Mount Everest Foundation
Supporting the exploratory

Livingstone and Česen Establish New Line on Gasherbrum III

Tom Livingstone and Aleš Česen have succeeded in making the first ascent of the west ridge of Gasherbrum III (7952m).

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The climb took the pair a total of seven days, including the descent, and required three bivouacs, including an open bivi at 7,800m which Livingstone described simply as "snowy!"

The climbers had previously attempted the line in 2022 when strong winds had forced them to abandon the west side of the mountain and instead make an attempt from the more sheltered north.

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Sitting just below 8,000m, Gasherbrum III has seen relatively little attention and this ascent marks only the third occasion on which the mountain has been climbed. 

A Scottish expedition in 1985 had also meant an attempt on the west ridge, retreating from ~7,700m in the face of high winds.

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Livingstone and Česen descended by traversing the mountain in order to link up with the normal route on Gasherbrum II, making some use of the fixed ropes there.

Commenting on the ascent, Livingstone said:

"We’re really, really happy since this is a culmination of ~10 year dream to climb a hard, technical alpine route at high altitude...Our trek back to civilisation was filled with life."

They dubbed their new line Edge of Entropy.