Alex Txikon and six sherpas reach the summit of the winter Manaslu

Alex Txikon has reached the summit this morning on the winter Manaslu and is already back at base camp. According to Seven Summit, he completed the ascent with six sherpas from the agency (Tenjen Sherpa, Pasang Nurbu Sherpa, Mingtemba Sherpa, Chhepal Sherpa, Pemba Tasi Sherpa and Gyalu Sherpa).

This is what Alex Txikon told us:

“I don’t even know where to start…

Since embarking on winter expeditions, I’ve had many experiences and thousands of thoughts have gone through my head. But everything fell short after the summit of Manaslu on January 6, 2023. I think I’ve never had so many sensations at once: joy, excitement, fear, nerves… They say there are 26 sensations you should experience at some point in life. I’ve experienced them in just two weeks.

On December 26, we set foot in the Manaslu base camp and 11 days later, we were on the summit, at the highest point of the eighth highest mountain on the planet. I couldn’t believe it, I had made the challenge I set for myself in 2021 a reality. I’ve lost count of how many times I imagined that moment and finally, it has come true.

But not everything is gold. It has been one of the hardest, most demanding and dangerous ascents of my entire professional career. I’ve suffered, very much so to be honest, now I feel a certain emptiness, it’s been three winters working on this project; I imagine that as time goes by, the feelings will surface.

Now that I am safe, rested and with a clearer mind, I would like to share with all of you my last experience in the Himalayas. I’ll try to be as brief as possible, I promise.

As you know, on December 26, we launched the Winter Summits project. Thanks to the two previous experiences, we were able to get to know the terrain firsthand. But that didn’t prevent us from spending hours and hours turning it over, analyzing the best strategy. The only thing we were sure of was that the ascent had to be as fast as possible to avoid any risk of freezing. And that’s exactly what we did. Despite the cold (we suffered temperatures of up to -50º) and strong winds, it seemed that during the next few days, the weather would give us a slight break. We didn’t hesitate, we couldn’t miss the opportunity. It was now or never.

So on January 4, at 8:00 am, we took all the necessary equipment and put our backpack on our backs. It was like the game of Snakes and Ladders: from ladder to ladder and roll the dice. From BC to C1, from C1 to C2. And here I would like to make a note that this stretch was, without a doubt, one of the most difficult I have ever done in my life. And it’s no small feat, considering the number of meters climbed in the Himalayas over all these years… Seriously, it was very hard, very complicated, it was very dangerous, much more than I thought…

And, with that said, I continue with the game. We camped, slept and on January 5 we went from C2 to C3. Between the excitement, nerves, cold and wind, we couldn’t sleep. But no pain, no gain, so at 11:00 pm, we left for the summit. And the rest… is history. 10 and a half hours later, at 9:30 am (local time), Pasang Nurbu Sherpa, Chhapel Sherpa, Gelu Sherpa, Maila Sherpa, Mantere Lama Sherpa, Gamje Babu Sherpa and I received the best gift from the Three Kings that I could have dreamed of, a gift that I had been waiting for for 3 years. We were on the summit, at the highest point of Manaslu, the eighth highest mountain in the world. It sounds easy…

But everything that goes up must come down, and we had to descend, we had to return to BC, because, as I always say, and I will never tire of repeating… the true summit is achieved when the whole team returns safely to base camp. Once again, said and done. We began to descend slowly, without a doubt, the most difficult part of the challenge. And finally, at 6:00 pm, we arrived at base camp. Destroyed, exhausted. And in less than 60 hours we had achieved the whole challenge. I was still on cloud nine, I was unable to accept what we had achieved.

I don’t want to say goodbye without first acknowledging the Polish expedition of 1984. All my respect to those mountaineers who, without the help of new technologies, managed to crown Manaslu. They had an enormous merit. I also don’t want to forget Simone Moro. Partner, thank you for descending almost from C2 to BC alone, because as you said yourself, although you had enough strength to continue climbing, you considered that you could hinder the group when descending.”

Finally, and now I will end… I only have to congratulate and thank all the people who have supported me during my career: family, friends, colleagues and companions in the profession, clubs, mountain federations, sponsors… Without you, this dream would never have come true.

A thousand times, THANK YOU.