insurance for everyone: Winter Climbs 2016: Comings and Goings on Nanga Parbat

There has been little movement on Nanga Parbat since I wrote my last update at the beginning of last week. The teams are still mostly stuck in Base Camp where they are waiting for the weather to improve. With such a long delay, they may even have to acclimatize again before attempting the summit, although it remains to be seen if they will even get the chance. With five weeks to go in the season, time is starting to run short, particularly since the weather has been brutal for a few weeks now. But, the climbers that are on the mountain remain firmly in place, and are waiting for the opportunity to move up should the chance present itself.

Despite the fact that there has been little movement since the start of the month, there is still news to report however. For example, Italian climber Daniele Nardi has now departed BC following his much publicized dispute with teammate Alex Txikon. The two had a falling out over the logistics of their expedition, and as a result Nardi has now gone home. Meanwhile, Txikon has stayed behind and is working with Ali Sadpara, Simone Moro, andTamara Lunger to continue working towards achieving the first winter ascent of the mountain.

While one climber has left, another is planning his return. Polish mountaineer Tomek Mackiewicz made an early season attempt on the mountain with Elisabeth Revol, but the two abandoned their efforts at the end of January. Revol has gone back to France, but Tomek has remained in Pakistan, and has been finding it difficult to get out due to an ongoing strike there. So, rather than head home, he has decided to go back to Nanga Parbat instead. He is still sorting out the details of his return, but he may already be back in BC and planning his next summit bid.

Finally, Brazilian-born American climber Cleo Weidlich is reportedly still on the Rupal Face although there has been no update on her progress. She is climbing with a group of Nepalese Sherpas, but it is unclear whether or not they have gone higher than Base Camp as of yet, although it seems likely that weather conditions are keeping them grounded too.