Herve Barmasse Sets Off to Climb The North Face Of Karakorum’s ‘Ogre’

The North Face®, the world’s premier supplier of authentic, innovative and technically advanced outdoor apparel, equipment and footwear, announces the departure of a team of climbers led by Italy’s Herve Barmasse to ascend one of the most difficult peaks in the world – Baintha Brakk (7,285m), also known as ‘Ogre’ – in the Karakorum, Pakistan.

Considered as one of the most difficult peaks to climb in the world, with a climate similar to the North and South Poles, The North Face® athlete and expedition leader Herve Barmasse (ITA) will lead a team of Italian mountaineers, Daniele Bernasconi and Martin Peterlongo, to attempt Ogre from the challenging north. Seemingly impossible to climb, reknowned for being steep and perilously rocky, the mixed terrain will require a 2,500m wall technical climb in pure alpine style and a prolonged stay in the hostile environment of Snow Lake, an ice field located at the base of a small arctic glacier.

Departing June 22, 2012, the arrival at base camp is scheduled for early July after journey by foot and 4×4 along the Biafo and Sin Gang glacier up to the Snow Lake. At base camp, the team will begin their acclimatization with several first ascents waiting for a fair weather window. The expedition will last for 55 days.

Speaking on the expedition, Barmasse explains: ‘Mountaineering exploration is found where there is uncertainty and a confrontation with nature. Logistical difficulties combined with a hostile environment forces the climber to accept risk and icy conditions as climbing companions. Ogre fully sums up this concept. It signifies the way I do mountaineering: away from the common routes, from the crowd, looking for myself, and my limits.’

Ogre, meaning ‘to eat men’, is the highest mountain in the Pammah Muztagh region. To date only two routes are accessible from the south. The first ascent took place in 1977 by British mountaineers Sir Chris Bonnington and Douglas Scott. Having reached the summit, the descent was fraught with danger and became one of the biggest stories of the time. The second successful climb came 20 expeditions and 24 years later in 2001.