Posted: Nov 26, 2008 11:47 pm EST
(MountEverest.net/K2Climb.net) "In my opinion if the Czechs maintain the schedule of the expedition (they will arrive at BC after XMas) and if they reach the summit, it will be the FIRST real winter ascent of Manaslu ever," writes ExWeb's contributor Rodrigo Granzotto Peron from Brazil regarding the winter season kicking-off.

So what is it - number 12, number 2 or number 1? It all comes down to the Calendar winter. According to this strict criteria, the previous Manaslu summits, save for the Polish, were late autumn climbs. And while the first Poles summited early January (in Calendar winter) they used the fall weather to fix the peak.

As the next Polish and Czech winter expeditions kick-off; popular re-runs are published at ExWeb all week about winter climbing. Yesterday we published a 4-part series published in 2004 about past Himalaya climbs, focusing on the first ascents.

Fast Recap

Up until now only 8 out of all 14 eight-thousanders have been winter climbed. Before Italian Simone Moro changed history in 2005 (on Shisha Pangma); all first winter accents had been made by Polish climbers. Over only eight years in the eighties, their feats revolutionized Himalayan climbing.

First out was Leszek Cichy on Everest in 1980. Then came Maciej Berbeka and Ryszard Gajewski on Manaslu in 1984. In 1985 Maciej Berbeka and Maciej Pawlikowski bagged Cho Oyu.

That same year (1985) Andrzej Czok and Jerzy Kukuczka took Dhaulagiri. The following year (1986), Kukuczka came back for Kangchenjunga together with Krzysztof Wielicki.

In 1987, Kukuczka returned again, this time with Artur Hajzer, to accomplish the first winter climb of Annapurna. Krzysztof Wielicki summited Lhotse solo on New years Eve in 1988 and that was the last time someone set foot on a summit higher than 8000 m during winter - before the Italian/Polish combo Simone Moro and Piotr Morawski summited Shisha Pangma in January 2005 bagging number 8 of the 14.

All the above climbs took place outside Pakistan. Karakoram is said to be even harsher than Nepal/Tibet in winter. Closest yet to a Karakoram success was Polish Maciej Berbeka (Manaslu winter 84, Cho Oyu winter 85) who solo climbed to Broad Peak's central summit. A Spanish TV team also attempting BP said that just to get to BC was a long, frozen walk from hell.

The Calendar

But what makes a winter expedition a winter expedition? Does it need to snow 9 out of 10 days and be miserably cold? Is a winter ascent in December as good as a winter ascent in February?

Well, there’s two ways of looking at it – one is the world calendar, and the other is Nepal and China’s permit schedule. The world’s seasonal calendar has winter beginning on December 21st, whereas Nepal and China’s winter permits start December 1st.

And then there are the actual conditions. "By the end of November the wind drops down and remains relatively calm; it can still blow at summit level until Christmas," Wielicki told XWeb previously.

Here goes "The meaning of winter" - a fairly extensive 3-part series from 2004 about the classifications. Next week finally, ExWeb will close with a winter special re-run from Adventure Weather: "The 'BAD' chart in Himalaya weather."

Today, part 1 of The meaning of winter in 8000+ climbing, part 1.

Check in for part 2 and 3 Thursday and Friday.

This season, Polish Artur Hajzer will lead Robert Szymczak and Canadian Don Bowie (both part of the rescue attempt of Inaki Ochoa this past spring) on Broad Peak.

Artur has five 8000ers under his belt (latest Dhaula in May with Robert), three of them climbed via new routes, and the first winter climb on Annapurna. Arthur and Robert were also members in the Polish winter attempt on Nanga Parbat two years ago (with Szymczak as expedition Doc). A second Polish team led by Jacek Teler will attempt Nanga Parbat.

Both those ascents would mark the first winter climbs of the peaks, while in Nepal Jan Krabec, Milan Wlasák, and Pavel Krupièka hope to bag a Manaslu winter first for the Czech Republic.

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