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K2: Magic Line team above 8000 m! Interview with Jordi Tosas
Agu 14, 2004 13: 25 EST
Oscar Cadiach, Jordi Corominas and Manel de la Matta have reached the foot of Casarotto Tower, between 8000 and 8100 meters, where they have planted their bivouac tent to spend the night. It is not clear if they will try to reach the summit tomorrow, or if they will force a second bivouac on their way up. The decision will be determined by the route, if the difficult section of mixed climbing takes too long to pass.
Meanwhile, Valen Giro and Gulam have reached C2 on the Abruzzi Spur. They will climb to Camp 3 tomorrow, where they will wait for their mates, in case they choose the ‘Normal’ route to descend from the summit.
The guys are reportedly well and highly motivated. Most worried right now is instead the fith member of the expedition: Jordi Tosas, who was forced to return home before the summit bid.
Jordi is back in Benasque (Spanish Pyrenees) trying to lose some tension by bouldering hard at the local wall: “It's the best way I have to not go crazy thinking too much.”
He keeps the mobile phone close in his pocket. Just in case more news arrive. Thanks to that, he could spend some time chatting with the ExWeb team, equally stirred by the Magic Line climb. Jordi, "the snowboard climber" of the team, remembers well the plan the team made for their final summit bid.
"We enjoyed every single day of it"
“I am not sure that they’ll make the summit tomorrow, as the next 300 meters are technically very demanding. There is not a clear way up; they will have to find their way through ice, rock ribs and outcrops. That is what happened to the Polish/Slovak team, completed the route in 86. They made two bivouacs, the second at about 8300-8400 m.
If the guys follow the same tactics, they will rest some time after the most difficult sections, and climb the final slopes on Monday morning”.
According to AdventureWeather sources, the winds are expected to pick up Monday to about 10 m/s at the summit. Conditions will remain dry though.
About the descend, Jordi reveals very interesting details too: “They will descend through the Abruzzi Spur only if the visibility is perfect. The good thing about the Abruzzi is the gear left behind by the teams who climbed K2 earlier this season. But there is also a very important drawback: the way down is not clear, especially between the summit and C3. They don’t want to get lost on their way back, as did some other climbers this very season. If the weather is not good enough, the will choose the familiar, although difficult and unfixed Magic Line.”
Jordi had to return home for professional reasons. “I also have a one-year old baby, and I couldn't afford to be away from home too long. But I have enjoyed the expedition so much, that I don’t feel bad. After attempting the Kucuczka route, where we actually couldn’t see the mountain, this climb has been... wow, impressive, brutal, wonderful... I’d run out of words before being able to describe it. It was a gift of K2: Steep and beautiful right from the start, with incredible views and first quality rock sections... A real pleasure. And hard work non stop, too. But we got along so well, that we enjoyed every single day of it."
He is anxious about his mates up there now, but also happy whatever happens. “I really believe that they can summit. But if they cannot make it, it won’t make a difference. They’ve already made something really amazing up there, and I am sure they will return happy, summit or not."
Oscar Cadiach, Jordi Corominas, Jordi Tosas, Manel de la Matta and Valen Giró are attempting the first repetition of the Magic Line, considered the most difficult route on K2. Tomorrow, Sunday 15th, could be the summit day. Otherwise they would force a second bivouac on their way up, at 8300-8400m high, before going for the summit on Monday.
The first Magic Line ascent was made by a Polish/Slovak team. The men were Wojtek Wroz (Poland), Przemyslaw Piasecki (Poland) and Peter Bozik (Slovakia). The climbers ascended in expedition style up to 7600 m. Wojtek Wroz fell from the fixed ropes during the descent by the Abruzzi spur. Peter Bozik later perished during an attempt to climb the Bonington route on the South West Face of Everest in 1998.
Oscar Cadiach, the head of the current "Tarragona Magic Line Expedition 2004" has done 5 expeditions to Everest, 2 of which reached the summit. Cadiach has also climbed Nanga Parbat, Shisha Pangma, Makalu and Lhotse. He opened the route 'Free Tibet' on Cho Oyu and did a new route on Broad Peak central. Team members include Manel de la Matta who climbed Cho Oyu and Shisha Pangma. Jordi Tosas descended Cho Oyu on a snowboard. Jordi Corominas climbed Dhaulagiri alone. Ski touring expert Valentí ‘Valen’ Giró has accomplished expedition to 7000+ peaks Duch SpantiK and Gurla Mandhata
Image of Jordi Tosas on the Magic Line some weeks ago, Copyright K2 Magic Line 2004 Expedition.
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