“Free Tibet 2065″–New Route Established on Ama Dablam

Francesco Fazzi (Italy) and Santiago Padros (Spanish) have established a new route up the west face of Ama Dablam. The new route, being called “Free Tibet 2065″, was established over a period of two days where the duo then climbed down via the normal southwest ridge. The new route established, could actually be the fastest route up the West Face. Ama Dablam sits at 22,493 feet.

Climbing.com has more information:

“After acclimatizing during a couple of forays on the mountain
(including a trip to the summit by Padrós with Slovenian Peter Tomko),
the two men started up a snow gully on the lower west face, climbing
along or very near the 1985 Japanese route. A little over halfway up
the 5,000-foot face, they veered left to a bivouac atop a serac at
around 20,300 feet, very near the 1980 Japanese route on the upper west
face. The next day, they continued up what appears to be unclimbed
ground between the 1980 and 1985 routes, following a direct line to the
summit. The two climbed for 11 hours over mixed terrain, with steep
snow and occasional difficult rock steps. Exhausted by the rapid
ascent, they bivvied on the summit and then descended the next day.

Anytime a new route is established on an 8,000 meter peak, it is a very big deal. I am sure that in the years to come, more climbers will be wanting to try their hand at the new route, possibly cutting some time off their own expedition. These two should be commended on their effort for doing something that hasn’t been done before.

Climbing.com also alludes to the fact that he name of the new route, “Free Tibet 2065,” came about because Nepal’s calendar is a bit different than our own. The Nepali year 2065 overlaps the western years 2008-2009. Some interesting insight.