On August 26, 2025, Lara Neumeier successfully climbed "End of Silence" (11 pitches, 360 m, 8b+) on Feuerhörndl in Berchtesgadener Land. The German climber worked on the route for seven days.
Bigwall talent Lara Neumeier
Neumeier's specialty is clearly natural rock, particularly challenging sport climbing and trad routes, as well as big walls. Her ticklist includes routes up to 8c and numerous difficult multi-pitch routes in the Alps and beyond. She became particularly well-known for the first female free ascent of »psychogram« (8b+), as well as through challenging ascents on El Capitan in Yosemite.
Part two of the "Alpine Trilogy"
End of Silence, 1994 by Thomas huber opened, is considered one of the most difficult alpine multi-pitch routes and is part of the infamous »Alpine Trilogy«. In addition to End of Silence, this also includes Beat Kammerlander's »Silbergeier« and Stefan Glowacz's »Des Kaisers neue Kleider«.
Lara is after Babsi Zangerl the second woman to successfully complete End of Silence. Following her success with "Silbergeier" in June, her only remaining film in the trilogy is "The Emperor's New Clothes" at the Wilder Kaiser.
»After Silbergeier I was full of motivation«
Directly after Silbergeier, Lara set off for End of Silence. Over two days, with a rest day in between, she made it to the 8th pitch despite slippery rock and difficult moves. However, military training over the rock, the Arc'teryx Academy, rain, and illness forced Lara to take a break. The End of Silence project didn't resume until mid-August.
She and her climbing partner Tobi Ebner climbed the entire route in one day to try all the pitches. However, the crux moves on pitch 9 still gave her trouble, and the two-finger pocket brought back memories of a previous pulley injury. A week later, Lara attempted the crux moves again, and this time she left the wall with a promising beta.
"The following Tuesday, things finally came together – perfect conditions and plenty of motivation. Nevertheless, the day began with a real "what a start" moment: I fell on the second move on the very first pitch. My climbing partner Steven Hilger dropped me, we removed the rope, and I tried again – this time it worked. From then on, I managed every single pitch on the first attempt on lead. We started at 9:30 a.m. and reached the top at 18 p.m. Number two of the Alpine Trilogy – done!" Lara writes on Instagram.
You might be interested in:
- "Weighing up risks is a process" | Lara Neumeier on climbing at the limit
- Lara Neumeier shows nerves of steel | First female ascent of Trad-Route Psychogram
+ + +
Credits: Cover photo: Ray Demski