Para-alpinism on Ama Dablam with Bertrand Zeb Roche and Jean-Michel Bacou

For several years, I had been dreaming of sharing another incredible para-alpinism adventure. Ama Dablam is one of those magical peaks that have always fascinated me. Climbing the regular route seemed anticlimactic (too many expeditions), but the idea of climbing Lagunak Ridge with my friends from the Maurienne Valley (Northern French Alps) who had plans for a high-mountain adventure in the area was highly enticing. Add plans to take off from the summit flying a tandem paraglider with a childhood friend and I was sold! Trip report and photos by Bertrand Zeb Roche.

Always unpredictable

Once in the area, we realized that Lagunak Ridge was not in condition this year; the particularly wet monsoon season included heavy snows that did not have enough time to settle. Deep snow means tricky climbing that is hard to protect. In the end we chose the regular route knowing that I would be carrying a tandem paraglider on my back for the entire ascent. The good news was that my tandem Niviuk Skin weighs only 3.3kg, allowing me the option of climbing much more technical routes than when carrying a standard tandem paraglider.

Taking off from the summit of Ama Dablam in the bag! 

The entire trip was an extraordinary high-altitude journey with my childhood friend Jean-Mi. The schedule was tight since Jean-Mi only had 8 days to acclimatize and climb to almost 7000 meters elevation, which is not much time. We left the 5700-meter-high Camp 1 at midnight, and reached the summit at 08:10 (6856m). The route offered steep and sustained climbing. We were happy to have the Niviuk Skin tandem paraglider on our backs, since anything heavier would have made this type of adventure much more arduous or even undoable. The route is equipped with fixed lines, some which are extremely sketchy, making us happier than ever to descend by paraglider instead of on foot.

An atypical takeoff from 6856 meters

The view from the summit was spectacular, the weather perfect, although the wind a bit strong at 35 to 40km/hr. The summit is wide but short, and the takeoff area on a side slope. We were able to spread out the wing, but inflating it required moving towards the face: a very steep slope (65°) with bulletproof snow that dives 2000 meters straight down to base camp! Clearly there was no room for error on takeoff.

Breathtaking views of 8000-meter peaks!

To avoid any unnecessary complications, we decided to remove our crampons. Jean-Mi kept us secure as best he could by holding onto a fixed line while I prepared the wing for flight. We cautiously made our way towards the drop-off until we had enough lift. I turned towards my wing to deal with any problems while the wing inflated. In spite of strong winds and an atypical takeoff area, the tandem paraglider performed well. In just a few seconds we were flying at almost 7000 meters altitude, and gliding 200 meters above the summit in no time. The views of Everest were mind-blowing, and we could see Kanchenjunga, Makalu, Lhotse, Cho Oyu, and Shishapangma, six 8000-meter peaks!

45 unforgettable minutes in the air

The desire to continue soaring with such an awe-inspiring panorama was strong, but we prudently decided to gradually descend towards base camp, since the valley breeze often proves stronger than expected at 10:00 in the morning. Tandem paragliding beneath a mono-wing can be somewhat disconcerting, especially so high up, even though the Niviuk Skin proved stable and put us quickly at ease. The wing was easy to pilot and felt as if I was flying solo as we landed in base camp at 4600 meters elevation.

What an extraordinary experience! Thank you goddess Ama Dablam for such an amazing gift! Thank you as well to Lakpa Gyalzen Sherpa and the Himalayan Karma trekking agency. This small agency is very well organized and really takes care of its clients! 

- - Bertrand Zeb Roche

Please note, paragliding in the area requires proper authorization.