Andrea Lanfri flies to Australia for fourth Seven Summit
Andrea Lanfri has left for Australia, ready to climb his fourth Seven Summits.
Fourth stage of the Seven Summits project!
Andrea Lanfri‘s Seven Summits project continues; in fact, the Paralympic athlete left for Australia on Monday, December 4. The goal will be to climb Mount Kosciuszko (2228 m), the highest peak in mainland Australia.
For Andrea, who decided to make the ascent of the Seven Summits following the “Elbrus – Kosciuszko” List (which includes the peaks of Elbrus, for Europe; Kilimanjaro, for Africa; Everest, for Asia; Denali, for North America; Aconcagua, for South America; Kosciuszko, for Oceania; and Vinson, for Antarctica), a decidedly easy climb after the last ones achieved. The route to the summit is in fact a quiet trek, suitable for all people with moderate training.
Therefore, Andrea came up with something to make this trip to the other side of the world more interesting.
“Mount Kosciuszko was too easy for a 22-hour flight,” he explains. “So I decided to imagine a 130-kilometer, 10-day crossing that will end right at the top of the mountain.”.
A journey from Kiandra, an abandoned town located in the New South Wales region (in the far southeast of Australia), to the highest point on the continent by traversing the highest and most scenic subalpine and alpine landscapes, all above 1,500 meters.
“Although it is, for the most part, a really pleasant walk, it is very exposed and lacks all support. Summer conditions are generally favorable, but even a nice summer day can change abruptly, turning the adventure into a complicated experience with thunderstorms, sleet and snow. Being caught in a summer thunderstorm on the Main Range is an experience definitely to be avoided.”
The team
This time Andrea chose to leave together with his partner Natasha, to live a real adventure together in the Seven Summits dream. Once they land on Australian soil, the two will use trains, buses and even hitchhiking to reach the starting point of their trek. Then, just more of them and the spectacular wilderness of the continent. Tent and water filter will be their traveling companions, essential to cover the 130 kilometers ahead.
“This is an unfamiliar and almost unknown crossing, which is precisely why I imagined experiencing the route in this wild style. We will be practically alone; it will be difficult to meet anyone.”
The List “Elbrus – Kosciuszko”
The decision that prompted Andrea to complete the “Elbrus – Kosciuszko” List lies in the bureaucratic complexities she would have encountered pursuing the idea of climbing all Seven Summits according to other lists. This is in fact the only one where Mount Kosciuszko appears for Oceania, as it is located on mainland mainland and not on an island. For all other lists, the highest peak is Puncak Jaya (4884 m), which rises instead on the island of New Guinea, a particularly geo-politically sensitive territory where mountaineering expeditions are currently blocked.
“With the achievement of the Kosciuszko summit, I would have climbed four of the Seven Summits. I would then miss Denali, which I have already planned for June 2024, and Vinson, in Antarctica. And then Elbrusche, which I was already supposed to climb, but where I was forced to cancel due to the outbreak of war in Ukraine. However, I am intent on reorganizing as soon as possible, with the idea of climbing solo.”
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