Matteo Della Bordella in Karakorum - en

Matteo Della Bordella recounts the attempt on the East Pillar of the Ogre and the new route on Baintha Kabata

"This time the Karakoram mountains left us no opportunity to accomplish the goal we had dreamed of: our forty-day stay in the Ogre's presence was almost all spent in constant rain and snowfall, waiting in vain for a clearing. Only toward the end of our stay did the Ogre grant us a couple of days of somewhat more stable weather, still giving us the opportunity to open a splendid and difficult route up to the 6250-meter summit of Baintha Kabata. A gift that allowed us to end our adventure with a smile on our faces."

There is definitely a bit of regret in the words with which Ferrino ambassador Matteo Della Bordella comments on the recently concluded expedition.

The Italian mountaineer, a member of the prestigious Ragni della Grignetta group and of the Italian Academic Alpine Club, had set out for Karakorum at the end of last June, together with Matterhorn Mountain Guide François Cazzanelli, the Swiss Silvan Schüpbach and the Frenchman Symon Welfringer. The goal was to open a new route on the untouched East Pillar of the Ogre (7285 meters) one of the most beautiful and difficult mountains in the world, whose summit, to date, has been reached by only three roped parties.

"The effects of this very hot and unstable summer were also felt among the high peaks of Asia," says Matteo, "from the moment we reached base camp, at 4,000 meters above sea level, the rain accompanied us relentlessly. We still made an attempt to climb the pillar, but the heavy rainfall and the freezing temperatures above 5,500 meters soon put us off. The desire to tackle this challenge that we had so long dreamed of and prepared for was great, but the danger posed by the constant snow and boulder discharges was just too much beyond what we were willing to put on the line. We returned hoping for another opportunity, but unfortunately the days passed by inexorably, listening to the patter of rain above our tents. This, after all, is also one of the unknowns and risks that make mountaineering research and exploration fascinating and challenging...."

Only in the last days of July, now running out of time, did the forecast announce a couple of days of more stable weather, still too few for a goal as grand as the East Pillar of the Ogre.

"So many years of mountaineering experience have taught me that the ability to objectively assess one's options and choose alternative plans is at least as important as tenacity and determination to pursue one's dreams," explains Matthew, "So, faced with the last short window of good weather we had, we decided to change our plans, aiming to open a new route on the south face of a beautiful 6250-meter peak, Baintha Kabata, or "Son of the Ogre," as it was christened in Urdu language by Colin Haley and Maxime Turgeon, who made the first ascent in 2008."

The choice turned out to be a winning one, and between July 26 and 27, Matteo, Silvan and Symon managed to complete the ascent of the new line of about 1,000 meters of elevation gain that they called "The Alien Face."

"The route proved to be challenging right away, with mixed sections and others on beautiful rock that took us up to about 6,000 meters in altitude where we bivouacked by digging a small pitch in the snowy slope. The next day was even tougher, with pitches of increasing difficulty, until the wonderful interlocking crack that we rated around 7a and from which we gained access to the summit. Even with the regret of not having been able to make a serious attempt at our original objective, this too was a great adventure in an environment that has few comparisons in the world for majesty and beauty... The East Pillar of the Ogre remains there, an open challenge for the future to which I may return to try my hand, although that will certainly not be the goal of my next expedition..."

"Once again," Matteo concludes, "I want to thank Ferrino for the support it has given to my activity with its equipment for technical mountaineering. During this "fast and light" climb, I was able to appreciate in particular the qualities of the Instinct 40+5 backpack: it is simply the perfect product for this kind of adventure. To get to the advanced camp it offers good load volume, thanks in part to the side webbing, then as soon as you start climbing in technical terrain, you can remove the lumbar belt and compact the backpack to the max! The Dyneema® Composite Fabric outer fabric makes it really light and minimal, but at the same time it is more durable than a regular backpack. On the most difficult pitches, I had to take it off my shoulders and retrieve it with a lanyard. Even though it was not designed for this kind of use, it held up great!"