Asia, Pakistan, Nanga Parbat, Southwest Ridge, Tragedy and Ascent

Publication Year: 1983.

Nanga Parbat, Southwest Ridge, Tragedy and Ascent. Our expedition, made up of Stefan Wörner, leader, Dr. Alex Berger, Martin Braun, Peter Hiltbrand, Norbert Joss, Hansruedi Staub and me, arrived on May 9 at Base Camp below the Diamir Face. On the second day Peter Hiltbrand was evacuated by the porters to the last village because of cerebral edema. The weather was bad. Finally, on May 14, we headed in the direction of Ganalo Peak and placed Camp I at 17,050 feet. On the 15th we continued toward the Diama Glacier, but the objective danger was so great that we gave up the idea of making a new route and decided on the Kinshofer route on the southwest ridge (first climbed by Austrians Hanns Schell, Hilmar Sturm, Robert Schauer and Siegfried Gimpel on August 11, 1976). On May 18 we set up Camp I at 16,400 feet and on May 22 Camp II at 20,000 feet. On May 23 Joos and I made a supply dump at 21,325 feet but had to descend because of bad weather, which lasted for ten days. Meanwhile Hiltbrand returned to Base Camp. On June 3 Berger, Braun, Joos and I regained Camp I, which was deep in snow. On the 4th we plowed our way to Camp II, digging out our fixed ropes. Dr. Berger had to descend, sick, to Base Camp on June 5 but we other three climbed the Kinshofer couloir to our dump and from there traversed towards the Bazhin col on windslab which luckily held to let us reach a rocky island, where we placed Camp III at 22,800 feet. On June 6 we broke trail to 23,625 feet and descended to Camp II as planned. On the way down, we met Wörner, Staub and Hilt- brand, who hoped to establish Camp IV the next day and climb to the summit the day after. We tried to discourage them since none of them had yet been above 20,000 feet and they were not acclimatized. On June 7 Braun, Joos and I climbed back to Camp III while the other three advanced to establish Camp IV at 24,275 feet. Wörner and Staub got there in good time, but Hiltbrand lagged; he was definitely sick. At two A.M. on June 8 Wörner got to our tent at Camp III to say that Peter Hiltbrand was in very bad shape. Joos and I hurried upwards, soon joined by the other two. At eight A.M. we began to drag Hiltbrand down in a cloth sack. After 50 feet or so we were exhausted and realized it would take two days to get him down to Camp III. At 8:15 he went to sleep for ever. We closed his eyes and slipped him into a crevasse. Should we continue or give up? To quit would serve no purpose; we’d climb the mountain for Peter. Braun had to go down because of hemorrhoids, accompanied by Wörner. Joos, Staub and I went back up to Camp IV on June 9. In the afternoon Joos and I broke trail to 24,600 feet. On June 10 we set out at five A.M. A half an hour later I struck my cold feet with my ice axe and to my horror my plastic boots split! Could I continue? I took off boot and socks, rubbed my feet and after replacing my footgear, put on my crampons to hold it all together. Despite the wind, cold and the wind slabs, we continued. My foot stayed warm. After 650 feet, the couloir split. The right branch had normally been taken, but because of avalanche danger we kept left. We skirted two rock steps (UIAA IV + to V) unroped and got to a rather delicate ridge that led to a north summit at 8035 meters (26,362 feet). In a violent wind we continued toward the main summit. I was going well and got to the summit (8125 meters, 26,660 feet) at 1:30 P.M., the tenth party and the first Swiss to reach it. Joos joined me at two P.M. We found that Staub was content to reach the north summit. But was this “victory” worth the price? Nanga Parbat has had 42 victims for its ten “victories.”

Erhard Loretan, Schweizer Alpen Club