Czech mountaineers Marek Holeček and Tomáš Petreček have arrived in Pakistan, where they will attempt the first ascent of a new route on the Rupal Face of the 8,000-meter peak Nanga Parbat (8,125 m). The pair are returning to a project they had to abandon eight years ago due to adverse weather conditions, approximately 300 meters below the summit.

Mára Holeček just described his return to Pakistan on social media as the culmination of several months of deliberation. He admitted that an exceptionally difficult task awaits them, but at the same time he is looking forward to another attempt on the mountain that dealt them a “stinging defeat” during their previous expedition. Tomáš Petreček subsequently announced that the pair had already arrived in Skardu, the traditional base camp for expeditions in the Pakistani Karakoram.

For Mára Holeček, this will be his third attempt on the Rupal Face. Back in 2011, he attempted a solo ascent in alpine style but had to descend from an altitude of around 7,400 meters due to large amounts of unstable snow. He reached the summit of Nanga Parbat a year later with Zdeněk Hrubý via the Kinshofer Route on the Diamir Face.

According to ExplorersWeb, Mára Holeček and Tomáš Petreček plan to climb in alpine style again this year. They have not yet specified whether they will establish a new route along the same line as during their 2018 attempt, when they climbed to an altitude of around 7,800 meters after six days of climbing. At that time, they were forced to turn back due to winds reaching speeds of up to 100 km/h.

The expedition’s return to the Czech Republic is scheduled for the second half of August.





explorersweb.com: Elite Duo Returning to Rupal Face of Nanga Parbat

Archived articles on Lezec:

About the 2018 expedition:

Marek Holeček a Tomáš Petreček na Nanga Parbat: vrchol nebude

Archived articles on Lezec:

About the 2011 expedition:

Interview s Alláhem