Americans Make Historic Repeat of a 5.13a on Trango Tower
Jesse Huey, Matt Segal and Jordan Cannon have repeated Cowboy Direct 5.13a on Trango Tower
In 1995 , Todd Skinner, Mike Lilygren, Jeff Bechtel and Bobby Model spent 60 days on Trango Tower making the first ascent of Cowboy Direct VII 5.13. Jesse Huey, Matt Segal and Jordan Cannon have just made the second ascent.
This is one of the most impressive high-altitude ascents of the season anywhere in the Karakoram or Himalaya. There will surely be a lot of stories about their trip over the next few months, but Segal broke the news on Instagram, saying, “It was humbling and truly an honor being in the mountains with these two. We gave everything we had for over 12 days on the wall enduring snowstorms every day, swinging leads and all sending the crux 5.13a pitch around 19K. We bled, we cried and we all grew closer becoming inseparable brothers on this massive effort.” Read more from Segal below.
In the 1996 American Alpine Journal, Bobby Model wrote about the route’s first ascent. Below is an excerpt from his report, which you can read in full here.
“We started from basecamp on the Trango glacier in mid-July, after Steve Bechtel returned home due to illness. His position on the team was later filled by his younger brother Jeff, who was brought along only to manage Base Camp. Jeff had climbed only a few times before. With the help of a porter, the group ferried gear to the base of the tower and began climbing. The ascent was prolonged by both the difficult free climbing, and several week-long storms that pinned them on the wall. The team spent 75 percent of the time camped at the shoulder and the other 25 percent camped in portaledges at the ‘Pyramids’ at two-thirds height. The top third of the tower yielded some of the greatest climbing known to man. The ‘Fantastic Crack’ split through the top third of the tower as if it had been cut by a laser. Overall, the climbing consisted of numerous pitches of 5.11 and 5.12, and one pitch of 5.13. Bolts were added at belays and at sections of blank wall. The nature of the climbing, however, required very few bolts. Food poisoning and edema nearly wiped out Skinner and Model; each of the members lost at least 20 pounds. The team’s permit was extended four times by liason officer Maj. Adnan Hafeez.”
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