Slovenian alpinists with four first ascent routes from...

Slovenian alpinists with four first ascent routes from the Indian Himalayas.

Slovenian alpinists Anja Petek, Patricija Verdev, Ana Baumgartner and Urša Kešar, members of the women's alpine expedition Lalung 2024, have climbed four first ascent routes in the Indian Himalayas in the remote mountains above the Lalung valley. Among them, the 2000-meter route Here comes the sun along the east ridge on the still unconquered six-thousand-meter peak Lalung I (6243 m) stands out in terms of length and complexity, for which Petek and Verdev spent five climbing days in alpine style in September and rated it ED, which is the highest level of the French six-level scale.

The mountain group Lalung in the Ladakh region in the Indian Himalayas offers interesting and very remote alpine objectives, as this area was long closed to visitors due to political reasons and is consequently poorly explored. The Slovenian alpinists were well aware of this, and it was confirmed upon arrival at the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) in Delhi, where they informed the staff about the existence of certain hills in the Lalung valley. They could not rely on local porters for obtaining information either, who predicted that their base camp would be at 5000 meters, but it was actually at 4100 meters, which meant an additional day or two of access to the scouted peaks for the girls. They were not even aware that the base camp location also serves as a habitat for bears.

They used the clear days of unstable weather for acclimatization, and on August 31, Anja Petek (Zgornjesavinjski AK Rinka) and Patricija Verdev (AO PD Celje Matica) already climbed the first ascent route Connection (1400 m, 15 hours) in the wall of Peak 5332 m and bivouacked at 5300 meters. On September 5, all of them reached the advanced base camp (ABC) at 4800 meters, where the majestic Lalung I shyly revealed itself for the first time, further strengthening the motivation of the Petek-Verdev pair. "With Patricija, after arriving at ABC, we packed our backpacks for a multi-day adventure and reached the start of the east ridge of Lalung I with a one-day approach over a very demanding glacier. The forecasted weather window suggested it would cooperate with our plan, but already on the second climbing day on the ridge, we were forced to pitch the tent mid-day and bivouac due to a snowstorm that lasted the entire third day. On the fourth day, we woke up to a sunny morning and continued climbing late into the night, but still didn't reach the summit. Then came the fifth day on the ridge, which again demanded enormous perseverance and will from us. At 1:30 a.m., we climbed out the last mixed pitches and went to rest. At the bivouac site, in a moment of carelessness and fatigue, the wind blew away our tent poles, but by then we were accustomed to bivouacking in the wall, and sleeping in a bivouac sack didn't shock us too much. The next day, we woke up to a foggy morning with diffuse light. It was very hard to make out the unknown terrain to the summit of Lalung I itself, which we reached via easier snow slopes at nine in the morning," Anja Petek described the outstanding ascent in the report of the Lalung I expedition, which was also supported by the Alpine Association of Slovenia, and which she co-led with Patricija.

Between September 9 and 14, Petek and Verdev completed the first ascent of the six-thousand-meter peak Lalung I (6243 m) in alpine style, climbing the 2000-meter long first ascent route Here comes the sun (ED, M6+, AI5+) along its east ridge, which they rated ED (Extremement Difficult = extremely difficult), the highest level of the French six-level scale. "From a practical perspective, the route name describes our experience on the mountain. We were grateful whenever the sun was shining; when it wasn't, we could hardly wait for it and hoped it would appear. When we approached the summit, there was strong diffuse light, making it hard to recognize the terrain, and we weren't sure where exactly the summit was in that snow and poor visibility. But then, thirty meters before the summit, the sun broke through the diffuse light and illuminated our main summit, which was a reflection of some sign where we had to go. The names of our routes always have a personal or spiritual note. From this view, the name represents a life journey, one could say our Himalayan path. That in life, at certain turning points or when some stories end, everything always sorts itself out and is fine. The sun itself is a metaphor for some warmth, light, that always calms us in the mountains," explained the experienced resident of Gornja Grad. This was followed by a long descent along the west ridge to the glacier. They descended along the snow ridge and with five rappels through the north wall reached the glacier at 18:30 and then in eight hours descended back to ABC. The next day followed the descent to base camp, and just before arriving at the glacier from the moraine, there was indescribable joy at the unplanned meeting with Ana, Urša, and the Indian officer Freni.

How special the feeling is, "like when your dreams come true and goosebumps overwhelm you," when after half a year of observing a photograph, you see the set goal in front of you in real life, was the enthusiastic Patricija Verdev, for whom the ascent was a demanding challenge: "The ascent was very strenuous, requiring a lot of will, energy, focus, and faith. The approach to the base of the ridge itself was demanding due to the broken glacier and seracs, then it only intensified, including the last part of the descent across the glacier, which demanded eight hours of complete focus and caution from us. I confronted such height for the first time, but except for nausea on the descent from the first reconnaissance of the glacier and valley, I had no other signs of altitude sickness. However, I had a crisis on the second or third day on the ridge during climbing, probably due to the great physical load and the occasional feeling that the backpack is carrying you and not the other way around. I reached a point where I started blaming myself for not training enough, for being too slow. These were thoughts while investing everything in moving, but it wasn't going anywhere. But it's good that Anja and I developed a very good relationship and bond in the preparation period. Openness, open conversation, and moral support from my climbing partner ended the crisis in an instant, and the odyssey could continue."

"No specific challenge comes to mind that we faced as female representatives on the expedition. I can only draw from my own experience, which relates to climbing in an unknown, virgin world, complicated by altitude challenges in a female pair. Climbing in such circumstances in a female pair was a first for me, making my experience justifiably more intense, as during the ascent I felt an additional measure of responsibility, and I can believe the others felt an additional measure of responsibility too. It may sound utopian, but I personally experienced the ascent much more seriously than any first ascents before," describes Anja Petek, in recent years the most successful Slovenian alpinist, a psychotherapist by profession. She has been on expeditions to Kyrgyzstan (2017) and twice to Peru (2019 and 2022), where among other things with Andrej Jež and the Peruvian Aritza Monasterio she climbed a first ascent route in the then unclimbed east wall of Hualcan (6165 m). Also in the Alps, where in recent years she has signed under 19 first ascent routes, her winter ascents stand out, among them the ascent in the Heckmair route in the north wall of the Eiger and the first winter female repetition of the Čop Pillar in the Triglav north wall with climbing partner Peter Borič, with whom this year they also completed the first winter trilogy of the Skala routes in Špik, Škrlatica, and Triglav in one go.

"First and foremost, I am very happy that the expedition was successful, but by the word successful, I mean primarily that no one had major health issues, that we had a great time, omitting the bear, and that we all returned home with smiles on our faces," added the Celje resident Verdev, a graduate agronomy engineer who works in hospitality and occasionally in landscaping. As a traveler, she visited India already in 2018, gaining most of her alpine mileage in the Alps, Dolomites, and Tatras, where she also attended camps of the PZS Alpinism Committee. In the expedition to the Indian Himalayas, according to Anja's words, she also excelled in organization, as she handled an exceptional part regarding arrangements with the IMF and the agency, which, along with gathering financial resources and personal preparations, represented the core of the entire organization.

The second pair in the alpine expedition, Ana Baumgartner (AO PD Ljubljana Matica), who has the most experience in domestic and central Alps, and Urša Kešar (AO PD Kranj), who has already been on expeditions to Peru and Kyrgyzstan, was selected through the call of the PZS Alpinism Committee. During the ascent of the Petek-Verdev pair, due to Urša's altitude issues, they returned to base camp and, despite the lack of weather forecast, managed to climb first ascent routes in the nearby granite north wall: on September 10, the 800-meter route BC (Bear Camp) in the wall of the still unnamed peak 5332 m, where a snowstorm caught them, and on September 13, the 670-meter long route Calm before the storm?. "Given Urša's altitude issues and the unstable weather we observed from base in the high hills, we decided to climb in the lower-lying rocky north wall of the unnamed peak. We had scouted it earlier, then set an obvious line along natural passages. Since unexpected snowfall caught us in the afternoon, we were forced to find an alternative exit from the wall, which proved very convenient and logical. We liked the wall a lot, so three days later we were back in it. This time we chose another natural passage, a bit more demanding than the last, and reached the same exit," said the Ljubljana resident Ana Baumgartner, who this year, besides the expedition, plans to complete her doctorate in pharmacy, while Kešar completed her doctoral studies in biomedicine this year.

Ana and Urša also faced a real odyssey with bears in base camp: "There were at least two different ones; we all knew they were looking for food, but it was still quite unpleasant. Fortunately, the cooks successfully drove them away with light and noise; later, when we were in base camp, all present participated in that." After more than ten visits from unwelcome guests, a torn Patricija's tent, an eaten food bag, and a knocked-down toilet, they collectively scared them enough with fire to secure some peaceful nights in base camp, but all participants agreed that it would be best for both the animals and them to leave base camp early.

ASCENTS of the women's alpine expedition to the Indian Himalayas - first ascent routes:

August 31: Peak 5332 m; Connection; VI-/V-IV, 1400 m, 15 h. (Patricija Verdev and Anja Petek)
September 10: Peak 5332 m; BC (Bear camp); V-/IV-III, 800 m, 8 h. (Ana Baumgartner and Urša Kešar)
September 13: Peak 5332 m; Calm before the storm?; V+/IV, 670 m, 6 h. (Ana Baumgartner and Urša Kešar)
September 9-14: Lalung I 6243m, Here comes the sun; ED, M6+, AI5+; 2000 m (5 climbing days). (Patricija Verdev (A0) and Anja Petek)

"I read the report of the women's alpine expedition to the Lalung valley with enthusiasm. It is incredible that in the entire exceptional history of Slovenian women's alpinism, we can count women's expeditions to the Himalayas on the fingers of one hand, at least the successful ones. Even more incredible is that this is the first expedition where participants climbed a first ascent route that ends, as it should, on the mountain's summit. The view of the drawn route on Lalung I shows a very aesthetic and logical line and an elegant and beautiful mountain, giving the whole project a touch of femininity. The participants adorned the expedition with three additional first ascent climbs above base camp, showing great motivation and enthusiasm. The report exudes good energy among the participants; I was particularly impressed by the act upon Anja and Patricija's return from Lalung, where Ana and Urša came to meet them and helped them descend back to base camp after six days on the mountain. I wish the expedition gives momentum to the participants and perhaps some other Slovenian alpinist to tackle maybe an even higher mountain in the Himalayas in the future with the gained experience and thus place Slovenian women's alpinism a step higher," evaluated the expedition the top alpinist and mountain guide Tina Di Batista, who participated in several alpine expeditions in numerous mountain ranges around the world.

Slovenian alpinists, in rare women's or mixed expeditions and pairs, have left their mark in the highest mountain ranges of Asia (Himalayas, Karakoram, Pamir) already in the past - highlighting just a few notable ascents. The first Slovenian woman on a seven-thousand-meter peak was Barbka Lipovšek - Ščetinin, in 1967 on Pik Lenina. In 1982, as many as seven members of the first women's Yugoslav alpine expedition led by Mariča Frantar climbed Pik Komunizma (7495 m), achieving the Yugoslav women's altitude record. In 1987, Vlasta Kunaver achieved the world women's paragliding altitude record for takeoff height when, after climbing a first ascent route and conquering the summit of Trisul I (7021 m), she flew from it. Marija Štremfelj was the first Slovenian woman on an eight-thousand-meter peak (Broad Peak, 1986) and so far the only Slovenian to climb Everest (1990); additionally, she stood on two more eight-thousand-meter peaks (Cho Oyu, 1995 and Dhaulagiri, 2004). The second Slovenian woman on an eight-thousand-meter peak was Mariča Frantar (1990 on Nanga Parbat), who was the first to climb the world's highest Rupal wall, and the third Irena Mrak (2004 on Gasherbrum II) - with Mojca Švajger, they conquered the pre-summit of Broad Peak in 2006 and became the first Slovenian women's pair to exceed 8000 meters, and in 2011 they completed an alpine-style ascent in the Diamir wall of the eight-thousand-meter Nanga Parbat. In 2006, Tina Di Batista, Tanja Grmovšek, and Sandra Voglar completed the first women's pair ascent on Trango Nameless Tower (6251 m) along the cult route Eternal flame and the second overall in alpine style. Besides the mentioned, there have been quite a few achieved summits and ascent attempts by Slovenian alpinists in the highest mountain ranges in past decades.