The German professional alpinist Michi Wohlleben succeeds in the red point ascent of one of the most famous multi-pitch routes in the Alps: Silbergeier (8b +, 6SL) in the Rätikon.
Been there a few times Michi Wohlleben while bouldering out the pitch of the Silbergeier in the wall of the Kirchlispitze. From there he reported regularly on Instagram about the progress of the route.
In the meantime it looked as if winter was throwing a spanner in the works for Germans. More attempts on the route Silbergeier was unthinkable due to the snow in the higher elevations.
Success thanks to good weather
But in the first half of November the temperatures rose above average and so Michi Wohlleben was drawn back to life Rätikon.
Childhood dream comes true
On Saturday, November 14, 2020, with perfect weather - albeit bitterly cold conditions - the day came when Michi Wohlleben climbed all lengths of the Silbergeier red point route.
With the success at the Kirchlispitze, a childhood dream comes true for the German, as he says after his ascent.
With numb fingers and toes I climbed the sixth pitch to the last bolt and almost fell out of the traverse to the left. But only almost, the ascent was done.
Michi Wohlleben
Silbergeier is part of the Alpine Trilogy
The Silbergeier route was established by climbing legend Beat Kammerlander in 1993 and was first freely climbed the following year.
Along with The Emperor's New Clothes in the Kaiser Mountains and End of Silence in the Berchtesgaden Alps, the silver vulture forms the Alpine trilogy. The three tours marked a new milestone in alpine difficult climbing in the 90s.
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Film: Cédric Lachat and Nina Caprez inspect the silver vulture
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Credits: Image material Michi Wohlleben