Shisha Pangma Ski Expedition 2004: Update

Update: Camp 1: I am back in ABC again after a few days on the mountain. When I left ABC I was hoping to go to camp 1 (C1) the first day, further on to camp 2 (C1 ) at 6900 m. the second day and down again to ABC the third day.

I got up to C1 all fine. But on the second day the weather did not cooperate. With no visibility above C1 I could not advance upwards. Instead I went for a ski down the 500 m snow slope below the camp. The visibility was ok, and so was the snow. After skiing I went up to my tent at C1. That evening I was invited to a couple of Italians for dinner. Tortellini, not bad!

The next day the weather was even worse - hard wind and snowfall. I decided then to descend to ABC. Tomorrow, the 24:th, I’ll  comence a new try to climb the mountain. /Fredrik 

SVENSKA: Camp 1

Jag är tillbaka i ABC igen efter ett par dagar på berget. Innan jag lämnade ABC hoppades jag på att kunna gå upp till camp 1 (C1) den första dagen, vidare till camp 2 (C2) den andra och avslutningsvis bege mig åter ned till ABC den tredje.

Vägen upp till C1 gick bra. Men under dag två ville inte vädret vara med mig. Utan sikt ovanför C1 kunde jag inte fortsätta min bestigning mot C2. I stället åkte jag skidor 500 m utför snöbranten som ligger nedanför campen. Både sikten och snön var helt ok. Efter skidåkningen gick jag åter till mitt tält vid C1.

På kvällen blev jag inbjuden till ett gäng italienare på middag. Tortellini, inte illa!

Nästa morgon hade vädret förvärrats ytterligare, med hård vind och snöfall. Jag beslutade mig då för att bege mig ned till ABC. Imorgon, den 24:e kommer jag inleda ett nytt försök att bestiga berget.

Fredrik Ericsson

Shisha Pangma Ski Expedition 2004: There are only 14 mountains in the world that reaches over 8000 metres. Shishapangma in Tibet is one of them. Skier Fredrik Ericsson is, during autumn 2004, going to Tibet to climb and ski descend Shisha Pangma.

The Mountain: Shisha Pangma is 8012 metres high and is located in Tibet. It’s the only 8000 metres peak that is entirely in Tibet. It was first climbed by Chinese climbers in 1964 and until this day no Swedish has sat his foot on the summit.

Team: Fredrik Ericsson is a skier and climber from Umea in Sweden who’s now living in Chamonix, France. He has spent a lot of time in The Hurrungane Mountains in Norway and has skied lines that only has been climbed before. 2003 Fredrik climbed and ski descended the Borodkin route on the 7495 metres high Peak Somoni in Tajikistan.

The Expedition: Fredrik will fly to Kathmandu in Nepal on the 29 of August 2004; thereafter he will travel with a jeep to Tibet via Zangmu and Nyalam to Shisha Pangma Base Camp at the altitude of 5000 metres. After a couple of days of acclimatization he will continue on foot to 5600 metres where the Advanced Base Camp is located. That will be his home for the next month and that’s where the climbing to Shisha Pangma starts. The next couple of weeks will be used for acclimatization climbs to higher altitude. Sometime in the end of September Fredrik will make a push for the summit via camps at 6700 m, 7000 m and 7400 m. He will climb fully on his own without help from Sherpas or supplementary oxygen. On the summit awaits the greatest challenge for Fredrik: to descend on skis.

Fredrik has the possibility to be the first Swede on the summit of Shisha Pangma. He can also be the first Swede to ski descend an 8000 metres peak. Expedition partners: Mountain Hardwear, Dynastar, Åka Skidor, Adidas, Eyewear, Osprey, Smartwool och Duracell 

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