Manaslu Ski Challenge
8,156 m a.s.l., August – September 2014
On August 30, 2014, the second part of the HIC SUNT LEONES project started under the name MANASLU SKI CHALLENGE. The expedition aimed to speed climbing and skiing from the eighth highest peak on Earth – Manaslu (8,156 m a.s.l.). The acclimatization process in the base was intertwined with short trips into higher and higher parts. It lasted a total of 10 days. We set up three camps with the team during this time. The peak attack in summit-base-summit style, that is without longer stops at any of the established camps, began on September 25 at 10:20 pm local time. Then I set off from the base at an altitude of 4,800 m a.s.l. and after 4 hours and 30 minutes, I reached Camp III with exactly 2,000 m of elevation. My brother Grzegorz and Dariusz Załuski were waiting for me there. It took me 14 hours and 5 minutes to get to the top. I found myself on it precisely at 8:25 am Polish time.
Thus, I broke the previous record by about 2 hours. Another challenge was going from the top to the base camp without taking your skis off. Unfortunately, the rapidly deteriorating weather conditions made it impossible to achieve the second goal fully. I reached the base, alternating skiing and walking, 21 hours and 14 minutes after the start of the attack, which gave me another record in the history of mountaineering.
Team members: Grzegorz Bargiel (my older brother, ski-alpinist, Tatra Mountain rescuer (TOPR), international mountain guide IVBV/UIAGM/IFMGA), Dariusz Załuski (alpinist, Himalayan mountaineer, cinematographer), and Marcin Kin (photograph).
