The Swiss mountain guide and professional alpinist Dani Arnold climbs all three ridges on the legendary Salbitschijen in less than 10 hours - alone and faster than any human before.
His solo speed record Salbit started Dani Arnold on June 11th early in the morning in the Salbithรผtte at 2105 meters altitude. Alone and in one go, he first tackled the south ridge, then the west ridge and finally the east ridge.
The Salbitschijen (2985m) in the canton of Uri makes mountaineers' hearts beat faster. Its ridges are among the most beautiful granite tours in Switzerland. While the east ridge has moderate difficulty (up to 5a), the south and west ridges are reserved for experienced alpinists despite their popularity due to their difficulty and length.
Salbitschijen trilogy: 1500 meters of climbing, 70 pitches
The three ridges together result in over 1500 meters of climbing and around 70 rope lengths in alpine terrain, with maximum difficulty of up to 6b. Each ridge in itself represents a full day tour for most rope teams.
The routes do not lead straight up, but include a number of traverses and short descents. They require a lot of experience in finding the route and, above all, in handling the rope that the 39-year-old carried with him for these passages.
With wet fingers on the last ridge
There was still a lot of snow on the descent from the summit. On the one hand, this had a positive effect on the pace, but it also required additional concentration in order not to get completely soaked for the next climbing sections.
However, that is exactly what happened to him on the second descent, when snow got into the slung magnesium bag. The climber's fingers on the last of the three ridges had to do without the powder to provide support.
Dani Arnold: man of speed records
Dani Arnold is no stranger to the mountaineering world. In 2011 he made international headlines for the first time when he set the then record time in the Eiger north face underbid. This was followed by records on all six major north faces of the Alps: Matterhorn, Grandes Jorasses, Big battlements, Piz Badile and Petit Dru.
He has an even longer history with the Salbit: In 2010, Dani Arnold climbed the west ridge solo for the first time and in record time. The climb received a lot of attention in the scene and marked the beginning of his professional career.
That might interest you
- Dani Arnold climbs the Petit Dru north face in a new record
- Video about Dani Arnold's inspection of Power Shrimps at the Helmcken Falls
- 4 alpine climbing tours for every taste | climbing guide
Do you like our climbing magazine? When launching the climbing magazine Lacrux, we decided not to introduce a paywall because we want to provide as many like-minded people as possible with news from the climbing scene.
In order to be more independent of advertising revenue in the future and to provide you with even more and better content, we need your support.
Therefore: Help and support our magazine with a small contribution. Naturally you benefit multiple times. How? You will find out here..
+ + +
Credits: Cover picture Matthew Luscher