Climbers make first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat

“Alex Txikon (Spain), Ali Sadpara (Pakistan) and Simone Moro (Italy) have reached the top of Nanga Parbat,” Karrar Haidri, spokesman of the Alpine Club of Pakistan told AFP, confirming it was the first time the summit has been reached during winter months. He said a fourth climber, Tamara Lunger of Spain, had been forced to halt the climb some metres beneath the summit. At 8,125 metres (26,660 feet) Nanga Parbat is the world’s ninth highest mountain. It earned its grisly nickname after more than 30 climbers died trying to conquer it before the first successful summit in 1953. Its fearsome Rupal Face, rising more than 4,000 metres from base to top, presents one of the most difficult — and tantalising — challenges in climbing. The climbers will spend Friday night at Camp 4 at 7,200 metres, and return to base camp tomorrow, Haidri said, adding that only then will they have completed the ascent. Northern Pakistan is a magnet for mountaineers and is home to some of the tallest mountains in the world, including K2 — at 8,611 metres, the world’s second highest peak, but often deemed a more challenging climb than the highest, Mount Everest. ]]>