First sun, Annapurna.
From above base camp, 4140m. After overnight snow, I made my way out by moonlight to a point above the S Annapurna glacier and waited with pounding heart for first light. I was not disappointed, the new snow was blowing off the summits, the air was clear and cold, the atmosphere stunning. The scale is difficult to grasp in a photograph, the summit of Annapurna is 4000m above me here, at 8091m, the world's tenth highest mountain. From here to the summit would normally take over 3 weeks to climb the South face. What makes this shot all the more moving was knowing there were two French climbers on the mountain, awaiting rescue. They had completed an alpine style ascent and had been hit by bad weather and were suffereing frostbite. They were rescued by helicopter about 30 mins after this shot. I met one of them off the helicopter, a walking ghost. He would later lose fingers and toes to frostbite.
Photographically, I had slept with my camera batteries to keep them warm, this was tripod mounted, two shots.
Rescue news:
www.alpinist.com/doc/web13f/newswire-annapurna-benoist-gr...
www.thebmc.co.uk/benoist-and-graziani-repeat-ueli-stecks-...
www.rtl.fr/actualites/info/environnement/article/ampute-a...
The Annapurna peaks are among the world's most dangerous mountains to climb, although in more recent history, using figures from only 1990 and after, Kangchenjunga has a higher fatality rate. As of the end of 2009, there had been 157 summit ascents of Annapurna I, and 60 climbing fatalities on the mountain. This fatality-to-summit ratio (38%) is the highest of any of the eight-thousanders. In particular, the ascent via the south face is considered, by some, the most difficult of all climbs.
First sun, Annapurna.
From above base camp, 4140m. After overnight snow, I made my way out by moonlight to a point above the S Annapurna glacier and waited with pounding heart for first light. I was not disappointed, the new snow was blowing off the summits, the air was clear and cold, the atmosphere stunning. The scale is difficult to grasp in a photograph, the summit of Annapurna is 4000m above me here, at 8091m, the world's tenth highest mountain. From here to the summit would normally take over 3 weeks to climb the South face. What makes this shot all the more moving was knowing there were two French climbers on the mountain, awaiting rescue. They had completed an alpine style ascent and had been hit by bad weather and were suffereing frostbite. They were rescued by helicopter about 30 mins after this shot. I met one of them off the helicopter, a walking ghost. He would later lose fingers and toes to frostbite.
Photographically, I had slept with my camera batteries to keep them warm, this was tripod mounted, two shots.
Rescue news:
www.alpinist.com/doc/web13f/newswire-annapurna-benoist-gr...
www.thebmc.co.uk/benoist-and-graziani-repeat-ueli-stecks-...
www.rtl.fr/actualites/info/environnement/article/ampute-a...
The Annapurna peaks are among the world's most dangerous mountains to climb, although in more recent history, using figures from only 1990 and after, Kangchenjunga has a higher fatality rate. As of the end of 2009, there had been 157 summit ascents of Annapurna I, and 60 climbing fatalities on the mountain. This fatality-to-summit ratio (38%) is the highest of any of the eight-thousanders. In particular, the ascent via the south face is considered, by some, the most difficult of all climbs.