Everest, south-north traverse by Simone Moro
The Everest-Lhotse project is one of the last great Himalayan problems to be solved. The thought of achieving it has taken the fancy of some of the best extreme mountaineers, including Simone Moro, who did not miss the chance to live this new adventure. Our friend from Bergamo tells us how things went.
Oscar Durbiano

Everest-Lhotse, a forbidden dream
I had been dreaming of the Everest-Lhotse traverse for years. I had already tried it in the past, but as well as the remarkable difficulty of the venture, something had always gone wrong, leaving me with a bitter taste in my mouth. And so here I am again, many years later, attempting this project again. This year, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first ascent of Lhotse, I had once again prepared myself with great care and had bought a climbing permit for the two mountains on the Nepalese side. Lhotse had been „sold‰ with a 50% discount on the usual price (like a discounted can of tomatoes passed its sell by date)... and having arrived at my 36th expedition, all of them financed by myself and not by sponsors, this could only please me. It would certainly have been better to have had the same discount on Everest since it costs ten times more, but so be it. Operationally speaking I had divided the project into two distinct sections, with different priorities. The first part, the one which I cared for more, was to open a new route, solo on Lhotse (8.516 m) up the west face, descend the South Col, at 8.000 m, following the sacred north ridge. The second part of the project foresaw that from that point, only if I had the strength, I could have continued up to the summit of Everest (8.848 m), which I had already reached twice in the past. All without oxygen, therefore a hypothetical „solo‰, even if it is inappropriate to use this word on a mountain which is attempted regularly by many mountaineers.
In any case to face such a project, solo, carries a certain significance, because it means that all mountaineering equipment, the effort to set up camp and every strategic decision is always undertaken completely autonomously, on your own. This is not a detail to underestimate, especially at a certain altitude, because you can only count on your own strengths and cannot benefit from anyone‚s help.
Unfortunately, due to unforeseen environmental problems which could be blamed on a steady alternating between snowfalls and days of great weather which made the chosen route very dangerous, I decided to avoid committing suicide along the steep and overloaded slopes on the right section of the west face of Lhotse, the one which I had decided to climb. I decided to modify my plan of operation. Not a new route but instead of attempting my third ascent of Lhotse‚s normal route (which I had climbed in 1994 and in 1997), I thought of an alternative, which I could attempt due to my two permits which I had in my pocket. I decided to attempt the complete traverse of Everest, solo...oops, I meant without a partner. To climb, in a few words, the highest summit of the earth along one route and descend by another along the opposite face. I no longer had the climbing permit for the Chinese side. For this reason I decided to descend by the Hornbein couloir, the route opened by the Americans T. Hornbein and W.Unsoeld in 1963, which takes you back into Nepalese territory, after having covered the upper part of the Chinese side of the great mountain.
Things went differently from planned, at least partly. After reaching the South Col (8.000 m), I bivvied two nights without oxygen, with all the consequences this entailed. For this reason I felt weakened and consequently at risk. After examining the situation, I took the decision (which was immediately declared) to use oxygen, taken by a cylinder which was charged at 160 atmospheres (therefore not full) which had been left by some Polish friends. At 23.04 hours on the 19th May I set off from the South Col and started the ascent up Everest, surprised at my speed. I quickly reached a group of mountaineers from a commercial expedition, who had set off at 20.30 hours, and were proceeding very slowly in single file. At 8.400 metres I was on Everest‚s South West ridge, and from there, always on my own, in the dark up to the highest summit on earth, where I had two surprises. There were two headlamps switched on waiting for me up there: owned by an American mountaineer and her sherpa. The second surprise was the time: 3.15 in the morning, therefore in total darkness! After a few seconds of hesitation, and after having taken three photographs from the summit, I decided to take my first step towards the opposite side. The ascent tracks of the previous day had disappeared due to the wind and the fixed ropes were partly covered by snow. I started the tiring job of extracting the ropes to maintain a correct descent line, which in the dark was not easy to locate. The oxygen had already run out a few hours before, when I was still climbing up towards the Nepalese side but managed to keep a quick pace. Once having reached 8.650 metres, a point where you can undertake the long traverse which leads you to the start of the Hornbein couloir, it was still dark and from there I decided to continue the descent down the normal Tibetan route, giving up on following the American route which would have taken me back to Nepal since it was too risky.
It was the only safe choice I could make at that moment. I continued always on my own, without meeting anyone, all of the descent and the work of extracting the rope up to 8.300 metres, where I saw the tents of the last camp on the side. From that point I descended first to camp 2 and then camp 1, where I bumped into a sherpa and three of his colleagues who were returning to base camp. Only 5 hours from the summit, at 8.30 in the morning , I was reaching Everest‚s advanced base camp, happy to have achieved what is considered the first solo traverse (you know what I mean?) of Everest from south to north.
It was not easy to explain to the Tibetans and to the Chinese the reasons for my presence in their territory and it was not easy to logistically organize my return to Kathmandu. My friendship with the Italian anthropologist Maria Luisa Nodali, and her presence, proved providential, since she helped me with all the bureaucratic issues and moving around.
The expedition‚s final balance has been definitely good, in spite of missing out on opening the route and the use of artificial oxygen for four hours during the ascent. The south-north traverse of Everest was achieved for the first time on my own, in spite of my personal equipment being stolen half way through the expedition.. Contrary to what the press spread as news, I was never arrested or expelled by the Chinese authorities. I simply, subsequently paid both the fine and the climbing permit for Everest‚s Tibetan side. In case there will be future emulators I warn them that the fine to expect is of 50.000 dollars. From one who knows…
Simone Moro