Hervé on the saddle, removing the skis from his backpack. In the background, the summit of Chogolisa's Shield, probably the team's next goal. Image by Pagno (click to enlarge).
Hervé took this picture as he was speeding up the upper, steep slopes. The dot between his legs is Pagno, at the end of the rope. Image by Hervé Barmasse (click to enlarge).
"For a ski-lover like me, just a handful of turns on virgin snow are enough to make me feel in heaven," reported Hervé back in BC. He managed to sky down from the saddle, at about 5000m. Image by Pagno (click to enlarge).
Topo of the route followed by Hervé and Pagno. Suggestions on a suitable name for the recently climbed peak are welcomed! All images courtesy of the expedition team, at Montagna.org (click to enlarge).
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Chogolisa kids: They climb it, you name it!
Posted: Jul 04, 2005 06:59 am EDT
June 28, the young guns in the Italian TripOne expedition summited their first virgin peak in the Chogolisa area. The new route was climbed by two team members, and they want you to find a cool name for it!
Hervé Barmasse and photographer Pagno climbed a circa 6000m spire in Farol Peak’s range. ‘Peak 5500’ on the map, had no proper name or height registered. It clearly looked the tallest around, which was enough for the Italians to go for it.
Altimeter registered 6000 meters
Hervé also planned on a sky-ski descent from the very summit, but snow conditions and 50-60º steep slopes on the upper sections forced him to leave his skis on a saddle halfway up.
Pagno had some tough moments trying to keep the pace of an elated Hervé, who virtually ran the steep slopes and the summit ridge up, obsessed to set foot on the highest point. Pagno finally halted his bid and waited for his mate to proceed through the deep snow on his own - all the way to the top. Once there, the climber’s altimeter registered 6000 meters.
Carved a few turns in the virgin snow
Back down to the saddle at about 5000m, Hervé put on his skis and carved some joyful turns on the virgin snow. The climb is the first success of the expedition. However, the guys want to share the achievement with you: The mountain’s name is not yet chosen. Just pick a name and email it to Montagna’s headquarters (check the link sections). If you’re short of inspiration, just check the pics to attract the muse!
An Italian young team led by Luka Maspes is exploring and climbing the Chogolisa area in Karakorum this summer. Team members are: Luca Maspes, Hervé Barmasse, Gianluca Bellin, Cristian Brenna, Francesca Chenal, Ezio Marlier, Giovanni Ongaro, and Fabio Salini.
The Chogolisa expedition is the 'Trip One' of a bigger project named 'Up Project', focused on exploratory expeditions to lesser known mountain ranges.
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