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Alpinist Doc A SEASON IN PATAGONIA Contents The greatest climber in the world is the one having the most fun. Alex Lowe Editor’s Note ....................................................... 2 Faces: Cesare Maestri Giulio Malfer .................................. 3 Bienvenidos a Patagonia . 4 Tequila Sunrise Andy Cave . 6 The Call Dean Potter . 9 From the Hip Bean Bowers . 11 Dominos Ermanno Salvaterra . 12 Downtime A Visual Tribute . 14 Forbidden Fruit Leo Houlding . 20 Southern Cross Jonathon Copp . 22 Tower Slayer Steve Schneider . 24 The Other Half of the Climb Timmy O’Neill . 27 Season Overview . 29 With special thanks to Rolando Garibotti and Beth Wald for their help with this issue. Alpinist Magazine Issue 0 P. O. Box 4956 Telephone: 307-734-0600 1160 Alpine Lane, Suite 2G Fax: 307-733-3708 Jackson, WY 83001 http://www.alpinist.com Editorial submissions: [email protected] General correspondence: [email protected] Alpinist Magazine is a publication of Alpinist LLC. We publish four times yearly; retail price is $12.95 per issue ($19.95 in Canada). Retailers: please see our website for retail sales information. Subscriptions: Continental US: $46 (one year); $89 (two years). Canada: US$52 (one year); US$99 (two years). Foreign subscriptions: US$58 (one year); US$113 (two years). All prices are for surface mail. Printed in Canada. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2002 Alpinist LLC. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Disclaimer: Don’t do it. Look at the pictures between these covers, read the stories. Look in Leo’s eyes. Don’t be a fool. This shit kills people, takes friends, steals parents, seduces children. Maybe you won’t die climbing, but you might. We suggest golf. [Cover] Pain! Leo Houlding moments after shattering his right talus on the east face of Cerro Torre. Kevin Thaw/Leo Houlding collection [Left] A storm begins to clear over the ice mushrooms and granite spires of the Cerro Torre group. Left to right: Cerro Torre, Torre Egger, and Cerro Standhardt, Argentine Patagonia. Beth Wald [Back cover] Tim O’Neill after the descent from Fitz Roy. Nathan Martin 1 Cesare Maestri : curriculum vitae 1951: Detassis-Giordani Route (5.5, 820m), Croz dell’Altissimo, solo ascent, and first descent (solo) of Paganella. 1952: Campanile Comicci Route (5.8 A1, Editor’s Note 350m), Salame del Sassolungo, first solo We believe in sinker jams high off the deck, a bomber nut, ascent. Solleder Route (5.8, 1200m), Civetta, first solo ascent. the crescent moon, your partner’s whoop, sand-washing the fry pan, road trips, one-swing sticks, remembering to 1953: Soldà-Conforto Route (5.9 A2, 650m), Marmolada, first solo ascent. breathe, alpine starts (more for the alpenglow than the Guides’ Route (5.8, 850m), Crozzon di early hour), espresso in the desert, the plungestep, pb&j Brenta, first solo ascent. on tortillas, lenticular cloudcaps, rest days, the focus of a 1954 : Solo traverse of Ambiez-Tuckett runout, a cold beer at the end of it all. If you believe in (sixteen summits in eighteen hours). these things too, join us. 1955: Southwest Ridge (5.6, 650m [from the Carrel Hut]), Matterhorn, solo winter ascent. Oppio Route (5.9 A1, 800m), Croz dell’Altissimo, first solo ascent. 1956: Guides’ Route (5.8, 850m), Crozzon di Brenta, first descent (solo). Solleder Route (5.8, 700m), Sass Maor, first winter solo ascent. Micheluzzi Route (5.8, 500m), Piz Ciavazes, first solo ascent. 1958: Detassis-Dibona Route (5.8, 850m), Croz dell’Altissimo, first descent (solo). 1959: East Face to North Ridge (grade given at time of ascent as “ice up to 80°,” 1374m), Cerro Torre, first ascent (disputed), Argentine Patagonia, with Tony Egger (Egger perished on the descent, killed by an avalanche). 1960 : Direttissima Route (A2, 350m), Red Wall, Roda di Vael, first ascent, with C. Baldessarri, and first descent (solo). 1961: Buhl Route (5.10a/b A1, 350m), Roda di Vael, first solo ascent, and solo Co-Founders: Marc Ewing and Christian Beckwith Cesare Maestri (b. November 2, 1929, Trento, Italy) Publisher: Marc Ewing ([email protected]) descent of Direttissima Route. Editor-in-Chief: Christian Beckwith ([email protected]) Cesare Maestri, “the Spider of the Dolomites,” was the first person to establish solo climbs of the sixth grade (UIAA—roughly equivalent to YDS 5.10); 1963: he also was adept at solo down climbing at similar levels of difficulty. In Italy, he occupies a rarified position in the pantheon of elite Italian alpinists. He Office Manager: Linda Russo ([email protected]) Kolibris Route (5.10a/b A2, 550m), Cima Grande, with C. Baldessari. will forever be remembered the world over, however, for his association with a mountain far from his home. His claim of the first ascent of Cerro Torre, Mountain Editor: Jeff Hollenbaugh ([email protected]) with the brilliant ice specialist Tony Egger, in 1959 (via a route that has yet to be repeated), created an international polemic that he “answered” with a Art Director: Jane McMillan ([email protected]) return to the mountain in 1970. In that year, on two separate trips (a winter attempt in May and a summer attempt the following December), Maestri 1970: Southeast Ridge (a.k.a. Compressor Advertising Director: Kim Santangelo ([email protected]) climbed the Southeast Ridge of Cerro Torre (the so-called “Compressor Route”) to the end of the technical difficulties on rock, some 60 meters below the Circulation Director: Tom Wiles ([email protected]) Route, VI 5.10b A2 70°, 900m; first mushroom summit. He ignored the final ice slopes and mushroom that mark the true summit, dismissing the mushroom with the comment, “It’s just a complete ascent, Brewer-Bridwell, 1979), lump of ice, not really part of the mountain; it will blow away one of these days.” Cerro Torre, Argentine Patagonia. Maestri owns the climbing shop La Botega di Cesare Maestri in Madonna di Campiglio, in the Brenta Dolomites, where he lives with his wife. He is currently training for a November 2002 climb of the Tibetan 8000-meter peak Cho Oyu, “to spread a message of peace to all people.” Photo: Malfer for his help with this section, and to Luca Maspes, Alberto Peruffo are grateful to Mr. We Giulio Malfer. c.v. Samuele Scalet, and Arturo Castagna for their assistance with Cesare Maestri’s (www.intraisass.it), 2 Photo: Galen Rowell Photo: GalenRowell Andy Cave If I try to pinpoint the fatal moment that catapulted us all into that chaotic misery right at the beginning of the expedition, I am in no doubt that it was when the tall gentleman turned on his artificial foam machine in the Abracadabra Nightclub in Puerto Natales. Until that point we had been enjoying ourselves, but in a restrained manner, congratulating each other on a good day’s work, which included buying all the necessary food and equipment and organizing transport to Paine National Park the following morning. Another factor that might be taken into consideration is the ridiculous amount of tequila that the barman allowed Leo Houlding to purchase immedi- ately prior to the foam machine being switched on. Downing huge gulps of the clear, viscous liquid had the effect of turning normally placid, reserved members of the expedition into raving lunatics. Dave Hesleden started the proceedings by fighting his way through the crowd and thrusting his head deep into the spewing foam cannon. Meanwhile, Simon Nadin, chest-deep in foam and surrounded by local admirers, took center stage on the dance floor. By 6:45 a.m., the fun of the drink and the foam had worn off—which was just as well, as our bus to the park was due to arrive at seven. During our approach to base camp in the Bader Valley that morning, we lacked our usual mountaineering acumen. Half the team walked up the right bank of the raging Bader River while the other half walked up the left. After moving uphill for almost two hours, we were able to wave to each other from the edges of the 1,000-foot gorge that now separated us. Finally, later that evening, we regrouped at our intended base-camp site, and, after sighing a brief sigh of relief, realized we had lost Leo. After supper, he had still not arrived. Fearing the worst, we mounted a search. Phase One involved Dave descending 2,000 feet to the hotel directly below to check for Leo in the bar. One hour later, I sat in the dark on the edge of the gorge and began counting the flashes beamed up from below. Three flashes meant all was well; six meant that Leo wasn’t there. After the third flash, time stood still. I recalled the voice of Leo’s father at Manchester Airport. “Make sure you look after him, won’t you? I don’t know why, but I’ve been worried about him going on this Patagonia trip.” [ Above] It’s all fun and games until someone loses a retina. My heart suddenly sank as the light below continued flashing without David Gonzalez pause. Six. [ Facing page] Dazed and confused. Ross Purdy and Neil Harvey The team now packed rucksacks and set off into the night. At the hotel, Dave trying to find base camp the morning after. Andy Cave Hesleden was nowhere to be seen. 1 6 By now the weather had turned nasty, with high winds and driving, The wind pushed it farther and farther toward the edge of the gorge. On horizontal rain. I woke the owner of the hotel by banging on the door and asked the very lip, the tent caught on a small bush and hung there, tantalizingly. if he had seen a twenty-year-old blond Englishman named Leo Houlding.
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