American climbers perform a record ski descent on Mt Lhotse
Kathmandu, September 30
Two American climbers today set a world record becoming the first people to make a successful ski descent from the summit of the world’s fourth highest mountain in the autumn climbing season.
Renowned ski mountaineers — James White Morrison and Hilaree Nelson — made a ski descent from the top of Mt Lhotse after reaching the summit point of the 8,516-metre mountain at 1:27pm, Pemba Sherpa, co-founder of the Xtreme Climbers Treks and Expeditions, said.
“They made a ski descent to Camp II from the top of Mt Lhotse while the climbers will descend to Camp I tomorrow covering a total of around 7,000-vertical-foot ski line comprising a 2,500-foot couloir and an open face of Mt Lhotse,” Sherpa quoted team leader Morrison as saying.
Though many climbers made failed attempts to ski down from Mt Lhotse in the past, Morrision and Nelson finally achieved the feat this autumn using a route eluded by mountaineers for several decades, Sherpa shared.
According to him, Morrison, Nelson, Dutch Michael and Nicholas Kalis along with Ila Nuru Sherpa and Fu Tashi Sherpa stood atop the mountain today after Urken Lendu Sherpa and Palden Namge Sherpa fixed a route to the summit point last evening. “Urken became the first climber to scale Mt Lhotse this autumn while Palden reached a few metres below the summit point.”
Xtreme Climbers Treks and Expeditions locally oraganised the historic ski expedition on Mt Lhotse, he added.
According to Sherpa, the climbers began attempting the first ski decent of the dream line on Mt Lhotse.
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