November 26, 2011
Today, we got up shortly before 8:00am. The weather was good and we decided to go for the summit! We left Camp 2 at 9:30am and moved slowly up the long way to the summit. The first part was not steep, but it was very far to the summit slope. We finally arrived at the summit of Mount Vinson, the highest mountain in Antarctica, 4,892m / 16,067ft, at 5:00pm. The position of the most southerly mountain of the Seven Summits is 78 degrees 35’ South and 85 degrees 25’ West. What a feeling to be up there!!!! And what a view!!! As far as we could see, snow and ice… We were lucky in terms of weather. It was cold, between -25 and -30 degrees C, but here was no wind. We spent about 30 minutes on the top, enjoyed the view and took a lot of pictures. It was a unique moment for me, because I know that I will probably never come back here. This summit is so remote from any place in the world, much more than Everest or any other mountain of the Seven Summits.
In terms of Seven Summit, this was my fifth summit, so five done, two more to go… If possible, Everest again next year…
Once we left the Vinson summit, it took us three hours to get back to Camp 2. We arrived there around 8:00pm and had dinner shortly after that. We were all tired but happy and spent the night at high camp! The most remote mountain of the Seven Summits has been successfully climbed on this day!!!
Getting ready for the last push…
Moving up towards the summit!
The view from the “Top of Antarctica”, Mount Vinson, 4,892m / 16,067ft
Snow and ice, as far as the eye can see…
It’s a long way home from here…
The Beauty and the Cold…
Is there anyone out there???
At the summit of Mount Vinson, Antarctica, November 26, 2011, 5:13pm “local” time.