The northwest face of this peak is a stunning, steep 800m granite wall with few obvious features—what the prolific Swiss first ascensionist Michel Piola described as “the perfect wall.” 

In 1995, Maurizio Giordani and Gianluca Maspes from Italy attempted the central line on this face. Using fixed ropes, they climbed 21 pitches (600m) to a point 200m below the ridge. The climbing required 60 hook moves to link discontinuous features. Planning to return, they left all their fixed ropes in place. However, when they came back a year later, the ropes were frayed and unusable, forcing them to abandon the attempt. They named their attempted line Gringos Locos, a nickname given to them by the caretaker of the Piedra del Fraile campsite. 

Maspes returned in 2006 with Elia Andreola, Kurt Astner, Hervé Barmasse, and Yuri Parimbelli. They re-climbed 11 pitches before retreating when Maspes was struck by rockfall. There had been no further attempts before 2025.

In February 2025, Matteo Della Bordella, Dario Eynard, and Mirco Grasso (all from Italy) spent three days fixing ropes on the lower 500m. During their final push, they jumared the fixed lines and continued climbing, spending a windy night on a G7 ledge. The next day, they reached the 1995 high point, climbed two new pitches to join the Via del Hermano (Barmasse-Brenna, 2008), then continuedfor five more pitches on that route to reach a small saddle along the long summit ridge at 3 a.m. Anticipating a storm, they descended immediately, removing their fixed ropes.

Although nearly two-thirds of the pitches required aid, the route offers incredible free climbing, up to 7b (5.12b)—often run-out and interspersed with aid moves, frequently involving hooks. The style of climbing is unique for the area, with much face climbing and only occasional flakes and cracks. 

Out of respect for Giordani and Maspes’s original approach, the team minimized the use of bolts: In total, there are only five bolts and nine pitons between belays. Della Bordella described their ascent as “a hell of an adventure” and suggested the line might be free climbable. They kept the original name: Via Gringos Locos (7b A3).

The ascent occurred as part of a young alpinists’ expedition organized by the Club Alpino Italiano, with Eynard participating as one of the program’s members.                                                     

—Rolando Garibotti