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Tanja and Monika's Cerro Torre debrief: What it takes to climb with women - Part 1

Mar 7, 2005 03: 09 EST
Last week, the report of the first all-female ascent of Cerro Torre hit the news. Slovenian lady climbers Tanja Grmovsek and Monika Kambic-Mali completed the Compressor route on the impressive Patagonian Spire.

Back at home, Tanja has taken the time to discuss the experience, which meant a great deal more to her than just the average climb. Today, part 1 of Tanja Grmovsek’s account:

My first time in Patagonia

I had been thinking of going to Patagonia to do some climbing with other women for a long time. Somehow, my plans coordinated with another very strong Slovenian climber, Monika Kambic–Mali, and we decided to go together.

Monika was well familiar with Patagonia (she was born in Argentina and lived there for many years). Last year Monika and another Slovenian climber Tina Di Batista accomplished the first all-female ascent on Fitz Roy through the French-Argentinean route. This was my first time there, though, and I was just wide-eyed and very curious the whole time.

What it takes to climb with women

Why do two women get together to climb? Does it matter? Is it something special? It’s not that I don’t like to climb with male climbers. My best climbing partner is still my husband, Andrej. It’s more about challenging ourselves, to test if we are able to do a climb that is hard for most men too. Climbing with other women is usually more demanding for me because there is “no cheating.”

Nobody does anything for me. I must solve all the problems by myself. So nobody can say I was pulled up by my climbing partner. To climb with equal women, to do a hard climb when you have to show all of your best and when you have to do it all by yourself is really a challenge. Are you able to do it?! Do you dare?! It’s very rare that two good female climbers get together. But in Slovenia there are quite a few strong female climbers in my generation now. We all just like climbing!

Arrive to face the weather

Our small team from Slovenia: Monika Kambic-Mali, Silvo Karo, Andrej Grmovsek, and myself, settled down in Campo de Agostini on January17.

The main climbing goal for us, the woman team, was Cerro Torre, but Patagonian weather would choose for us what to climb first. To be totally honest, when I saw Cerro Torre for the first time, I was afraid to tell the others that we wanted to climb it. Cerro Torre is one of the most beautiful and the most unusual mountains I have ever seen! To climb it with another woman seemed kind of too bold. So, from the beginning, I just stared at it every day, wishing to climb at least one smaller Patagonian peak.

A long climbing day

In Agostini we met many climbers already waiting for a window of good weather to climb Cerro Torre. But the weather was bad and so was the forecast, which Thomas Huber was getting from Innsbruck (Thank you, Thomas!). Except for one day, the forecast was always bad (though not enough for Torre). So we joined Silvo and Andrej for a climbing day on the rocky westerly walls above Agostini. On January 19 Monika and I attempted the west face of Ag. Saint Exupery through the iced Kearney-Harrington route. After climbing some delicate mixed pitches in cracks and corners covered in ice (normally, it would be rock climbing) we decided to rappel back down. We were too slow to reach the top in just one afternoon. It was a great exercise though, and provided us with great views of the Torre group.

On the next day, I recall our legs were stiff. At the end of the expedition we would be so well trained that we could make it to the national soccer team now.

Hey guys, I’m at the top!

Some time later, another day of good weather was forecasted. We moved to Polacos and waited for the weather to improve. It didn’t. But we went for Ag. de la ‘S (2335m) through the variation between the North Ridge and the Austrian route (6a, 60°, 600m). In cold, windy weather we climbed ice couloirs and some rocky pitches to the top, which would have been nice if there wasn’t a storm developing. We rappelled in the middle of a snowstorm and made it down completely wet. That was my introduction to the ‘real Patagonian weather’ I heard so much about. I was also very happy: I had climbed my first Patagonian peak! I bet not so many women have climbed it.

Back in El Chalten, rumors about a long period of good weather were passing from climber to climber. We hurried back to the mountains with big packs of food. We carried our climbing gear from Polacos to Norwegos bivouac and there we went! On January 31, we started our ‘personal conquest’ of the mythical Cerro Torre (3102m).

Climbing a waterfall

We climbed some snowy rock pitches to the Col de la Esperanza and first fixed three pitches of the Compressor route (6a, A1+, 65°, 900m + to the Col; 5, 50°,300m). The next day at 4am, we set off light, without sleeping bags and stove, and climbed fast, meeting Andrej and Silvo on first bolt traverse returning from the summit after an amazing ascent.

We climbed the whole time in very wet conditions. On many pitches there were waterfalls running down the wall, exactly where Silvo and Andrej had found ice just one day before. We climbed in ‘ensemble’ when the terrain permitted and used just the jumar in some vertical bolt pitches because it was faster. We were in boots and crampons most of the time. If we knew at the time, it would have been much better to stop on the nice ledge above first bolt traverse and wait there for the next day. But we resumed the climb and got even more soaked.

The clouds surrounded us, the wind started to blow from the south, and the night came. We tried to find a good place for a bivouac, but we couldn’t find one. We kept on climbing trough the night. The weather was getting worse and worse. The storm started. Our clothes were totally wet because of melting water, rain and snow. The situation was getting serious. The summit was near, but we wanted to stay alive and not freeze in the storm. When a strong gust of wind separated my body from the vertical wall, I thought, “That’s it, Patagonian weather.” “Fxxk it,” I exclaimed. “We are so close!”

Only the top counts

Only eight pitches from the top, with pain in our hearts, we decided to retreat. We looked at each other and just knew it. We had to go down as fast as possible! We rappelled through the night and the next day. The whole wall became one big waterfall. Our ropes were completely soaked. They got stuck many times and were very hard to pull down. The next day the weather got sunny again. But our chance was gone. The lower part to the Col got really messy. The snow on the left collapsed and I didn’t want to think that I might come here again. Oh, we were so high up! I knew we could make it, if… But we didn’t. Only the very top of the mountains counts in Patagonia.

Andrej Grmovsek and Silvo Karo climbed Cerro Torre through the Compressor route, but not from the usual starting point. They climbed for the first time what they call a 'sit start' or 'Slovenian start' to the route: Before reaching the Col de Conqueste - the base of Cerro Torre's Compressor route - they had climbed for eleven hours and summited several Towers on their way, some of them with no previous ascents.

Tomorrow: Part 2, and a second Chance on Torre.

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