Suunto Ambassador Philippe Gatta has reached the summit of Himalayan peak Ama Dablan, a 6812m-high mountain near to Mount Everest in Nepal.
Frenchman Gatta, who has climbed over 200 peaks during his career including Everest, took 16 days for the entire expedition, which he undertook with climbing partner Jean-Marc Wojcik.
The duo carried their own equipment without Sherpas and made sure to remove all rubbish from their campsites so that nothing was left behind.
By May 1 they had reached Camp 2 at 6000m but encountered difficult weather meaning they could neither ascend nor descend. Fresh snow and avalanches covered the route and their tents were pitched on a shelf of rock with 600m vertical drops to each side.
On May 3 the weather cleared and Gatta and Wojcik were able to make their push for the top, opting to skip stopping at a higher Camp 3 due to the conditions.
“The fresh snow from the previous days made the climb up to the top of the grey tower slow and demanding,” he said.
At 6300m Wojcik decided to turn back but Gatta continued alone, breaking a track through the new snow. Despite deteriorating weather conditions and a wind chill factor of -26°C, he made the summit at 3.15pm, waiting only 10 minutes before beginning the descent back to Camp 2.
According to his Suunto t6c heart rate monitor which he wore during the 12.5hr ascent, he reached a maximum 153bpm. He recorded his oxygen saturation, measured as a percentage of the maximum that his blood can carry at 73%. A normal figure for such an athlete as Gatta would be 95-99%, however at high elevation the level is drastically reduced.
Gatta, now back in France, was only the third person to have reached the Ama Dablan summit in 2010. More information can be found on his website: www.philippegatta.fr/amadablam2.htm
Images by Philippe Gatta and Jean-Marc Wojcik