Andrea Lanfri completes bike & climb from Genoa to Monte Rosa’s Margherita hut

Ten days ago Italy’s Andrea Lanfri completed yet another of his quests as part of his 0 to 0 project that entails starting from the sea, reaching a mountain by bike or on foot, tagging the summit and then returning to the starting point. Lanfri’s latest, from Genova to the Capanna Margherita hut at (4554m) on Monte Rosa and back again, follows his success on Mount Etna in Sicily in November 2020 and Gran Sasso in Central Italy in June 2021.

"I left Genoa early in the morning, after a good breakfast" explained Lanfri, who lost both legs and seven fingers following Fulminant meningococcal septicemia in 2015. "Travellng 225 km and tackling 3,000 meters altitude difference was the first step. At Staffal I switched prosthetics and then tackled another 3,000m altitude gain and loss to reach the Capanna Margherita Refuge at 4,554m above sea level. From there I descended to the Mantova Refuge, up to this point all non-stop."

Lanfri started his return to Genoa the next morning. "The first section was a foot path, then I continued by mountain bike, and this was undoubtedly the best fun of all. I returned at full speed, helped by wind and it being downhill, so I pushed hard to Alessandria. The next day I returned to the starting point at Genoa Voltri, down at the sea, to end this incredible From 0 to 0."

Monte Rosa was, as things stand, the last stage of this particular project that Lanfri came up with when Covid restrictions made it impossibile to travel to the Greater Ranges.

"For me it was important to realise that I walked the path in 4 hours and 11 minutes, while in 2018 I’d needed almost 9 for the same section: this demonstrates that I’m on form. I’m ecstatic and already thinking about Everest and all the other peaks, I can see that the changes I’m implementing seem to work. Now the goal is: train full speed ahead, in preparation for the 24th of March 2022 when I hope to travel to the Himalayas. I still haven’t covered all the costs but I’m confident that I’ll manage. And in the future there may well be other From 0 to 0, some of which fairly important."

The latest experience proved physical but also psychological. "During adventures like these, the mind is decisive, it can say ‘that’s enough’, when you start thinking about the huge distances that still need to be covered… At that point you have to grit your teeth. And think about the joy when you reach the summit and return to the starting point!"

Lanfri’s words conceal his pride for achieving something that had never been done before. "It was a great adventure, I managed to change my prosthesis and I did the night section all by myself, while the glacier crossing was completed with climbing partner and friend Marco Olmo. We’d met by chance on the Matterhorn and although he wanted to join me, he was worried he wouldn’t be able to keep up. So he spent the last two weeks climbing several 4000ers getting it. In the end things worked out perfectly for him too, and this made me really happy."

Link: andrealanfri.com, IG Andrea Lanfri, FB Andrea Lanfri, Ferrino, La Sportiva

Andrea Lanfri
Born in 1986, in 2015 Lanfri lost both legs and seven fingers following Fulminant meningococcal septicemia. Ex member of the Italian Paralympic team, he won silver at the World Para Championships in London in 2017.