New climb added to Piz Badile by Chiara Gusmeroli, Matteo De Zaiacomo

The climbing season in the Alps got off to a slow start this summer due to the abundant snowfalls this spring, consequently repeats on the bigger routes on the north-east face of Pizzo Badile are still lacking due to too much snow and wet conditions which render some lines impossible.

Having said that, the desire to lay their hands on this historic wall was too much for Chiara Gusmeroli and Matteo De Zaiacomo who, after approaching the Cengalo col to look at the immense wall, noticed a line that was steep enough to remain completely dry.

The route is located on the extreme lefthand side of the wall and was climbed by the pair with trad gear, while only 3 pegs were left in-situ, at the belays. The 6-pitch outing has some sections up to VII/VIII and the route is called Æterna nix, eternal snow. The climbers had spent the night at the Gianetti hut and, after waking up at 3.30 am, set off at 4:00am for the col. They summited close to midday.

Commenting after the climb, the president of the Ragni di Lecco mountaineering club explained "The portion of the wall under the basin remained wet due to the snowfield above, so we studied a route that was away from the wet streaks and found a logical sequence of cracks and corners that seemed to fir the bill. We set off with everything we needed to establish a something new and, one pitch after the next, the steep and exciting climbing provided us with a beautiful, adventurous day in our backyard mountains."

"It's not a route that will make the history books of this wall, quite the opposite, but establishing it in this style, abseiling off the col with so little gear, was quite a jump into the deep end. The result is an invitation to enjoy an adventure that only the north-east face of Badile and its severe ambient can offer. And it's certainly a good way to get used to the more challenging and longer routes of this beautiful peak."

Last summer the duo made the first ascent of Operation London Crack on Pizzo Cengalo, directly opposite.

Matteo thanks:Ragni di Lecco, il negozio Go Vertical
Chiara thanks: Karpos