Ogre II and I (r.), they reached the col

Three attempts, then it was over. As reported, Alexander Huber, the Swiss Dani Arnold and the two East Tyroleans Mario Walder and Christian Zenz abandoned their expedition on the 7285-meter-high Ogre I in Pakistan and returned home. They had wanted to reach the summit of the mountain, which so far has been scaled only three times, over the still not mastered East Pillar. I spoke to Alexander, aged 48, the younger of the two Huber brothers, about the failed expedition.

Alexander, you wrote on Facebook that you knew what the mountain wanted to tell you. What was the message?

We set off to the mountain three times and were able to control the situation with maximum risk management three times. But we noticed every time that we were running extremely late. There was only a very short time window to move safely on the mountain. In this case you have to be en route with full steam to get out of the danger zone on time. We did it three times, and it turned out well. But one day it won’t work so well, and then you are in the middle of this extremely dangerous terrain and can not get out.

In addition, we had such a bad snow. We fought through slush, at 6,100 meters, and in the middle of the night! Those were brutal conditions. This is clearly due to climate change. So better stay away if you want to survive.

Alexander Huber

Was it an unanimous decision to abandon the attempt?

Absolutely unanimous. It was clear to all of us that under such circumstances we do not even have the slightest chance of coming close to the summit at all. And if I know I’m not going to reach the summit, because the snow is so lousy, it’s better to leave it be. We have also seen the snowfields above and realized that an avalanche had swept down there. Of course, it doesn’t ensure a good atmosphere if you see that the snow conditions above are still problematic and very dangerous.

Climate change leaves traces

You mentioned climate change. Once again, it was extremely warm in the Karakoram this summer. Do you think it’s an alternative to arrive at a later date?

I experienced it two years ago on Latok, last year in Greenland and now again: Climate change is so clearly noticeable that it almost hurts. As in the Alps, mountaineering will also have to change in the Karakoram. Probably in the future climbers will first acclimatize on an easy seven-thousander and then travel to such a difficult mountain as Ogre towards the end of August, for only two or three weeks. This is the only scenario I can think of so far, so that you can tackle such a dangerous mountain with the strength you need. For sure, I’m going to do it this way next time.

So, you will try for the third time to scale Ogre I?

Maybe. In 1993, I first envisaged this mountain as a goal, along with some friends from the Bavarian town of Traunstein. However, in the end we decided to go to Latok II, where I went with Thomas in 1997. [With Toni Gutsch and the American Conrad Anker, they succeeded the first ascent via the West Face of Latok II]. In 1999, we tried to climb Ogre I [With Gutsch and Jan Mersch, they tried in vain to climb via the South Pillar to the summit]. This was the beginning of my thinking about mountaineering and climbing on the very high mountains. That’s why Ogre is somehow anchored in me. If it fits, I’ll go back there. But if I do so, then certainly with completely changed tactics.

East Pillar of Ogre I

This summer, there was hardly anything to be gained on Ogre I. “The weather was almost always rather bad,” German top climber Alexander Huber writes on Facebook about his expedition to the 7285-meter-high mountain in Pakistan. The conditions were marginal. “A little old snow from the winter and a lot of fresh snow from early summer in the structure of the snowpack. In addition always high temperatures. Summing up, piles of slush.” The 48-year-old, the younger of the Huber brothers, had wanted to reach the summit along with the East Tyroleans Mario Walder and Christian Zenz and the Swiss Dani Arnold via the still unclimbed East Pillar. Even before departure, Alexander had described Ogre I to me as “one of the most exclusive peaks of our planet, one of the most difficult spots to reach”. This was confirmed: Climbing was only possible after night schedule.

Terminus at the foot of the pillar

Dangerous ascent to the col

“During our three ascents to the col between Ogre I and Ogre II, we had to expend much energy to control the objective risks, “ reports Alexander. “Seracs, collapsing snow cornices, rockfall and wet snow avalanches, the first at 6 a.m., left us little room. Every activity had to take place between midnight and 5 a.m., then we had to wait in the tent for 19 hours until next night’s action.“ The plan to be en route only at night “unfortunately worked only half way”, writes Dani Arnold on his website, “because it took a few hours before the snow got hard in the night and until the sunrise we had little time to climb.” Finally, the decision was made: The entry to the East Pillar was the terminal stop of the night train – “far from the possibility to get close to the summit,” says Alexander Huber. “We are ready to give very much for a mountain: energy, motivation, willingness to suffer, commitment, risk tolerance. But if it is hopeless, we realize quickly that it is time to say no.”

Only three ascents

So the number of successful ascents on Ogre I remains at only three. The first was made 40 years ago, on 13 July 1977, by the British climbers Chris Bonington and Doug Scott. The descent became a drama with a happy end: Scott broke both ankles, Bonington two ribs. Nevertheless, both of them, supported by the other team members, reached the base camp one week after their summit success – one of the great survival stories on the highest mountains in the world.  In 2001, Alexander’s brother Thomas and the two Swiss Urs Stoecker and Iwan Wolf succeeded the second ascent of the mountain, in 2012 the Americans Kyle Dempster and Hayden Kennedy the third one.

Having taken the risk seriously

Nothing to be gained

For Alexander Huber it was his second failed attempt on Ogre I. In 1999, he had tried with his brother Thomas, Toni Gutsch and Jan Mersch in vain to climb via the South Pillar to the summit. The decision to turn around again was anything but easy, Alexander admits: “But I think we understood what the mountain wanted to tell us. And the mountain will be there even longer!” Dani Arnold also bears the failure on Ogre with dignity. “I am disappointed now,” writes the 33-year-old. “I am convinced, however, that it won’t turn out all right some day if you take an objective risk too often. Apart from that, I also think it is stupid if you don’t take serious what is foreseeable.”

Alexander Huber

Ogre has on the Huber brothers almost the same effect as the singing of the Sirens in Greek mythology: the two German top climbers can hardly escape the call of this fascinating granite giant. Time and again in their long careers Alexander and Thomas Huber have set off to the Ogre massif in the Karakoram or the nearby peaks of the Latok group. In 1999, they failed in their attempt to climb the 7,285-meter-high Ogre I. Thomas succeeded the second ascent of the mountain in 2001, along with the two Swiss Urs Stoecker and Iwan Wolf. The first ascent was made almost 40 years ago, on 13 July 1977 by the British climbers Chris Bonington and Doug Scott. The descent became a drama with a happy end: Scott broke both ankles, Bonington two ribs. Nevertheless, both of them, supported by the other team members, reached the base camp one week after their summit success – one of the great survival stories on the highest mountains in the world.

Easier doing it with friends

Yesterday Alexander Huber set off to Ogre. His team includes the two East Tyroleans Mario Walder and Christian Zenz and the Swiss Dani Arnold. With Dani (and Thomas Senf), Alexander had opened a new route through the Matterhorn North Face last March. With Mario and Christian, he had succeeded  the first ascent of a route on the mountain Ritterknecht in East Greenland in summer 2016. “It’s good to be on the road with partners you know,” says Alexander Huber. His three companions are not only good, competent climbers, but also friends, says the younger of the two Huber brothers. “You have to spend a lot of time together, often moments of tension. The better the human chemistry fits, the better it is.” I talked with the 48-year-old about his expedition before he left for Pakistan.

Alexander, you are heading to Ogre, a seven-thousander in the Karakoram. What exactly are you planning?

Ogre I (l.) and Ogre II, the East Pillar leads from col to the left

We would like to climb the East Pillar. This route has not yet been completed. (Several attempts on the east side of Ogre failed, e.g. in 1992, a Spanish team turned around in a snowstorm at 6,500 meters.) But it is not so much the idea to create a first ascent on this mountain, but to reach the summit at all. It is one of the most exclusive peaks of our planet, one of the most difficult spots to reach. Thomas realized the second ascent of Ogre in 2001, since then there was only one further ascent (in 2012 by the Americans Kyle Dempster and Hayden Kennedy). That shows, this is not an easy summit, but that’s exactly why we want to go there.

Only three ascents – and there was no lack of attempts, there were well above 20 expeditions on this mountain. What makes it so difficult?

The Ogre is simply an incredibly complex mountain with many objective dangers, arising from the seracs, which are practically on all sides. That’s why the East Pillar is our goal – because, from my point of view, it is free from objective dangers. Seen from a distance, I believe we can avoid all the seracs on this route. We will see what happens in reality. But I hope that we can explore and realize the maximum safe way to the summit of Ogre.

Ogre means “man-eater”. Does this mountain justify its name?

The first ascenders of Ogre, Bonington (l.) and Scott (in April 2015)

Actually you cannot really say that. There was an accident in which a climber was killed. (On a German expedition, which tried in 1993 to climb via the Ogre South Pillar, the Swiss Philipp Groebke fell to death.) However, it’s certainly not the man-eater in itself. For this, the mountain is too challenging. Meaning that all of those who try to climb Ogre are  competent, strong climbers who know exactly what they are doing. Usually mountaineering becomes dangerous when incompetent people try to reach a summit. The best example of this in the Himalayas is surely Mount Everest. There will be a lot of fatalities in the future too because many people want to climb the mountain without having the necessary skills. In this respect, Ogre doesn’t deserve its name. It’s not a man-eater.

However, Ogre is not its original name, but Baintha Brakk. Baintha is a meadow on the edge of the Biafo Glacier, from where the highest point of the mountain can be seen as the dominant peak. Brakk means peak. So it is the peak that you can see from the meadow Baintha. In any case, I think we should return to the original names of the mountains. Mount McKinley is Denali, Mount Everest from the Tibetan side Chomolungma, from the Nepalese side Sagarmatha, K 2 is Chogori, and Ogre is Baintha Brakk.

Alex, Mario and Dani (from l. to r.) on the summit of the six-thousander Panmah Kangri in 2015

The past summers in the Karakoram were very warm. This led to the failure of many expeditions. What kind of weather will give you a real chance on Ogre?

If we have the same conditions as two years ago (then the Huber brothers were en route with Mario Walder and Dani Arnold in the Latok group), when the zero-degree line was at 6,500 meters and higher over several weeks, we will get into trouble again. I think mountaineering will change in the future due to climate change anyway. The mountaineers have to adjust to this. If the zero-degree line continues to move up, we will have to switch to the fall or spring season. I have now chosen the summer season again, because I am convinced that on the way to the summit of Ogre it is important that you do not have low temperatures in the summit area. Perhaps we are lucky that this time the conditions fit. The weather is difficult to interpret. But these are the challenges we are now confronted with.

You have already canceled an expedition to Pakistan in 2014 because of the explosive political situation. Do you go there again with a queasy feeling?

Unfortunately, you cannot travel in Pakistan like you did 20 years ago. I have been able to get to know Pakistan at a time when the division did not exist between the Western world and the Muslim, Arab world. At that time you could move freely in this country. If you are traveling across the countryside today, you can never be sure that there will not be any terrorist attacks, especially against tourists. That’s why there is no more tourism in Pakistan. The people who still travel to the country are exclusively mountaineers who have a very specific goal. When we go there, we are really undercover on the road, which means we are not visible.

Alexander Huber had already visited East Greenland last year, but in another season. “You just cannot imagine in arctic winter that everything is completely free of snow in summer. This shows quite clearly the effect of climate change”, tells me the 47-year-old, the younger of the two Huber brothers. “It’s very unusual that the zero-degree line in Greenland is permanently at a height of 2500 to 3000 meters.”

Attractive alternative destination

Ritterknecht

Huber and Co. re-planned without further ado and decided upon an attempt on the East Pillar of the 2020-meter-high Ritterknecht, which many climbers know under the Danish name Rytterknægten. The distinctive mountain in the so-called “Schweizerland” (Swiss land) was first climbed in 1938 by an expedition of the “Academic Alpine Club Zurich”. The group led by climber André Roch had scaled more than a dozen peaks in East Greenland for the first time. Alexander had picked up the East Pillar as a possible goal last year. “That was part of the motivation to start the journey. A 1000-meter-high pillar with an impressive massive shape. Of course, it’s an attractive goal for an alpinist to climb such a pillar.” Huber found out that apparently no one had climbed it so far. “We made a first ascent of this pillar, which was a great thing.”

Made what was possible

Successful team: Schneider, Huber, Zenz, Walder (f.l.t.r.)

Within 24 hours the quartet climbed via the pillar to the summit and back to their camp on the glacier. It was “a powerful ascent,” Mario Walder wrote in his expedition report. The climbers called their new route “Carpe diem”, what literally means “Pluck the day”. The motto also applies to the expedition, says Alexander Huber: “We have used and enjoyed our chances. We have just done what was possible and accepted it contendedly.” The climbers were on the way for three weeks. The special attraction of an expedition to the Arctic lies in the “absolute remoteness,” says Alexander. “An Inuit has led us to the end of the fjord. And from that moment we were the only people who were traveling in this mountainous region.”

Vulnerable

Immediately prior to departure from Iceland to Greenland Alexander Huber was informed about the 16-meter fall of his brother Thomas from a rock face in the Berchtesgaden region. “For me this was quite a dramatic moment, because I did not know whether I should set off or not. Before I flew, I wanted to know that he was alright.” Although Thomas – as reported – got off lightly, Alexander was shocked.: “Things like that bring to your mind how vulnerable you are as a human.”

P.S. Alexander Huber has just returned from the rocky mountain massif Picos de Europa in northern Spain. There he and his German climbing partner Fabian Buhl succeeded in free climbing the classic route “Suenos de invierno” (Winter Dreams) on the 2518-meter-high Naranjo de Bulnes for the first time – within nine hours. The Spanish climbers who had done the first ascent of the route in winter 1983 had spent a total of 69 days in the wall.