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Meet the man who skied down the world's scariest mountain

Andrzej Bargiel
Andrzej Bargiel

Andrzej Bargiel reveals what it takes to reach the roof of the world and ski back down again

Back in 2018, when the word coronavirus hadn’t even entered the stratosphere, Polish ski-mountaineers Andrzej Bargiel accomplished something spectacular when he became the first person to ever ski down the world’s second highest mountain K2.

However, after the initial headlines had subsided, very little was known about the unheard-of athlete whose superhuman mission, which saw him climb alone, without supplementary oxygen and ski from the 8,611m summit to base without removing his skis, changed the world of mountaineering forever.

In an effort to tell his story and to mark the two-year anniversary, the expedition has been documented in a new feature-length film by Red Bull Media House, K2: The Impossible Descent. The 65-minute documentary reveals what goes on behind the scenes on such groundbreaking expeditions and what it takes to conquer what many believe to be the world’s scariest mountain – where one in four people who attempt to summit never return.

“K2 is a dream of many people, but when I saw it personally from the perspective of 8,000m I really fell for its magic – it really is spectacular. The peak itself is so beautiful, it’s hard to describe,” said Bargiel.

Despite this allure he, like many, was all too aware of the dangers the mountain presents those brave enough to face it. “One of my dear friends has also climbed K2 and was the witness of the death of famous Fredrik Ericsson, who was the first person who tried to descend K2 on skis – the story was very frightening,” he said. Ericsson, an experienced ski mountaineer from Sweden, fell to his death on the mountain in 2010.

k2 - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL
k2 - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

“Only when I was on another 8,000m mountain, Board Peak (8,047m), did I see K2 from a different perspective. I was totally amazed. I thought skiing down was possible and one day someone would do it, but I was too afraid to think I would be that person,” said Bargiel.

An underdog in the mountaineering world, many of his fellow adventurers hadn’t even heard of the Polish 32-year-old before his K2 accomplishment in July 2018.

“Andrzej definitely came out of nowhere, I’ve been in this sport and I’ve never heard of Andrzej,” said Hilaree Nelson, the woman who became the first person to ski the notorious Lhotse couloir just months after Bargiel’s achievement.

Born in Poland, with seven sisters and three brothers, Bargiel has grown up in the mountains – expeditions like this are in his blood. He was Polish ski mountaineer champion three times and he has numerous records and epic ski descents to his name.

Andrzej Bargiel - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL
Andrzej Bargiel - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

“I spend a lot of time in the mountains on my own,” he explains. Bargiel credits this with helping him complete the expedition on his own. “I’m quite stubborn, if I decide I'm going to do something I just pursue my goal… If I’m alone I have full focus on the mission and I’m not distracted,” he said.

Inevitably it was this tunnel vision and concentration that catapulted him into the record books. While any other mountaineer would be ecstatic at the achievement of summiting the world’s second highest mountain, just 237m lower than Everest, Bargiel says it was an “interim objective”. “Reaching the peak was not my sole purpose, so there was no euphoric emotion. I was super focussed because I knew the real challenge was just starting... Only when I was down could I enjoy and feel the satisfaction of what I achieved,” he said.

And what he achieve was nothing short of spectacular. “When you’re executing something for the first time a human has ever done it, that’s a mental barrier that has literally been taken down,” said Jimmy Chin, co-direct of award-winning Free Solo and accomplished ski mountaineer, who is one of the professional athletes to comentate on the documentary.

While he was solo on the summit a team of experts, including his brother, were part of the two-year planning process, supporting Bargiel from base camp at 5,000m and breaking new ground of their own. “The whole preparation and planning the path was one of the key challenges,” he explains.

Andrzej Bargiel - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL
Andrzej Bargiel - MAREK OGIE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

The documentary includes the team’s innovative use of a drone to save Bargiel’s mission. When Bargiel’s climbing partner Janusz Gołąb became sick during the climb to the summit a drone, flown by Bargiel’s brother, Bartek, was used to carry emergency medical supplies to the patient. The technology was also vital in plotting untracked routes down the mountain and to help the team plan for the previously unseen, especially when the weather closed in and Bargiel found himself skiing in a whiteout on a near 75-degree slope.

“It [the drone] definitely gives much more safety, we can avoid expensive helicopters and cameramen don’t have to climb the whole mountain with the team,” said Bargiel.

The treacherous Messner Traverse, a barely-climbed narrow couloir with deep caverns on either side, was the most challenging part of his descent.

“No one has ever skied down it. I had also never climbed this traverse, I only used the drone and telescope to monitor the conditions there – but it was very important as it was the connector between the two sections,” reveals Bargiel, who lives in the Tatra Mountains Natural Reservoir in Poland, with a vast amounts of ski terrain on his door step.

Andrzej Bargiel
Andrzej Bargiel

“The conditions are quite demanding but it’s really interesting to ski here. It’s unique and I really cherish it,” he said of skiing in his native country.

While Bargiel explains the powder fields of Japan and steeps of Chamonix are two of his favourite places to ski ti’s a diverse mix that prepared him for the Himlayays. “The key element is physical preparation – I do very diverse training… I also train in very steep terrain and improve my ski technique all the time. In high altitude it’s not the moment to push your boundaries and try new things, you have to be ready and feel comfortable,” he said.

Nelson agrees, skiing at this level is a life-or-death experience. “You make one mistake and you lose an edge and you’re gone,” she said.

With travel to the world’s most dramatic, daring and dangerous destinations on hold for the foreseeable future it’s hard to imagine when and how world-first explorations will recommence, but for now Bargiel is content with his own doorstep skiing in Poland.

“This year the plans have been changed by the coronavirus and I'm very lucky that I can ski here at home, but I do hope to be able to train in the Alps at some point,” he said.

“Trips to the high mountains will maybe be possible next year and maybe I’d like to return to Everest and other peaks in the Himalayas like Laila Peak, it’s only 6,200m but I think it’s one of the most beautiful in the world,” he concluded. From a man who has been to the highest heights and pushed the limits of humanity to great success, it’s humbling to hear it’s the beauty of the mountains that keeps him going, just like any other skier or snowboarder.