Andrzej Bargiel to Ski Everest Before Banff Talk
The top alpinist made the first ski descent of K2 last year
Polish skier Andrzej Bargiel is heading to Nepal to attempt to ski Everest without supplemental oxygen. Last year, he made the first ski descent of K2 and he’d previously skied Broad Peak and Shishapangma.
Bargiel is hoping to ski up and down Everest from basecamp. Everest’s north side was skied in 1996 by Hans Kammerlander, but he started below the summit. And in 2000, Davo Karnicar skied the south using supplemental oxygen.
He has a big support crew, including his brothers Bartek and Gregorz. While he hasn’t released the details of his climb, he’ll be facing challenging conditions on the Khumbu Icefield and extreme winds on the summit. Snow conditions could also be tricky to navigate this time of year.
After his trip to Everest, Bargiel will be heading to Banff to present at the Banff Mountain Festival. The following is a press release from the festival about the Nov. 2 event.
Andrzej Bargiel traded two table tennis paddles and a pocket knife for his first pair of wooden skis. From humble roots as one of eleven children, he became the three time Polish champion in ski mountaineering, and has skied all the highest peaks in Russia.
He is renowned for his cutting-edge descents from four 8,000-metre peaks, including an impossible ski descent of K2. This fall he’ll attempt a world record speed ascent and descent of Mt. Everest. He joins us in Banff along with his brother, filmmaker Bartek Bargiel, for an on stage interview.