Yesterday I noted the success of an international team of climbers in the Antarctic who completed the second ascent of a rock spire called the Spectre. Not to be outdone by their European counterparts, a group of all-start climbers from the U.S. is also down south and has been putting up some impressive routes as well.The very strong team of climbers includes the likes of Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin, Alex Honnold, Cedar Wright, Savannah Cumins, and Anna Pfaff. The group is also joined by cameraman Pablo Durana, who is documenting the expedition to Queen Maud Land, where they are focused on opening new routes in an area rich with possibilities.
According to this story from Planet Mountain, Honnold and Wright have been exploring different routes near the famous Ulvetanna cathedral. The entire team arrived on the frozen continent on December 1, and immediately started scouting out six different peaks that surround their base camp, which includes Holtanna, Hollstind, Kinntanna, Stetind, Hel and, obviously, Ulvetanna itself.
Reportedly, Honnold and Wright first joined forces with Cumins and Pfaff to climb the 2650 meter (8694 ft) Holtanna, before they moved on to establish three new routes in the region, including a 400 meter (1312 ft) line up Mount Fenris. Meanwhile, Anker and Chin have been focused on a project of their own which involves a new route up Ulvetanna.
As you can imagine, we'll be keeping an eye on their progress for the rest of the season. It should be interesting to see what this incredibly talented group can do. Hopefully we'll get some awesome video footage out of it.
