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Silvio Mondinelli joins Edurne Pasaban for Nanga Parbat 2005
Feb 9, 2005 11: 47 EST
Last summer we saw how Silvio Mondinelli joined forces with the Spaniards from ‘Al Filo de lo Imposible’ (On The Edge of the Impossible) team to break the trail to the summit of K2. Strong and with an ability to acclimatize better than the rest, Mondinelli helped Edurne Pasaban, the Basque lady climber, on the way down.
Edurne, suffering from frostbitten toes, appreciated the help of a good friend – they had previously climbed Dhaulagiri and Makalu together. She was not the only one: Sebastian Alvaro, director of the TV documentaries the team filmed during their climbs, soon started the talks to include Silvio in the team.
Joining friends on Nanga
Just like that, Mondinelli is joining the ‘Al Filo’ team on Nanga Parbat, in Pakistan, this summer. Edurne will be there too, aiming to summit her eight 8000er. Pasaban lost two toes due to frostbite, but she has recovered amazingly well. By Christmas, she was rock climbing and ski-touring in the Spanish Pyreenes. Now she is training hard and looking forward to her return to the 8000ers.
Another reason Edurne is happy about the expedition to Nanga Parbat is that, for a change, she won’t be the only girl in the team. Esther Sabadell will also take part in the climb.
Esther, the survivor
Esther’s motivation may be second to none. Two years ago, she survived a very close call. While canoeing in Guadalupe (Caribbean), the young climber fell 25 meters when the tree the team had used as a belay broke. Esther’s hip smashed into pieces, but a friend, Xabier, died in the accident. Esther was hospitalized four months and spent a year rehabilitating. During that time, her only thought was to heal and climb again. Last spring, she joined a Spanish military team attempting Manaslu. She managed to reach 6000 meters high, and realized she would soon be ready to go higher. Now she is going for the summit.
Missing Juanito
The rest of the team is yet to be confirmed. The great absence will probably be that of Juan Oiarzabal. ‘Juanito’ is the most experienced climber Al Filo ever had, with 21 8000er summits. However, even Juanito has had a close call. Lost in the night during a descent, he almost died on K2. He was found semi unconscious by climbing-mate Ferrán Latorre, who helped him down to C4. But the frostbite got the better of Oiarzabal’s toes. Back at home, the doctors could do nothing to save them.
Lately, Juan has been going through tough times. His wounds have not healed as expected, and he won’t recover on time to go to Nanga Parbat. Now, Alvaro is looking for someone to take his place in this expedition, though no name has been yet mentioned.
Before Nanga, Silvio is climbing Annapurna this spring. Edurne plans on a long bicycle trip before heading for the mountains.
Edurne Pasabán (30) was born in Tolosa (Basque Country, Spain). Her K2 summit made her the only living female K2 summiteer today. She has also climbed more 8000+ peaks than any other living female. She has bagged Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, GI, GII and K2 in just a few years.
Silvio Mondinelli was born in Gardone (Italy) in 1958. Since beginning climbing at 18 years old, he has done major climbs all over the world, including nine 8000ers: Manaslu, Cho Oyu, Everest, GI, GII, Dhaulagiri, Makalu, Kangchenjunga and K2, plus Shisha Pangma central summit, and a controversial climb on Lhotse.
Esther Sabadell has climbed Ama Dablam.
Al Filo expeditions are filmed in order to produce a documentary series for Spanish TV. The team, which has some of the best climbers in Spain, manages to do a remarkable filming job of performing first-level climbs at the same time. The guys climbed K2 last summer through the Abruzzi Spur route. Before Nanga, Al Filo will join the Spanish military team to attempt Makalu’s West Pillar.
Juan Oiarzabal was born in Alava (Basque Country) 48 years ago. In 2000, his Annapurna climb made him the sixth climber in the world to bag the 14 8000ers on Earth. Two years later, he climbed Everest without O2. In later years, he has kept climbing 8000+ peaks, either as a mountain guide or as a stunt in Spanish TV documentaries. This gave him the world record of summiting 21, 8000+ peaks. His recent summit on K2 almost took his life, and he suffered severe frostbite.
Image of Sebastian Alvaro (left) greeting Edurne after summiting K2 (Mondinelli on the background) courtesy of El Correo Digital
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