Seven Dead Including Five Foreign Nationals — and Four Missing After Avalanche Strikes Climbing Team in Nepal’s Rolwaling Region
A tragic avalanche in Nepal’s Rolwaling region has claimed the lives of eight climbers, including five foreign nationals, and two Nepalese while at least four others remain missing in the remote Yalung Ri region of Dolakha district. The incident occurred this morning 03 November local time, while a group of climbers including some foreigners were acclimatising there to attempt to climb Dolma Khang (6332 m) was struck by an avalanche at around 09:00 AM, according to local authorities. Rescue operations are halted today, as access to the high-altitude site remains challenging due to difficult terrain, unpredictable weather plus it’s already […]
Altitude Air Helicopter Accident in Lobuche, No Injuries Reported
An Altitude Air helicopter with call sign 9N-AMS, met with an accident near Lobuche, close to Everest Base Camp, this morning around 8 a.m. According to reports, the helicopter was on a rescue mission to pick up tourists stranded in the Khumbu region due to heavy snowfall. During landing, snow from the ground was blown up by the rotor wash, reducing visibility. As the pilot attempted to stabilize the aircraft, it destabilized and hit the ground. The helicopter’s pilot was the only person on board and escaped unharmed. He has since been transported to Lukla by another helicopter.
Technical Mastery on Numbur’s South Face: New Route Unlocked by Trio
Polish alpinist Adam Bielecki, German climber Felix Berg, and Italian mountaineer Hervé Barmasse have opened a new route on Numbur (6,958 m) in Nepal’s Rolwaling Himal. On October 18–19, the trio successfully climbed the South Face of the mountain, establishing a new line they named “Nepali Ice SPA” graded ED- (WI5, M4, 950m). The route follows sections of a previous Catalan attempt before venturing into new and steeper terrain leading directly to the summit. The climb demanded technical precision on steep ice and mixed wall. The team bivouacked in what they called the “Devil’s Suite” at around 6,900 metres, according […]
After 30 Years of Attempts, Jannu East Finally Climbed by French Duo
French alpinists Benjamin Védrines and Nicolas Jean have made the long-awaited first ascent of Jannu East (7,468 m) — one of the unclimbed peaks in the Himalayas. After a failed attempt the previous year, the duo returned stronger and succeeded on their second try, climbing the 2,300-metre North Face via the East Ridge in pure alpine style. They named their new route “Top of the Pikes” a proud and bold line on one of the world’s most forbidding mountains. “Summiting Jannu East is undoubtedly the greatest achievement of my mountaineering career,” said Védrines. “Climbing such a challenging, long and difficult […]
Spanish Legend Carlos Soria Scales Manaslu at 86, Marks 50 Years Since His First Expedition
Spanish mountaineer Carlos Soria has reached the summit of Manaslu (8,163 m), the world’s eighth-highest mountain, at 5:30 a.m. Nepal Time this morning, September 26, 2025, according to the expedition organiser Seven Summit Treks. Aged 86, Soria becomes the oldest climber to stand on an 8,000-metre peak, marking his return to the Himalaya after nearly two years. The ascent holds special significance as it coincides with the 50th anniversary of the first Spanish expedition to Manaslu in 1975, in which he also participated. Soria has now climbed 12 of the 14 eight-thousanders, leaving only Dhaulagiri and Shishapangma. Already the oldest […]
Andrzej Bargiel Makes History: First Oxygen-Free Ski Descent from Everest in Autumn
Polish ski daredevil Andrzej Bargiel has completed a historic ski descent from the summit of Mount Everest (8,848 m) without supplemental oxygen, this autumn season on September 22, around 3:00 PM. The 37-year-old Red Bull athlete reached the top and skied directly down to Camp II the same day, before continuing his descent to Base Camp on September 23. This marks the first-ever oxygen-free ski descent from Everest’s summit in the autumn season, setting a new benchmark in high-altitude mountaineering. Bargiel’s expedition was supported by Seven Summit Treks and over 16 Sherpas, including Dawa Sherpa (“Speed Dawa”), who also reached […]
Poland’s Piotr Krzyżowski Scales Manaslu, His Ninth No-O₂ Eight-Thousander
Polish climber Piotr Krzyżowski has summited Manaslu (8,163 m), the world’s eighth-highest mountain, this morning, September 25, 2025, marking his ninth eight-thousander climbed without the use of supplementary oxygen or Sherpa support. Krzyżowski reached the summit in alpine style, continuing his quest to climb all 14 of the world’s highest peaks under strict no-O₂, no-Sherpa rules. His GPS tracker confirmed the successful ascent, though further details of his climb are still to follow. This ascent comes just months after another major success. On May 10, 2025, at 8:55 a.m. Nepal time, Krzyżowski stood on the summit of Makalu (8,485 m), […]
The Blond Angel of Everest: Marco Siffredi’s Ride Into Legend
In the spring of 2001, high on the windswept summit of Mount Everest, a 22-year-old French snowboarder stood ready to make history. His name was Marco Siffredi, a Chamonix native raised in the shadows of Mont Blanc, where steep lines and avalanches were part of life. That day, May 23, he strapped into his board and dropped down the Norton Couloir. Four hours later, he slid into Advanced Base Camp, the first person to make a continuous snowboard descent from the highest mountain on Earth. The world called him l’Ange Blond, the Blond Angel. But Everest wasn’t finished for Marco. […]
Beauty, Belief, and the Price of Glory: K2’s Magic Line
In 1986, when the summer arrived, a small Polish-Slovak team set their sights on bold, pure, and so dangerous line on Mt K2 (8611 m) in Pakistan, which would be called the Magic Line. A steep, knife-edged ridge situated on the south-southwest pillar of the mountain, which rose through rock, ice, and snow in an unrelenting sweep toward the sky. Where the standard Abruzzi Spur climbed diagonally, retreating from danger, the Magic Line cut directly up the mountain’s exposed face only few had touched it, but no one succeeded then. But the international team, led by Polish mountaineer Janusz Majer, […]
Built by Mountaineers, for Mountaineers: Karakoram Mountain Guides Association Officially Established in Skardu
Pakistan’s mountaineering sector entered a new era on Saturday, 29 November, 2025, with the official launch of the Karakoram Mountain Guides Association (KMGA), the country’s first national organization created by mountaineers, for the mountaineers. The event took place at a private hotel in Skardu, bringing together hundreds of mountain professionals across the country. The full-day gathering included senior high-altitude climbers, professional guides, and young talents from Gilgit-Baltistan and other areas of a country. The environment was energetic and hopeful, with participants expressing strong support for the creation of a unified national platform dedicated to the welfare of Pakistan’s mountaineering community, […]
Silent Tent on Panbari Himal: Two Italian Climbers Found Lifeless After Days of Missing
A tragic turn of events has struck Nepal’s Manaslu region, where two Italian climbers, Farronato Stefano and Caputo Alessandro, were found dead inside their tent at Camp I of Panbari Himal (6,887 m). The duo had been missing since October 28 after being caught in heavy snowfall while attempting their climb. Earlier expedition leader Vatler Perlino (65), along with Nepali guides Pemba Renji Sherpa (35), Dawa Chhiri Sherpa (31), and Pasang Tamang, were successfully airlifted from the mountain by helicopter and flown to Kathmandu for medical treatment. The bodies of the missing climbers were located on Tuesday at 5,242 meters […]
Lenka Poláčková Becomes First Slovak Woman to Scale K2
Slovak mountaineer Lenka Poláčková has made history by becoming the first Slovak woman to climb K2 (8,611 m), the world’s second-highest mountain, this evening, August 11, 2025, Pakistan Time, according to her GPS tracker. Poláčková reached the summit via the Abruzzi Spur route in stable but challenging conditions. She was attempting to climb the mountain without using supplementary oxygen, although details of her climb are yet to come. This achievement follows her 2024 climb, where she became the tenth woman in history—and the first from Slovakia to scale Mount Everest without using supplementary oxygen. Earlier that year, she achieved the […]
Laura Dahlmeier obituary
Laura Dahlmeier (22 August 1993 – 28 July 2025), who died aged 31 on Laila Peak in Hushe Valley, Pakistan, was one of the most decorated athletes in the history of biathlon in Germany. Yet it was what happened afterwards that made her beloved far beyond sports. Dahlmeier and her rope partner, Marina Eva Krauss, were climbing the highly technical Laila Peak (6096 m) when tragedy struck on 28 July around 5700 masl. A rockfall swept the route they were on, leaving her no chance of survival. Poor weather made rescue attempts dangerous; her management later confirmed that Dahlmeier had […]
From the Theodolite to the Top: The Century-Long Battle for K2
In 1856, among the peaks of the Karakoram, a British officer named Thomas Montgomerie stood with a theodolite and looked across a sea of summits. He was part of the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India, mapping the most inaccessible parts of the mountains across Nepal and Bhaarat, and he marked one mountain with a simple notation: K2. “K” for Karakoram. “2” because it was the second peak he recorded in that range. For Montgomerie it was just a number on a chart, a pyramid of ice and rock, 28,251 feet high by his estimation. However, in the decades that followed, […]
Two-Time Olympic Gold Medallist Laura Dahlmeier Dies in Mountaineering Accident on Laila Peak
Two-time Olympic biathlon gold medallist Laura Dahlmeier of Germany has died in a mountaineering accident on Laila Peak in Pakistan’s Karakoram Mountains, according to her management team. Laura Dahlmeier was climbing with her mountaineering partner on 28 July when she was hit by a falling rock. The accident occurred around noon local time at an altitude of approximately 5,700 metres. Her partner immediately called emergency services, according to the reports The 31-year-old was in the Karakoram region since late June and had already successfully climbed the Great Trango Tower (6,287 m) earlier in July. Laila Peak (6,096 m) was her […]
Olympic Gold Medallist Laura Dahlmeier Seriously Injured in Mountaineering Accident on Laila Peak
Two-time Olympic biathlon gold medallist Laura Dahlmeier of Germany has suffered a serious mountaineering accident on Laila Peak in Pakistan’s Karakoram Mountains, according to the German Press Agency. “Laura Dahlmeier was climbing in with her mountaineering partner on 28 July when she was hit by a falling rock,” the statement said. “The accident occurred around noon local time at an altitude of approximately 5,700 metres. Her partner immediately called emergency services, and a rescue operation was launched without delay.” According to German media reports, top German climber Thomas Huber is currently on site and is helping coordinate the rescue effort. […]
One Man, One Mountain, One Unthinkable Descent
In the summer of 2018, high above the Karakoram in Pakistan, a Polish climber set his sights on something that had never been done: to ski down K2 from summit to the Godwin-Austen Glacier. It was July 22, just before 11:30 a.m., when 29-year-old Andrzej Bargiel stood on the summit of the world’s second-highest mountain, 8,611 meters above sea level. He was alone, without using supplementary oxygen, and guide, with only skis strapped to his back and a mountain beneath his feet. The idea had taken root years earlier, when he stood on nearby Broad Peak in 2015 and looked […]