Rätikon: Babsi Zangerl & Jacopo Larcher repeat “Déjà” (8c+) – the hardest multi-pitch ascent by a woman

With their free ascent of "Déjà" on the south face of the Kirchlispitzen, the Austrian woman and the Italian man have completed their toughest project to date in the Rätikon. It is the first time the line has ever been repeated – and probably the first time a woman has climbed a multi-pitch route graded 8c+.

About the route

“Déjà” (8c+, 10-12 pitches) is located on the south face of the Kirchlispitzen peaks in the western Central Alps. Michi Wyser and Andres Lietha established the route on September 12, 1992 – both knew they could not free climb the fifth and most difficult pitch of the route, so they equipped it with aid.

It would take a full 27 years until the first free ascent.The German professional alpinist Fabian Buhl achieved this feat on November 27, 2019. Buhl had already worked on the route with Jacopo Larcher in 2015. There have been no further free ascents since. "Déjà" is considered a one of the most difficult multi-pitch routes in the Alps.

Babsi Zangerls The ascent on July 6, 2026, was not only the first free repeat of the line, but also the first time a woman has completed a multi-pitch route of this difficultyA few days later, they succeeded. Jacopo Larcher The second repeat of "Déjà". Both climbers ascended all pitches in one day and from the bottom up.

“Déjà” route profile

• Rope lengths: 6a+, 6c+, 6b+, 7c, 8c+, 7c+, 6b+, 6b+, 7c+, 7a, 8a+, 6b+
• Length: 400m
• Set up: 12.09.1992 by Michi Wyser & Andres Lietha
• First free ascent 27.11.2019 Fabian Buhl with belaying partner Andres Lietha

The story behind the breakthrough of “Déjà”

A report by Babsi Zangerl and Jacopo Larcher¹

Jacopo's story with "Déjà" began more than ten years ago when Fabi Buhl asked him in 2015 if he wanted to check out the route with him. At that time, the route had never been free climbed, and neither of them knew what to expect. They were all the more curious to try this long-unclimbed project.

It's always something special to attempt something that no one has ever done before. There's a major unknown: you don't know if it's even possible, which is why every free move feels like a small gift. On the fifth and most difficult pitch, Jacopo and Fabi Buhl needed some time to figure out the moves. Through working together, it finally became clear: the pitch was doable, but extremely difficult – and incredibly skin-sapping. Even an attempt required perfect conditions.

Both worked on the route for several more days, but Jacopo eventually moved on to other projects. Fabi persevered and in 2019 finally achieved the first free ascent of this beautiful line. With that, one of the oldest and coolest projects on this historic wall was finally climbed.

At home in the Rätikon

For both of us, the Rätikon feels like home. This is where Babsi tried her first real multi-pitch climbing project. and have climbed countless routes since then. In recent years, we have also repeated several routes together on the north face of the massif. We spend a lot of time in the Rätikon during the summer, and this place means a great deal to us.

When we first tried route 2025 together, we immediately fell in love with the climb – especially the fifth pitch, the crux. It's simply unique: extremely difficult and consistently challenging right up to the belay. You can fall almost anywhere. It's probably the most difficult single pitch we've ever attempted on a multi-pitch route. We spent several days just working on that specific section of the route.

^{Climbing every summer in the Rätikon: Babsi Zangerl & Jacopo Larcher | Photos: Christian Adam for Black Diamond}

Taking an e-bike to the rock face

The south face of the Kirchlispitzen gets incredibly hot in summer. The razor-sharp holds quickly made it clear that we only had a few good attempts before our skin was burned through. This year's exceptional heat wave was no help either.

After a while, we decided to start either very early in the morning or late in the evening. At the same time, the road to Grüscher Älpli was closed for maintenance during the week, so we decided to reach the route from the Austrian side using e-bikes. This meant a little more effort, but it quickly became part of the adventure.

These days in the Rätikon were incredible. We almost always had fantastic weather and were often able to climb from late evening until just before midnight. Almost every day felt like a small mission – like a real climbing adventure, even though the wall is usually very easily accessible.

The key rope length is definitely the biggest challenge and took us several days. Even after that, the route never really gets easy. The eleventh pitch, graded 8b, is also not an easy one – it remains consistently difficult and ends with a tough boulder problem. After climbing the entire route once from bottom to top, we decided to invest some more time in the last difficult pitches before attempting a single ascent.

Injury comeback for Babsi Zangerl

Babsi made her first attempt from the ground on July 6th. Expectations weren't too high, as she had never climbed the crux pitch before without sitting on the rope. But surprisingly, she felt really good on her first attempt and only fell at the end of the first difficult section. The second attempt went even better, but then Babsi unexpectedly slipped off a hold. On the third attempt, she knew there wasn't much left in the tank., but somehow it was just enough to fight my way through the entire length of the rope.

At the belay station, Babsi was incredibly happy and nervous at the same time. The way to the summit was still long, and every pitch had to be completed on the first attempt because the last difficult pitch awaited her further up. After she had conquered the crux, she received an enormous boost of confidence. Everything happened at once And Babsi climbed all the remaining pitches without another fall. Reaching the summit felt incredible – and like a real comeback after her back injury at the end of 2025.

Clear style: Lead climbing from the ground in one day

When we climb in the Rätikon mountains, our climbing style is particularly important: one of us leads every pitch while the other belays, and then we switch. We like to climb difficult routes this way: from the ground, in one day, with both of us leading every pitch.

A few days later it was Jacopo's turn. He was nervous at first – mainly because of the heat and the long week he'd spent setting routes. But everything changed once he was on the route. Jacopo climbed with ease, speed, and confidence, and the weather was perfect again, with some shade. We reached the summit at 11:30 a.m., after Jacopo had climbed the entire route without falling.

That might interest you

• Documentary recommendation: Babsi Zangerl – the strongest female alpine climber in the world? | Mountain Worlds
• Rätikon | Babsi Zangerl & Jacopo Larcher redpoint Next Generation (8b+, 170 m)

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Cover photo credit: Christian Adam for Black Diamond

1. Translated and edited ↩︎