The two alpinists Simon Gietl and Martin Sieberer succeed in the second winter ascent of the adventurous Schiefer Riss route on the Sagwandspitze after more than twenty years.
A personal report from Martin Sieberer
On 23 and 24 February 2025, Simon and ich the second winter ascent of the notorious route «Slate Crack» on the Sagwandspitze in the Valser Valley, Tyrol.
Martin Sieberer
A tour in the 'once in a lifetime' category. I wouldn't have done it a second time.
The tour was founded in 1947 by Mathias Rebitsch and Roland Berger Several attempts to repeat the route failed and it took almost 30 years until the first repeat. The first winter ascent was secured by David Lama, Hansjörg Auer and Peter Ortner in March 2013. At -22 degrees, the three described the adventure as one of their toughest undertakings to date.
Martin Feistl and Amelie Kühne attempted the tour in March 2022 with direct and original access respectively, but had to abandon the second day. Last year, Martin Feistl mobilized Simon and me for another attempt on the Schiefen Riss.
Simon Gietl
It was, it is and it remains a great adventure to repeat this magnificent line!
Unfortunately, Martin was not able to experience this, so Simon and I joined forces and chose this tour as our first tour in memory of Martin. With some information from Martin and Amelie, we were able to repeat the tour with a direct start.
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Credits: Text and images Simon Gietl/Martin Sieberer