Siula Grande

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Siula Grande
Elevation 6,344 m (20,814 ft)
Location Peru
Range Cordillera Huayhuash
Coordinates 10°17′S 76°53′WCoordinates: 10°17′S 76°53′W
First ascent 1936
Easiest route glacier/snow/ice climb

Siula Grande is a mountain in the Cordillera Huayhuash, in the Peruvian Andes. It is 6344 m high and has a subpeak Siula Chico 6260 m high.[1]

It was made famous by the book Touching the Void by Joe Simpson, about an ascent and subsequent harrowing descent of the mountain by him and Simon Yates in 1985. The book was made into a film of the same title in 2003. Although they ascended the West face, and thereby became the first to reach the summit by that route, they chose the North Ridge (first descended in 1936 by a German team) for their descent, which was made almost impossible by horrible weather. All subsequent climbers have avoided the ridge and rappelled back down the face. As of 2002 the south face has been unconquered.

This is a partial list of first ascents by new routes made.

  • 1936 July 28 North Ridge by Arnold Awerzger and Erwin Schneider from Germany.[2][3]
  • 1966 June 21 fourth ascent by Obster, Schulz and M. Sturm via the North ridge enroute to Siula Chico[4]
  • 1985 West Face by Joe Simpson and Simon Yates[3]
  • 1999 Peru West Face Touching The Void (new route) by Carlos Buhler.[3] (Buhler's route followed the Yates/Simpson route for much of the ascent, and Buhler christened it "Avoiding The Touch")
  • 2001 July 17 Noches de "Juerga", west face[3]
  • 2002 July 3 Northeast Face, Los Rapidos by Slovenians Marjan Kovac and Pavle Kozjek[5][6]
  • 2002 August Mammut Tracks, west face, by Rogier van Rijn and Eva Oomen

Contents

[edit] Siula Chico

Siula Chico is a subpeak about 6260 metre high separated from Siula Grande by an approximately 6000 metre col. Mountaineers considered the easiest route to its summit was via Siula Grande's summit and it was so conquered by Manfred Sturm's 1966 expedition.[7] Spanish alpinists Jordi Corominas and Oriol Baro made the first ascent of Chico's west face, and second ascent of the peak, in 2007 May.[1]

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Lambert
  2. ^ Sturm page 322
  3. ^ a b c d American Alpine Journal 2002 page 305
  4. ^ Sturm page 325
  5. ^ Pavle Kojzek (2002-12-01). Siula Grande. alpinist.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
  6. ^ Nueva ruta en la pared noreste del Siula Grande (Spanish). Vertimania (2002). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
  7. ^ Sturm page 324

[edit] External links

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