Winter Mount Everest expedition 1979/1980

The expedition's aim

Since 1979 only a hundred people ascended Mount Everest. From 1953, when the British first reached this world's highest mountain, it was a point of honour for every country to have their national reach its summit.

In 1978 Wanda Rutkiewicz climbed the peak during the German expedition led by Karl Maria Herrligkoffer - at that time Andrzej Zawada decided that "she solved our problem", but in the end he wasn't satisified with it. He believed that the first Polish ascent of the world's highest mountain should happen during a Polish expedition. He also discredited climbing the normal route (used by the first summiters) in summer as unsportsmanlike.

Zimowa wyprawa na Mount Everest miała być tak samo polską odpowiedzią na zdobywanie szczytów Himalajów, jak i początkiem zupełnie nowej ery w najwyższych górach świata. Bo jeszcze nikt nigdy nie wszedł na górę przekraczającą osiem tysięcy metrów wysokości zimą. Architektami tego wyczynu mieli zostać Polacy.

Facts

Official name of the expedition:
Polish National Everest Expedition

Expedition's status: national expedition

Route:
the first summiters' route through the South Col

Members: 20

Budget: ca. $250,000

Base established: 31 December 1979

Summit reached: 17 February 1980

Members of the expedition

Mountaineers
Communication, filming
Base personnel and mountaineer porters

The expedition's timeline

Zimowa wyprawa na Mount Everest 1979/1980

1977

Andrzej Zawada chosen
to lead the expedition

May 11

Polish Mountaineering Association (Polski Związek Alpinizmu; PZA) approves the winter expedition project for Mount Everest or K2, headed by Andrzej Zawada.

December 25

Andrzej Paczkowski, chairman of the PZA and Andrzej Zawada send the Nepalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs an official request for winter Everest ascent from 1 December 1979 to 28 February 1980.

1978

Permission for winter
expedition granted

February

Andrzej Zawada writes “Memoriał w sprawie zimowych wypraw w Himalaje” - a document, which will become the basis of Nepal's government regulations for winter mountaineering season.

Zawadowie zwiedzają świątynie małp w Katmandu (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

November -
December

Andrzej Zawada stays in Nepal to gain permission for ascending Everest in winter. Ambassador Andrzej Wawrzyniak and Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs undertake diplomatic actions throughout the year. Nepalese Ministry of Tourism rejects the idea.

1979

Mountaineers leave
for Nepal and set up the base

March 21

Permission for ascending Everest granted, but only before monsoon season, spring 1980.

July -
August

Andrzej Zawada sends invitations for the expedition to a number of Polish mountaineers. He asks for them to declare if they wish to ascend Everest - in spring or winter.

Anna Milewska - Zawada w drodze do bazy (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

November 22 - permission for winter Mount Everest ascent granted. Andrzej Zawada's expedition, which has been preparing for summer (March 1980) has barely a month to prepare additional gear and equimpent needed for winter attack.

December 7, 15 and 19

Andrzej Zawada, first and second groups leave for Nepal.

Watch video recording

December 23

The first part of caravan (porters and yaks) with A. Heinrich travel from Lukla to Everest. In the following days the rest of the expedition lands in Lukla and start towards base on Khumbu Glacier, at the foot of Everest.

Watch video recording

Listen to audio recording

December 31

Andrzej Z. Heinrich and Ryszard Szafirski set up the Base Camp.

1980

Expedition begins

January 4

The last part of the caravan (including Andrzej Zawada)
reaches the base.

Watch video recording

Małżeństwo Zawadów w bazie pod Everestem (fot. Fundacja Himalaizmu Polskiego im. A. Zawady)

Namiot radiowy w bazie. W środku Bogdan Jankowski majsterkuje przy „Klimku” (fot. Maciej Pawlikowski).

January 5

Temp. in the base -19º C, sunny. A. Heinrich, W. Fiut, W. Olech, M. Piekutowski, K. Wielicki, R. Szafirski and K. Żurek set out to Icefall for marking and anchoring the ice labirynth.

Watch video recording

Listen to audio recording

January 8

Temp. in the base -24º C, sunny. R. Gajewski, A. Lwow, M. Pawlikowski, M. Piekutowski leave the base. After camping in Icefall A. Heinrich, K. Wielicki, W. Fiut, J. Mączka, R. Szafirski and K. Żurek reach the beginning of the Western Cwm and set up Camp I (CI, 6000 m) under Nuptse.

Watch video recording

Seraki Icefall (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

January 9 - 5900 m above sea level - anchoring Khumbu Icefall - large and deadly part of Khumbu Glacier and as Ryszard Dmoch called it "the key to Everest". Team lead by Andrzej "Zyga" Heinrich managed to find the way through this ice labirynth and secure it just in four days! Only then Sherpa porters could start transporting cargo to Camp I.

January 9

Temp. in the base -19º C, sunny. Eight climbers from CI move through the Western Cwm, securing wide crevasses; they put up three tents, setting up Camp II (CII, 6400 m).

Watch video recording

Alpiniści szykują się do wyjścia z obozu III

Watch video recording

January 15

Temp. in the base -21º C, calm. R. Gajewski, M. Pawlikowski i K. Żurek set out from CII towards Lhotse to set up Camp III (CIII, 7150 m) and stay the night there.

Watch video recording

Ryszard Gajewski w obozie III (fot. Maciej Pawlikowski).

January 15 - 7150 m above sea level - Team from Zakopane: Ryszard Gajewski, Maciej Pawlikowski and Krzysztof Żurek establish Camp III.

January 16-22

All hands on deck! Camp III expansion is underway, equipment, food and oxygen are moved from base to prepare for Camp IV (CIV 8000 m) on South Col.

Listen to audio recording

January 23

Temp. in the base -19º C, sunny, later on cloudy and snowing. First attempt at setting up CIV - L. Cichy, A. Heinrich, J. Holnicki and K. Wielicki set out towards South Col. At Lhotse Face difficult conditions, strong wind and glazed frost. K. Wielicki reaches the highest point - ca. 7800 m, leaves the cargo and returns to CII. Other climbers turn back much earlier and also descend to the empty CII.

Listen to audio recording

January 23 - 7800 m above sea level - first attempt of establishing Camp IV, Krzysztof Wielicki reaches Lhotse's slope at 7800 m and deposits equipment.

January 24

Temp. in the base -21º C, cloudy, strong wind, in the Western
Cwm very strong, on the Everest ridge a characteristic noise
resembling running express train can be heard. From CIII
at about 8 a.m. sets out K. Żurek, and after him M. Pawlikowski,
who because of a broken crampon goes back to CIII. Żurek reaches
ca. 7500 m and turns back. On the way he's knocked down
by wind and severely bruised. With the help from M. Pawlikowski
he returns to CII. R. Janik, who suffers from acute altitude
sickness, is transported to CI.

January 25

Temp. in the base -20º C, light wind. K. Żurek complains of stomach pains. Around 11 a.m. he leaves CII, supported by R. Gajewski, M. Pawlikowski and R. Szafirski. About 100 meters below camp K. Żurek falls into a crevasse and once he's pulled out, it turns out his shoulder is dislocated. They all return to CII, where the shoulder is set. K. Żurek, with immobilised shoulder and supported from both sides, sets out down the Western Cwm. L. Cichy, A. Heinrich, J. Holnicki as well as Sherpas Pasang Norbu and Nawang Yonden reach the middle of Icefall to help K. Żurek. Late in the evening, in complete darkness the entire rescue team reaches Base Camp.

Alek Lwow sees crevasess everywhere

Listen to audio recording

January 27

Temp. in the base -17º C, strong wind, in the night hurricane
breaks one of the radio masts, destroys cooking and dining
tents, storage and leader's tent collapses with sleeping
and ill K. Żurek, as well as doctor R. Janik. In the morning
all members staying in the base rebuild the mast, repair
the tents. The wind calms down slightly around noon.
In the morning report A. Zawada and K. Cielecki inform
from CII, that the Western Cwm is the middle of "white hell".

January 28-29

Fight against wind and rebuilding destroyed tents
in the base. K. Żurek is evacuated to Kathmandu - suspected
burst stomach ulcer.

January 30

Temp. in the base -17º C, windless night (one of very few during the expedition), sunny. Leader approves activities above BC. R. Dmoch, S. Jaworski, W. Olech and two Sherpas set out for CI. About 3 p.m. they reach CI and report that nothing has been damaged by the wind.

Watch video recording

January 31 -
February 5

In various weather conditions equipment is moved
to the upper camps, damage is assessed and tents
repaired in camps located in the Western Cwm.

Listen to audio recording

February 6

Temp. in the base -18º C, in CIII -31º C, very strong wind, hurricane in the Cwm, sunny. R. Dmoch, A. Heinrich and W. Olech climb from CII towards CIII. Only A. Heinrich reaches CII, the other two turn back 100 meters below. All return to CII for the night.

Watch video recording

February 9

Temp. in the base -17º C, mild wind, sunny. A. Heinrich and A. Lwow move from CII to CIII. R. Dmoch, J. Mączka, W. Olech, Sherpas Pasang and Mingma descend from CII to BC. A. Zawada, K. Cielecki, K. Wielicki and R. Szafirski climb from CI to CII, and L. Cichy, W. Fiut and J. Holnicki from BC to CII, as a chase, meant to join the leader's group and create attack teams. R. Gajewski, M. Pawlikowski as well as Sherpas Indare and Nawang set out from BC to CI.

February 10

Temp. in the base -17º C, mild wind. A. Heinrich and A. Lwow climb from CIII towards South Col. Lwow turns back to CIII and Heinrich to CII from Geneva Spur. A. Zawada, K. Cielecki, R. Szafirski and the team from CI stay in CII.

Listen to audio recording

Przełęcz południowa, słynna „szmata kierownika” (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

February 11 - 8000 m above sea level - Leszek Cichy, Walenty Fiut and Krzysztof Wielicki reach South Col and establish Camp IV.

February 11

Temp. in the base -15º C, in CIII -31º C, silence, sunny. A. Zawada and R. Szafirski leave CII late and reach CIII in the evening. A. Lwow descends from CIII to CII on his own. From CIII towards South Col set out L. Cichy, W. Fiut, J. Holnicki (with oxygen) and K. Wielicki (without oxygen). J. Holnicki reaches the base of Geneva Spur and returns to CIII. The rest reach South Col (ca. 7900 m) at 3:30 p.m. After a few minutes L. Cichy starts descent to CIII, where he spends the night. W. Fiut and K. Wielicki remain on the col, put up the leader's tent and spend an extremely difficult night (-40ºC in the tent) using oxygen throughout.

Watch video recording

Działalność na przełęczy południowej ogranicza się̨ do trzymania namiotu...

Watch video recording

February 12

Temp. in the base -12º C, CII -22º C, CIV -40º C, strong wind, sunny. After the rough night on the col (CIV) W. Fiut and K. Wielicki decide not to attack the summit and return to CII. A. Zawada and R. Szafirski stay in CIII to aclimmatise themselves.

Obóz II, widok z wnętrza RD-2 (fot. Maciej Pawlikowski).

February 13

Temp. in the base -17º C, CII -24º C, no wind,
partly cloudy. After a night with oxygen A. Zawada
and R. Szafirski climb from CIII to CIV.
Around 4 p.m. R.Szafirski reaches South Col,
followed a half an hour later by A. Zawada.
They manage to put up the Omnipotent tent,
where they stay for the night.

Listen to audio recording

February 14

Temp. in the base -14º C, sunny in the morning, cloudy later on. R. Szafirski sets out from CIV, reaches 8150 m on the Everest's ridge, leaves an oxygen cylinder and returns to CIV to join A. Zawada. As the next attack team, A. Heinrich and Pasang climb without oxygen from CIII to CIV. In the late afternoon, R. Szafirski descends from the col, followed by A. Zawada half an hour later. Talks to prolong the permission to climb Everest are underway.

Watch video recording

Henrich schodzi. Osiągnął on z Pasangiem 8350m n.p.m.

Watch video recording

February 15 - 8000 m above sea level - Andrzej Z. Heinrich and Sherpa Pasang set out from Camp IV towards the summit, reach 8350 m and turn back. They break the winter height record from Lhotse, 1974.

February 15

Temp. in the base -14º C, CII - 23º C, CIV - 41º C, silence, partly cloudy. Previous night - action on Lhotse. During descent from the col, A. Zawada loses his way and calls for help. Around 10 p.m. L. Cichy and K. Wielicki set out towards him, meeting around midnight. At 7:30 a.m. everyone is safely in CIII. At around 8 a.m. attack team A. Heinrich and Pasang, climb without oxygen from South Col (CIV) towards the summit. At 12 a.m. they report that they've reached 8350 m, breaking the winter height record in Himalaya. They decide against going further, return to the col and from there descend to CIII. They finish at 4 p.m. Nepalese Ministry of Tourism allows them to prolong the expedition till 17.02.

Ryszard Szafirski: Zawada is up there, somewhere under Geneva Spur, and he sends signal six times a minute.
Bogdan Jankowski: He's asking for help.

Listen to audio recording

February 16

Temp. in the base -20º C, CII - 25º C, CIV - 42º C, slight wind, partly cloudy. At 7:30 a.m. L. Cichy and K. Wielicki leave the camp with oxygen. They reach CIV on South Col around 1 p.m.; after resting they prepare their equipment for an early start towards the summit on the next day.

Zyga says that boys reached South Col

Listen to audio recording

Leszek Cichy na szczycie (fot. Krzysztof Wielicki)

February 17 - 8848 m above sea level - Leszek Cichy and Krzysztof Wielicki set out from Camp IV in the direction of the summit. At 2:25 p.m. they reach the summit of Mount Everest. For the first time in the history of humanity, an eight-thousander has been summited during winter - and it is the highest summit in the world.

February 17

Temp. in the base -22º C, CII - 30º C, CIV - 36º C, slience, slight wind. For the last few days priest S. Kardasz had been praying for the expedition's sucess during celebration of the mass. Around 6 a.m. there's a report from the col: boys are leaving in a moment towards the summit, each with one oxygen cylinder. All day and in all the camps radio listening watch is maintained.

Listen to audio recording

K. Cielecki and M. Pawlikowski climb from CII to CIII as a support for the attack team. In CII A. Zawada and A. Heinrich stay back for the watch. At 2:30 p.m. they receive a message from L. Cichy and K. Wielicki - they are on the summit of Mount Everest! Summiters reach South Col (CIV) in the evening. Around 3 p.m. the message about the expedition's success is sent via radio to Poland by B. Jankowski. Zawada orders sending dispatches from CII. At 5.15 p.m. the message reaches A. Wawrzyniak, Polish ambassador in Kathmandu. Based on the release from Polish Press Agency, worldwide press agencies inform about winter summiting of Everest; a small diplomatic scandal arises.

Listen to audio recording

February 18

Temp. in the base -22º C, CII - 29º C, silence, slight wind in the Cwm. After a night in South Col, the summiters - L. Cichy and K. Wielicki - begin their descent around 10 a.m. At 2 p.m. they are greeted by K. Cielecki and M. Pawlikowski in CIII, where they dismantle the camp and take the most important gear and oxygen equipment. By evening they reach CII, where A. Zawada, A. Heinrich and Sherpas are waiting for them.

Polacy pierwszymi zdobywcami ośmiotysięcznika zimą

Watch video recording

February 19

Temp. in the base -22º C, silence, sunny. At 5:30 p.m.
the summiters are welcomed in the Base Camp and
their achievement celebrated with a toast; R. Dmoch
serves two cakes inscripted "Everest Leszek" and
"Everest Krzyś". Dinner lasts long into the evening.
For a few days already the base is being taken down
and return caravan organised.

Listen to audio recording

Krzysztof Wielicki i Leszek Cichy w bazie po zejściu ze szczytu (fot. Bogdan Jankowski).

Krzysztof Wielicki i Leszek Cichy po zejściu ze szczytu (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

Opatrywanie stóp Krzysztofa Wielickiego po zejściu do bazy (fot.Maciej Pawlikowski).

February 18-20

Doctor is kept very busy, treating frostbite, neurological as well as other ailments of the expedition members. Advanced logistic activities - equipment and gear selection, securing some of it for spring expedition and coordinating caravan.

Lotnisko w Lukli (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

February 22-26

Return caravan to Lukla, where first few expedition members take return flight.

February 27-29

More members fly from Lukla to Kathmandu. In the evening, in hotel Lhotse the expedition members organise a farewell party for Sherpa Pasanga Norbu, who won't be taking part in the spring Everest expedition.

Andrzej Zawada i Ambasador Andrzej Wawrzyniak z żonami (fot. Archiwum Fundacji Andrzeja Zawady).

March 2

Next groups leave from Kathmandu for Delhi. For two days they are guests of Polish embassy in Delhi.

March 6

Most of the expedition flies from Delhi, through
Frankfurt to Warsaw. They are welcomed on Okęcie
Airport by press, television, Polish Mountaineering
Association, family and friends.

March 7

Expedition leader A. Zawada and summiters L. Cichy
and K. Wielicki fly from Delhi and are welcomed
in Poland by media, government representatives
and public. On March 8 a long press conference
in hotel Victoria takes place - with almost all expedition
members present. Afterwards, the leader and summiters
visit national television (TVP) studio.

March 10

Celebration in General Committee of Physical Culture
and Sports (Główny Komitet Kultury Fizycznej i Sportu, GKKFiS).
Chairman of GKKFiS decorates all expedition members with
Gold Medals for Outstanding Achievements in Sport.

The expedition's result

An unprecedented Polish success - summiting for the first time an eight-thousander in winter was an introduction to the new season in Himalaya. Two years earlier, Andrzej Zawada wrote in his Memorial: "Introducing winter season in Himalya would bring about new opportunities for alpine mountaineering. The world's highest summits, already climbed before and after monsoons would become virgin peaks for winter expeditions, just like it happened in Alps, Caucasus and Hindu Kush. Winter expeditions to Himalaya will be a natural consequence of the developments in high-altitude mountaineering". Now, in February 1980, Zawada's dream became reality. The only thought that kept him up at night was fear that climbers from other countries won't rise to the challenge and winter expeditions in Himalaya will be treated as a "circus art", not worth the trouble. But they did, and already in December 1980 famous Japanese adventurer, Naomi Uemura organised his winter expedition. He failed to reach the summit. In his letters to Elisabeth Hawley, chronicler of Himalayan expeditions, he wrote: "I don't think I will return to Everest in winter. It's too difficult for me. Everest is an awful mountain, Icefall is extremely dangerous. I lost my best friend here."

Winter Mount Everest expedition 1979/1980

"It was the happiest day of my life - (after Leszek Cichy and Krzysztof Wielicki reached the summit of Everest)"

The expedition's aim

Facts

Members of the expedition

The expedition's timeline

Andrzej Zawada chosen to lead the expedition

Permission for winter expedition granted

Mountaineers leave for Nepal and set up the base

Expedition begins

The expedition's result

Winter Mount Everest expedition
1979/1980

Andrzej Zawada chosen
to lead the expedition

Permission for winter
expedition granted

Mountaineers leave
for Nepal and set up the base