Ines Papert and Luka Lindič pull off first repeat of Pizzo Badile Nordest Supercombo

When conditions are ideal, you have to grasp the opportunity. In particular in winter, when a thin ice line may be perfect for only a couple of days a year. Germany’s Ines Papert and Slovenia’s Luka Lindič know this all to well, and at the end of 2016 they lost little time to make the first repeat of Nordest Supercombo up the huge NE Face of Pizzo Badile. First climbed on 16 December 2016 by the Swiss duo David Hefti and Marcel Schenk, this line combines Via Cassin with Memento Mori. Papert and Lindič, who in autumn travelled to Kyrgyzstan to make the first ascent of Lost in China on Kyzyl Asker, descended via the North Ridge route. It is worth noting that along the Cassin route the two were joined by Luca Godenzi and Charly Micheli who made a rare winter repeat of this classic alpine outing. So Piz Badile, which generally speaking sees little action in winter, is suddenly the hotbed for feverish activity.


NORDEST SUPERCOMBO by Ines Papert

Luka and I have dismissed our family duties after Christmas for a short while and "escaped" to the NE Face of Piz Badile. Thanks to the great report we’d read on planetmountain.com! Of course, we’re always on the lookout for new routes, but making a repeat can often be rewarding. And lines on steep north faces like this one are few and far between in the Alps. David Hefti and Marcel Schenk really came up trumps with Supercombo!

At first light on 30 December we set off up the Cassin route and followed this to where Supercombo branches off. We could hardly believe our eyes. Perfect ice all the way up to the summit, just enough to follow a thin sliver up the granite slabs. Conditions as perfect as these are a real Christmas present.

For Luka and myself 2016 was quite a year, with plenty of alpine highs but also some private lows, So watching the year come to an end together on one of the most beautiful summits in the Alps was all the more special. We reached the top at 17:00 with the last rays of light, below us the Alps unfolded glowing deep red. These are moments that help us understand why we continue to take to the mountains, again and again. There is no better place on earth to share plans for the upcoming year.


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23/12/2016 Pizzo Badile Nordest supercombo, new mixed combination by David Hefti and Marcel Schenk
On 16/12/2016 the two Swiss mountain guides David Hefti and Marcel Schenk climbed the ice and mixed combination 'Nordest supercombo' (800m, M7, R) a demanding line that joins Via Cassin with via Memento Mori up the NE Face of Pizzo Badile.