We love good stories! Especially when they are about adventurous athletes who have managed to leave all their fears behind in order to reach the highest and most challenging peaks on our planet.
And that is where we find Alex Txikon, considered one of the best Himalayan mountaineers in Spain and around the world, as well as one of the most prepared explorers in his category, having opened countless new routes in some of the most important mountains on earth.
Over the last few years, we have seen him in his victorious appearances on the television programme Al filo de lo Imposible on TVE and the project of the 14 eight-thousanders of the Spanish mountaineer, Edurne Pasaban, of which he has successfully crowned all to date.
One of his greatest successes was seen in 2016, when Alex Txikon He became the first mountaineer in history to reach the summit of Nanga Parbat in winter. One of the most admirable feats of recent decades! Especially given the challenge posed by the low temperatures of the area at that time of year.
If you want to know a little more about Alex Txikon and keep reading and join us on our journey through the life of this great Spanish mountaineer!
HIS EARLY YEARS
Born in Lemona (Basque Country) in 1981, Alex Txikon He grew up as the youngest of a large family of 13 siblings. It was they who had the opportunity to introduce him to the world of mountaineering at a very young age. At the age of 3, he reached the summit of Mount Gorbea, in the Basque Country.
According to the mountaineer, he discovered his passion for the mountains “since I was a kid. You could play pelota and football in my village, but there were trips with public schools and the mountain club. I started going out... and from there I became the person I am today, forged by that desire to discover the world,” Txikon says in a recent interview.
His enthusiasm for mountaineering became a passion and a professional career to remember for years and years. At just 21 years old, he reached the summit of Broad Peak in the Pakistani Karakorum, about 8,047m high.
“Since I was a teenager, I fell in love with the mountains, with nature, with each and every one of those few refuges where humans have not yet set foot,” says the mountaineer.
PASSION FOR LIFE AND MOUNTAINEERING
Nowadays, Alex Txikon He can proudly say that he has already completed more than 30 expeditions, including 14 eight-thousanders. His love for the mountains, for exploration and adventure makes him one of the most inspiring and motivating Himalayan climbers, because his passion comes from deep within, and has become a philosophy of life for him.
And according to Txikon himself: “In the life of a human being, the average life span is just under 33,000 days. If it were up to me, I would try to spend as much time as possible of my trip in the mountains!... And I come to this inevitable but real and pragmatic conclusion: life is short, very short. And it is only through generosity that we take away its end, that we make it eternal. If we stop for a moment to think, there are many things that are important.But essential, only two: life and time…”
Alex Txikon He is particularly recognised for being the only mountaineer to lead winter teams to the Himalayas annually for the past 10 years, and also for his achievement in 2016, when he achieved his first winter summit of Nanga Parbat alongside mountaineers Simone Moro (Italy) and Ali Sadpara (Pakistan), who at their most difficult moments would overcome temperatures of -55º C. Since then, he has participated in winter expeditions to Everest (2017 and 2018) as well as K2 (2019).
A VERY WELL PREPARED HIMALAYAN
If there is something that really defines Alex Txikon It is her drive and her preparation when climbing mountains, because she fully understands the risks that this sport entails. For this reason, she always climbs very well prepared, carrying her most basic items: from a lighter, extra battery and knife in one of her breast pockets, to the most essential medicines in the other, for example, dexamethasone.
“It is not lacking in our expeditions. In a summit attack, in the key part of an ascent of an expedition at very high altitudes, it is not lacking,” explains Alex in a recent interview in relation to the so-called “altitude sickness”.
Although he has witnessed difficult moments due to the high altitude conditions with his expedition companions, Alex Txikon He has always known how to react in time and prepare to help. This is a key aspect of mountaineering, that preparation, that crisis management if a companion needs him, or if he himself needs it, and Alex has known how to give his all in action, always as prepared as one can be at such high altitudes.
His passion for the mountains is also accompanied by a desire to excel, as a true mountaineer does. He has to be afraid, but he loves to overcome it and control it. According to Txikon himself, “fear’s best friend must be prudence.”
ALEX TXIKON'S MILESTONES OVER THE YEARS
- 2003
- Broad Peak (8,047m) – SUMMIT
- 2004
- Makalu (8,463m) - SUMMIT
- K2 (8,611m) Reaches 7400m
- Cho Oyu (8,201m) - SUMMIT
- 2005
- Makalu (8,463m)
- Lenin Peak (7,134m) - SUMMIT
- 2006
- Shisha Pangma (8,027m) - SUMMIT
- Antarctica Expedition: Mount Scott (880m). SUMMIT.
- Shackelton (1,465m). New route. SUMMIT.
- Wandell (2,397m). Virgin Peak. SUMMIT.
- 2007
- Shisha Pangma (8,027m) – SUMMIT. British Route (SW side). alpine style
- 2008
- Dhaulagiri (8,167m) - SUMMIT
- Manaslu (8,163m) SUMMIT
- 2009
- Kangchenjunga (8,586m) Reaches 8450m
- Shisha Pangma (8,027m) SUMMIT
- 2010
- Annapurna (8,091m) SUMMIT
- Shisha Pangma (8,027m) SUMMIT
- 2011
- Gasherbrum I (8,080m) Winter expedition. Reaches 7,000 m.
- Gasherbrum II (8,035m) SUMMIT
- K2 (8,611M) Reaches 7,900 m.
- 2012
- Gasherbrum I (8,080m) Winter expedition on a new route.
- Expedition to Greenland (climbing and BASE jumping). Ulamertorsuaq Peak (1,880m). Opening of a new route (D. sup. 1.100m)- SUMMIT
- 2013
- Laila Peak (6,096m) SUMMIT First winter ascent
- Nuptse (7,861m) 20 m from the summit
- Lhotse (8,516m) SUMMIT
- K2 (8,611M) Reaches 7,100 m
- 2014
- Kangchenjunga (8,586m) Reaches 8,500 m.
- No Name Tower (6,251m) - SUMMIT. Route 'Ethernal Flame': 7b+, A2, M5 1100m. In 36 hours
- 2015
- Nanga Parbat (8,125m) Winter expedition. Reaches 7,850 m.
- Thalay Sagar (6,904m) New unsummited route on the North West Pillar
- 2016
- Nanga Parbat (8,125m) - SUMMIT First winter expedition
- 2017
- Everest (8,850m) Reaches 7,900m. Winter expedition
- 2018
- K2 (8,611 m) Reaches 7,050m - Winter expedition
- New attempt on Everest without oxygen - Winter expedition. However, they are forced to abandon due to extreme cold and bad weather.
- 2019
- K2 (8,611 m) – Winter expedition on the slopes of the Karakorum using igloos.
In addition to being a mountaineer, he is a fan of boxing, Basque pelota, rowing, cycling and basketball. He has practiced BASE jumping, having obtained the Spanish BASE jumping record in 2013 after jumping from 3,200 metres from Pico Veleta in Granada together with Patrick Gisasola and Darío Barrio.
With 14 eight-thousanders and more than 30 expeditions… Alex Txikon He hopes to soon become the first person to conquer Everest without oxygen in winter, when weather conditions and the amount of snow necessary allow it.
But more recently he has been giving talks, making calls and visiting homes to bring mountaineering a little closer to our seniors. In addition, he is concentrating his efforts on his most recent projects, documentary films and a book about his 2016 winter campaign on Nanga Parbat.
