5650m). At the first moment it was difficult for me to switch on soloing. But the good conditions helped to quickly get focused on the climbing. Once more everything just fit. At 6100m we had placed some equipment. The weeks before we had acclimatized ourselves in the face and we had placed rope, tent, cooker and something to eat up there. I packed the tent and cooker in my backpack. The rope I left ther, since I had a 6mm reep rope with me, which I took with me from the ABC. I left the sleeping bag because of weight reasons together with gas and food an existing rope and fixed it at a hook. The ascent to the headwall was relatively easy. From 6600 meters on I had wind and spindrifts. I climbed until below the headwall. Here I wanted to build my tent and wait. I had different possibilities. To wait until the wind got less and I could continue to climb or I would descend the day after. Since I did not find a protected place I started to descend. 100 meters below I found a crevice. It turned out to be a perfect bivouac place and I could place my tent sheltered from wind and spindrifts. Now I ate and drank a lot. In the meantime the sun had gone. And everything calmed down. This I noticed also the evening before from ABC. And it was again exactly the same. Fast it darkened and it was calm. This was my chance. I was sure that the following day the wind would turn on again. So this was my only chance to reach the summit during the night. The headwall was a line of ice and firn. So it would be possible to the way in the night. Approx. one hour after I reached the bivouac I continued my climbing. During short passages the ice firn was quite thin and couple of times I had to climb in the rock. The steepness was surprisingly not really vertical, only a couple of uplifts were vertical. so it was the ideal solo terrain. As long as I could climb I was extremely efficient. This I had in my mind all the time. The thin air at 7000m is not yet death zone. At this height I could move quite easily. Only the cold was a problem. A couple of hours before at daylight I wanted to photograph the headwall in order to have an overview picture at night. A was hidden by a spindrift. I could not only get grasp my ice gear in order not to get knocked out on the wall. In this way I lost one of my down gloves and my camera was thrown out of the wall. Now I had to climb with my finger gloves. The down glove which was left I wore once my left hand and then at my right hand - depending on the cold of each hand. The headwall presented itself shorter that I thought. Difficult to say how many pitches, since I did not use the rope. Instinctively I was at the upper and quite fast. Here I realized for the first time, where I really was and what this would mean. Now I was just a beat against the wind. Step by step I moved on. I kept telling me "Just fight, just fight." Again and again. When I reached the summit ridge I could hardly believe it. It was night, the sky full of stars and the ridge going down in front of me. With my altimeter I checked everything very carefully. I followed the ridge and I knew; I was on highest point. I spent not even 5 minutes up there before I started to descend. I was full under tension. My goal was to reach the bergschrund. Then everything would be fine. Tenji, Don and Dan meet me at the glacier. They had followed me the entire time while was climbing. Now they came towards me. Tenji had a Coke, bread and an apple for me. It is simply great. I made it. Everything is over now. From now the others make the decisions. The tension get less. On October 10, 2013 at 09:30 am we all are back at base camp. Email from Tenji Sherpa (Royal Orchid Trekking Agency) - 27 Feb 2014 Today French journalist Jolly took interview with me in Kathmandu about your expedition Everest and Annapurna. She said in Germany some media don't believe about Annapurna summit so she was searching some proof in Nepal and she said she will publish one book in September and I assured to her Ueli summited Annapurna there is no doubt and I saw light near the summit about 200m and also our kitchen staff Ngim Dawa saw the headlight when climbing and descending because our kitchen staff he checked many time in night and he said he saw your headlight near the top when climing and descending and I told to her about all the fact and she found you have summited Annapurna. I was surprised when she said about it and she asked me question: say something about Ueli? I told hime he is one of the fastest solo climber in the world and I haven't seen such aclimber before who is very technical, strong mind, speed and very confident and also I told her Ueli climbed Everest without oxygen and other many technical mountain like Cholache and many more. Andreas Kubin from German climbing magazine Bergsteigen. Kubin: People doubt your solo ascent of the south face of Annapurna, which is regarded as a quantum leap in mountaineering circles - as you don't have any proof as you have lost your camera on the mountain. How do you cope with such claims? Ueli: Of course I would like to have some proof, however, this was not my priority when I was climbing the wall. While I was climbing I did not think about what could happen afterwards. I wanted to climb the wall and I wanted to survive the climb. I did have my camera but unfortunately I lost it. From the very beginning I said that I did not have a summit photo. I have told what I experienced and that is all I can do. Kubin: You wrote to me: "I was on my own and I don't have any proof. I know what I have done and nobody can take that away from me." Is the experience and the knowledge of a climber enough to verify such an extraordinary achievement? You are a professional mountaineer and you have to verify your achievements. You can earn your money with it. Climbing-wise my dream has come true. I will never be able to prove whether I was on the summit or not. The fact is that I am the only one who knows that I summited Annapurna I. It was a liberating experience. If someone wants to doubt it, they can. It is not for me to say how a climber has to prove his climb. It is for others to judge. So far, there have not been any official guidelines on how to document your successful ascent. In mountaineering, we usually act to the best of our knowledge and belief. I am aware of the fact that there have always been discussions about the successful climbs since the beginning of mountaineering and if it is about money, fame and honour the perception changes. Experiences and impressions cannot be lived through a photo or a film. I can only experience it if I do it myself. On the face, I made my decisions without thinking about having to prove anything to anyone. I was exposed and the only important thing for me up there was to survive. In an adventure you cannot plan everything. If this were possible it would no longer be an adventure. Article of Patricia Jolly for the French magazine "Le Monde" - 15 March 2014 The news should have delighted Ueli Steck. His "first" solo of October 2013 in the south face of Annapurna (8091m), completed in a record time of 28 hours, is part of the 5 ascents that are selected for the Piolets d'Or, organized between Chamonix and Courmayeur (Italy) from March 26th until March 29th. This great mass of mountaineering celebrates "the taste for adventure, audacity, the spirit of exploration" and praises "the beauty of an act, individual or collective." This criteria were previously honoured by the Swiss alpinist, 38 yrs, who had already been awarded in 2009, together with his fellow countryman Simon Anthamatten for the first ascent of the north face of Tengampoche (6500m) in Nepal. Alas, since the very end of his autumn season in the Himalaya, some nasty rumours have spreaded the doubt over the veracity of his achievement. In this circle, critics towards this atypical climber are not new. To set upon the summit like an Olympic discipline that is timed, and to train like a marathon runner with coaches for both mental and physical strength, he has owned the surname "the Swiss machine." The younger carpenter who never intended to be a high mountain guide and wanted "just to practice some sport" has succeeded in making a living out of his speciality, this via the channel of a dozen partners, that is, so far, the case for only a dozen alpinists in the world. Randomly, his detractors are reproaching him for the absence of eye-witnesses, for the failure of camera and altimeter, even for forgetting to switch on the GPS. This for the solo attempts as well as for the records which has become his speciality. Else in April 2013, he and his two partners have been involved in a violent brawl (causes and mistakes have been shared) with some Sherpas. Christian Strommdorff, Himalayist, vice-president of the Syndicate National des Guides de Montagne (SNGM), member of the Comite technique et de pilotage of the Piolets d'Or and the president of the Groupe de Haute Montagne, has received numerous emails that listed "the inconsistencies" of Ueli Steck's achievement. These mailings are mostly coming from German journalists, mountain guides, alpinists. "These inquiries are logical because Ueli Steck is a professional alpinist and, although there is no money involved in the Piolets d'Or, winning this award can generate commercial and media fallouts" explains Christian Strommdorff, who has met with the Swiss for two hours in February. "He told me right away that he did not have any substantial proof of his ascent, and that one is free to believe him or not", he adds. The Charter of the Piolets d'Or does not stipulate at all the necessity to provide the proof of a claimed ascent. Ueli Steck admits however "what is happening is a little bit my fault, I am not someone that likes to show show off because climbing on mountains does not bring anything to humanity. So, I have always done what seemed right to me: I give details to whoever is asking me, and so far no one has reproached me, in such a virulent manner, for not producing a proof. No, I have no photo of Annapurna because I have lost my camera and one glove in a small avalanche. At that time, I had accepted the idea for the first time that I was going to die. But it did not happen and I kept on climbing on adrenaline." At the beginning of March in Kathmandu, some Nepalese team members of the Steck-expedition confirm his version. Ngima Dawa, assistant cook, who was working for the Swiss alpinist for the time, has been contacted by phone in his village in Solukhumbu. Laurence Shakya, based in Kathmandu for the last 30 years, had translatd his talk in French, as he spoke in Nepali language: "We had no radio contact with him, explained the assistant cook, but from the base camp, with the backing, I was able to follow his ascent because of his headlight. Around 11:30 pm, he was just below the summit (that Steck claims to have reached an hour and a half later) but I cannot estimate exactly what was the altitude. I woke up at 2:30 am and I understood that he was descending because the light went downwards." Tenji Sherpa, base camp expedition manager, is providing other details. Ueli Steck was not supposed to do the ascent alone but his partner (the Canadian Don Bowie) first fell sick, then the falling of rocks and the danger of avalanche disturbed him and he renounced to climb. Yet, Ueli decided to go, he told: "I'll go and see." From the advanced base camp, that is closer to the face than the base camp, we could not see him continously. Around 6 pm, he disappeared for about one hour, that's the time when shielded himself from the wind inside a hole before climbing again. We could see his headlight then. I saw him at midnight just 200m below the summit. Don and myself, we went to sleep until around 4 am and, we both saw him descending. We went towards him. His face was very red, he looked very tired but (he seemed) happy and very excited. The roped teawm composed of the French guides Stephane Benoist and Yannick Graziani, also victorius on the Beghin-Lafaille path with some variations, ten days after Steck also advocate in favour of the Swiss. The latter sent them an SMS after the conquest: "Tonight I did the summit in solo". Mr Benoist and Mr Graziani are joking about the detractors that are putting forward the fact that they found no trace of Ueli's presence when they made the ascent to the summit after him: in the meantime, it had snowed up to 60 cm. "Ueli's objective when gets upon a face is to reach the top and come back alive." explains Stephane Benoist. "The rest all the worries of the people down there is secondary. To my knowledge, his career is perfectly consistent". Among other records, he holds the one of the north face ascent of Cervin, of Eiger and Grandes Jorasses). "He tackles the mountain in a very professional manner. He went alone lighter than us, he benefitted from good weather conditions and he is simply better. I strongly believe that Ueli has reached the summit, adds Yannick Graziani, he just needs to understand that he has chosen the "timer gap" and, as a professional alpinist, it is essential that he provides some evidence of what he is accomplishing." Award Piolets d'Or 2014 (announced late March 2014) Annapurna I South Face solo autumn 2013) Altitude 8091m, 2500m of climing, M4/MF, up to 85 degrees, 28 hours of climbing. After reaching the bergschrund, Ueli Steck had to accept that his climbing partner thought the risk too high. In climbing the face alone, Ueli subjected himself to maximum exposure. Despite not knowing what was awaiting him above 6500m, he managed to complete the unfinished route of Pierre Beghin and Jean-Christophe Lafaille (of 1992). Achieving a first ascent on this wall, climbing alone, in very rapid alpine style seems to be a new dimension in high altitude climbing. The ascents we have chosen represent two extremes in the management of risk. Raphael Slawinsky and Ian Welsted planned their ascent on K6 West carefully, with fresh never to minimize rock fall and climbing difficulties, and planned their days so they could get enough rest at bivouacs to maintain strength. After the difficult approach through the glacier they chose the safest, most esthetic line through the wall. Only during the last part of their descent did they face rockfall due to the melting snow. In contrast in soloing the south face of Annapurna Ueli Steck accepted a great risk. For 28 hours he maintained absolute concentration, knowing that one false step would cause his demise. Ueli described himself as climbing very close to his limit. Nevertheless Ueli minimized the remaining risk: he took advantage of unique optimal ice conditions over the rock band, he decided to climb during the night to minimize rockfall and take advantage of lower winds, and he decided to continue only as long as he felt above to climb down. He knew he had to descend the rock band before the sun came out - if the neve covered passages melted, it would be very difficult to descend. Having in mind that the other three ascents are outstanding achievements, too, we feel that the first ascent of K6 West and the solo ascent of the Annapurna South face are, in their own way, representative examples of the state of the art of mountaineering today. Annapurna, South Face, Second Ascent The jury decided to award a special Brotherhood of the Rope mention for the second ascent of the Steck route by Stephane Benoist and Yannick Graziani. They found much more difficult conditions (M5+M6) through the rock band due neve melt since the Steck ascent forcing these two accomplished climbers to spend from 16-26 October on the face. Stephane fell ill high on the face, making the descent very difficult. None the less, they managed to return alive, demonstrating that a partnership can be greater than the sum of its parts. |
| Accidents | - |
| Achievement | - |
| Agency | Royal Orchid Treks |
| Commercial Route | False |
| Standard Route | False |
| Primary Route | False |
| Primary Member | False |
| Primary Reference | False |
| Primary ID | - |
| Checksum | 2461558 |
| Year | 2013 |
| Summit Success | True |
| O2 Summary | None |
| Route (lowercase) | s face |
Members
2 recorded members.
| Name | Sex | Year of Birth | Citizenship | Status | Residence | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ueli Steck | M | 1976 | Switzerland | Leader | Ringgenberg, Bern, Switzerland | Alpinist | Details Other expeditions |
| Donald Allen (Don) Bowie | M | 1969 | USA/Canada | Climber | Bishop, California | Athlete | Details Other expeditions |
References
7 recorded references.
| Expedition ID | Journal | Author | Title | Publisher | Citation | Yak 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANN113301 | ALP | Steck, Ueli | Journey into Night, The South Face of Annapurna | - | 45:64-71 (Winter 2014) | - |
| ANN113301 | ROCK | Douglas, Ed | The Burden of Annapurna | - | 221:42-51 (Oct 2014) | - |
| ANN113301 | AAJ | Steck, Ueli | Alone on Annapurna | - | 88:14-18 (2014) | - |
| ANN113301 | - | - | http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web13f/newswire-ueli-steck-south-face-annapurna | - | - | - |
| ANN113301 | - | - | http://www.pioletsdor.net/presse/2017/forum/Annapurna-Steck-summary.pdf | - | - | - |
| ANN113301 | - | - | http://www.pioletsdor.net/presse/2017/forum/Annapurna-2013-Steck.pdf | - | - | - |
| ANN113301 | ROCK | Douglas, Ed | The Other Annapurna | - | 251:48-59 (2018) | - |