Alberto Zerain

Alberto Zerain Berasategi (20 August 1961 – 24 June 2017[1]) was a Spanish Basque mountaineer from Alava. He is best known as a solo alpinist and the first person to summit K2 during the 2008 K2 Disaster[2] on 1 August. Zerain summited the mountain solo from Camp III and successfully descended before the series of events that led to the deaths of 11 climbers on 2 August 2008. In his lifetime, he climbed at least 7 eight-thousanders.

Alberto Zerain Berasategi
Born(1961-08-20)20 August 1961
Vitoria-Gasteiz, Alava, Spain
DiedJune 24, 2017(2017-06-24) (aged 55)
Nanga Parbat, Pakistan
NationalitySpain Spanish
OccupationMountaineering

Alberto Zerain died on 24 June 2017 on Nanga Parbat with his climbing partner, Mariano Galván, while on an expedition.

The 2008 K2 Disaster

During the 2008 K2 Disaster, Alberto Zerain was on a solo expedition. Zerain lacked the resources that other expeditions had. In order to secure a place on the mountain, he made a deal with a Sirdar. He agreed to work as a porter to earn his keep. In return, he was given a site for his tent.

He worked hard side by side with native mountain workers. Over the course of the expedition, he earned the respect of the locals, who said they had never seen a westerner climb like a Sherpa.

While he met with other teams when they were planning the duty roster for fixed lines, he decided to climb alone straight from Camp III. He said he immediately noticed that other climbers were suffering from Summit Fever, and he chose to make the ascent alone while the others were still discussing their problem with fixed ropes. He summited K2 on August 1, 2008. He was the first climber to reach the summit that day. He also descended successfully and was the first climber to do so, only hours before the 2008 K2 disaster.[3]

During that expedition, 11 climbers would die after a series of ice falls cut their fixed ropes, stranding them above the death zone. When he reached Base Camp, he was notified of the deaths that occurred behind him. Afterward, that climbing season became known for the 2008 K2 Disaster.

Death

In the summer of 2017, Alberto Zerain was working on the project.[4] The project was spearheaded by Juanito Oiarzabal, who aimed to see 14 of the world's 8,000 m. peaks climbed twice. Part way through, Oiarzabal's health declined. Zerain then met up with Mariano Galván to finish the project. In June 2017, they were both attempting to summit Nanga Parbat via the Mazeno Ridge route.

On 24 June both climbers became the victims of an avalanche[5] that washed over the slope they were traversing. Zerain was 55 years old when he died.[6]

Expeditions

See also

References
  1. "Official biography (in Spanish)" (PDF). Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  2. Leger, C. J. (2018-02-12). "The 2008 K2 Disaster". Base Camp Magazine. Retrieved 2019-03-16.
  3. K2 Tragedy (Alberto Zerain section), The Guardian,
  4. "Agur eta Ohore, Alberto Zerain • 2x14x8000". #2x14x8000 (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2019-03-16.
  5. "Alberto Zerain Missing on Nanga Parbat". Base Camp Magazine. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  6. Wexcomb, Catherine (2017-07-07). "Remembering Alberto Zerain". Base Camp Magazine. Retrieved 2019-03-16.
  7. Cadena Ser radio piece (in Spanish)
  8. "Himalaya 2010 climbing season, Karakoram and Himalaya wrap-up /28/ – Week in Review". 12 October 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  9. "Alberto Zerain: "Ya tengo ganas de volver a la arista Mazeno". Desnivel". desnivel.com. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  10. "Alberto Zerain hace cima en el Dhaulagiri". desnivel.com. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  11. "Alberto Zerain y Mariano Galván hacen cima en el Manaslu". desnivel.com. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  12. "Alberto Zerain, Nives Meroi, Romano Benet y Jonatan alcanzan la cima del Annapurna". desnivel.com. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  13. "REMEMBERING ALBERTO ZERAIN". basecampmagazine.com. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
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