WASHINGTON, Aug. 12 (UPI) — A 22-year-old college student is attempting to become the first woman to scale the famed Eiger mountain in the Swiss Alps, more commonly known as “murder wall.”
Already a champion climber, Sasha DiGiulian hopes to be the third person in recorded history to ascend Eiger’s toughest route on the northern face, La Paciencia — a 6,000-foot vertical sheet of limestone.
A lot of fatal accidents plague this mountain and today the extremity of this undertaking really dawned on me and I felt petrified by one of the pitches. I need “La Paciencia” #EigerDreams #alpineclimbing #livewithoutlimits @adidasoutdoor @fiveten_official #pinkies A photo posted by Sasha DiGiulian (@sashadigiulian) on Aug 6, 2015 at 7:10am PDT
The Columbia University student has been climbing since she was a child, winning three national rock climbing championships and was female overall world champion. She’s traveled the world to climb some of the most difficult rock formations. None compare to Eiger.
“When you’re alpine climbing, you’re dealing with factors like unanticipated weather, which means storms can roll through,” the Virginia native said. “It’s really full on. You’re facing like 12 to 18 hour days.”
#snapchat @redbull takeover! pic.twitter.com/Or5WvKOM6b— Sasha DiGiulian (@sashadigiulian) August 11, 2015
DiGiulian said she’s faced a lot of resistance when she decided to do the climb, with at least one person telling her little girls don’t belong on the Eiger and others just laughing in her face. Still, she’s undeterred. She hopes to reach the summit next week.
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