This trip to Shisha Pangma was my fifth winter expedition (the 34th totally). Without too much emphasis or false modesty, I can claim to have lived a remarkable alpine experience “in the cold,” and to have had both defeats and victories. Aconcagua 1993 -summit- (south face and then normal route), Annapurna (tragedy with A. Boukreev), Pink Marble Wall 6400 m -summit- (Thien Shan), Shisha Pangma 2003/4 (stop at 7700), Shisha Pangma 2004/5 -summit-.
Climbing in winter is very difficult and different, sadly out of fashion and truly above the normal limit of one’s ability to support discomfort.

Winter, like Christmas, New Year’s, like 2+2, jet lag and many other things is always certain, an absolute concept, known and scientifically accepted by all. From December 21st to March 21st winter reigns in the northern hemisphere of the globe. Science and astronomy have always concurred on this.

December 11th brought the arrival of a Frenchman who, worthily, climbed Shisha Pangma after having worked and climbed the wall in November (smack dab in the middle of autumn) and said that his praiseworthy climb took place in winter and that he was, therefore, the first in the world to have made the climb in winter. Why? The Tibetan and Nepalese bureaucracy say that the winter season opens on the 1st of December, just like the winter ski season in Cortina, Chamonix, and Aspen and so, not following the laws of science and the planet, and leaving the bureaucracy behind he returned home at the beginning of winter in time for Christmas and New Year, probably as he had promised. Five other, decidedly more stupid, climbers, four Poles and one Italian, decided to follow in the footsteps of great climbers past and present (Zawada, Kukuczka, Wielicki, Berbeka, Garrido....) and follow the laws of nature and science, waiting for the 21st of December, the date on which winter takes hold, to try and climb Shisha Pangma, which, along with seven other 8000meter mountains has never been climbed in actual winter (not the winter of skiing and officially stamped papers). And, it must be said that the French subject, with a strange sport procedure, didn’t even declare his intent, spoke nothing of his presence at the Nepalese agency, which helped him logistically, in order to stress and focus only upon the day he made it to the summit. If he hadn’t made it and remained silent no one would have known about his attempt and failure…this, too, is class.

Than on 19th of January he answer pathetic to Wielicki, who did make him “observations” like a father to his son who exaggerate, and to all the alpinistic world (including Garrido, who explained some things, like Wielicki). He continue to slander our winter climb and try to assert his autumn for something what it is not (winter) and he says that he is discriminated, because he is not polish (also I’m not Polish, but I accept the rules of the play and from the science). The child is whimper and want that the victory at championship count as a victory at the World Championship.
Also he is not so intelligent, because he public some pictures where he only wear a shirt, posing in front of his tend!!! But what means the real cold in the winter in Himalaya?
In any case, without discussing to long, or the France accept the rules of the planet and his autumn climb or he has to begin to accept that he will be ignored or deride, like it is beginning now.


Let’s forget about it and hope that this debate is the final bluff of the officially stamped paper, and let’s turn now to the one first, only and true winter climb of Shisha Pangma 8027.
We tried last winter and came close to success, stopping (Piotr and me) at 7700 meters after having climbed the fantastic “Corredor Girona” which was opened by the Spaniards Figueras and Permane. (Typical of Spanish climbers, they left signs of their climbing skill also on the southern wall of Shisha). Our lack of success was due to the late hour. 15:00 had already passed by the time we reached 7700m and two hours of sunlight remained, and we needed those in order to return to our tent at 7100m. The alternative was a deadly bivoac at over -50°. We found wisdom but sportive defeat in the decision to abandon our intent. The change in weather conditions caused us to have to consider another try another time. It was January 17th, 2004.


Having digested the defeat, the next year would bring another try. The same team: Jan, Darek, Jacek, Piotr and me. The suggested way up is different this time. We decided to try the Yugoslavian way at the extreme right of the wall. We didn’t know too much about this way, but we knew the crest along this itinerary reaches 7300m. Unlike the year before, we knew that we would have to sleep up there and not be able to pretend to reach the summit leaving from a camp on the wall. The crest is damn long and at times complicated…

Obviously, we don’t have sherpas or oxygen with us, and the work is divided among four people as Jan, the head of the expedition, will cover the fundamental logistics. Between Base Camp and the base camp further along there are 10 km that we will cover in order to see the wall and our way. This is our starting point where we begin using crampons and ice axes. The 30th of December we are able to install our first
fundamental camp at 6550 meters in the middle of the wall, sheltered under a sérac. We use and fix quite a few meters of rope in order to reach that point and later the crest. Fixed cords and our loaded backpacks ever heavier, we often climb over live ice and the cords are positioned anticipating the descent.

Regularly and punctually, Darek and Jacek alternate the duties with Piotr and me. The honest work of these four climbers has been the secret of what happened afterward.
We spent four nights at C1, going up and down a few times before we succeeded in equipping ourselves. We popped out on the top crest at 7350 and positioned our C2. The GPS read 7416 meters at that point, but we think it was overestimating.

Born of a bit of craziness, the idea came to us to try to reach the summit the day after establishing C2. We wanted, in fact, to sleep to acclimate ourselves and then turn back to base. We had climbed with extremely heavy backpacks the whole day, climbing rock of 3-4 degrees. In the end, we hadn’t saved any energy at all. But, when, in the afternoon, we came out onto the crest I saw the secondary summit and felt transported back to a year ago, 15:00 on January 17th, “Tomorrow we’re going to try it!” I said immediately to Piotr who, between the stupor and enthusiasm accepted my crazy idea. I phoned Karl Gabl, my infallible meteorological guru in Innsbruck, and he told me that the next day there would be a very strong wind along with the cold, but the sky would be clear….



We left at 8 in the morning (so late that it seemed a climbing blasphemy) from the tent at 7350m to try for the summit…I don’t know what Piotr and I had on. Maybe a year of thinking, above normal enthusiasm, maybe the thought of the “cleverness” of December 11th. The fact is that we flew on the crest and in a little more than 5 hours, at 13:15 we were on the principle summit of Shisha Pangma, at 8027 meters. A cry of joy and liberation, a strong hug and between impressive gusts of wind we took 9 photos and filmed for 50 seconds. Behind us, the pointed middle peak that I climbed in 1996, 19 meters lower with respect to the principle summit.

It was cold, extremely cold. We tried to raise someone from our team on the radio, but no one responded. It was ours to live and enjoy alone. Everst, Lhotse, Nuptse, Cho Oyu, Langtang and thousands of mountains were around us blown by the icy breath of January wind.
No traces remained of our climb. The natural elements of that 14th of January cancelled everything. Perhaps, a trace will remain in the history of climbing if the officially stamped card doesn’t get the upper-hand. For sure, in our personal story, 13:15 on January 14th will remain a thrilling moment of immense joy!


P.S. Today, the 20th of January the CTMA certificated our summit with the sentence “first winter Summit” as the first winter summit from Shisha Pangma, maked by Simone Moro ITA and Piotr Morawski POL at the 14th of Januray