Fredrik Ericsson
Encyclopedia
Fredrik Ericsson was a Swedish mountaineer and extreme skier.
He grew up in Umeå
in the northern part of Sweden
, but spent most of his time in Chamonix
, in the French Alps
.
. In 2004 he became the first Swede to ski descend an 8000-meters peak when he skied from the central summit of Shisha Pangma (8012 m) in Tibet
.
In 2005 Ericsson and his Norwegian friend Jörgen Aamot made an attempt to ski the coveted Laila Peak
(6069 m) in Pakistan
, but bad conditions forced them to turn around at 5950 m. They were the first people who ever skied down the mountain. Same year they also skied from the summit of Gasherbrum II
(8035 m), Ericsson's second 8000-meters peak.
Ericsson returned to the Himalayas
in 2007 to attempt his third 8000er, Dhaulagiri
(8167 m) in Nepal
. Massive amounts of snow and dangerous conditions forced him to turn around at 8000 meters, from where he skied 3000 vertical meters down to base camp.
Ericsson also skied in places like Turkey, Iceland, Sicily and Svalbard. He was featured in documentary films such as Skiing Everest
and ski movies like "Free Radicals 618" and "Kong Vinter 3".
joined Ericsson and his partner Trey Cook on the way to the summit of K2
, leaving Camp 4 (8000 m) at 1:30 a.m. Weather conditions included light snow, 100-meters visibility, 40-km wind, around −15˚C with a forecast for conditions to improve throughout the day. Between 6:30 and 7:00, just below The Bottleneck, Cook turned back due to cold hands that had been frostbitten weeks earlier while establishing the team's Camp 3. Ericsson and Kaltenbrunner continued up The Bottleneck and, while Ericsson placed a piton, a rock dislodged, knocking him from his stance. He fell 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) and was killed. Kaltenbrunner aborted the summit attempt. http://www.stern.de/news2/aktuell/oesterreicherin-bricht-nach-tod-ihres-gefaehrten-besteigung-von-k2-ab-1590619.html (German)
Other significant ski descents include Mont Blanc
, the Gervasutti Couloir on Mont Blanc du Tacul
and the Y-couloir on Aiguille d'Argentière
.
He grew up in Umeå
Umeå
- Transport :The road infrastructure in Umeå is well-developed, with two European highways passing through the city. About 4 km from the city centre is the Umeå City Airport...
in the northern part of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, but spent most of his time in Chamonix
Chamonix
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc or, more commonly, Chamonix is a commune in the Haute-Savoie département in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It was the site of the 1924 Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics...
, in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....
.
History
During the summer of 2003, Ericsson climbed and skied the 7495 meters high Ismoil Somoni Peak (Peak Communism) in TajikistanTajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
. In 2004 he became the first Swede to ski descend an 8000-meters peak when he skied from the central summit of Shisha Pangma (8012 m) in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
.
In 2005 Ericsson and his Norwegian friend Jörgen Aamot made an attempt to ski the coveted Laila Peak
Laila Peak (Hushe Valley)
Laila Peak in Hushe Valley near Gondogoro glacier is in Karakoram range and is high. It has a distinctive spear-like shape. Its northwest face has a slope of 45 degrees in more than 1500 vertical metres.It has been climbed by Simon Yates, among others...
(6069 m) in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, but bad conditions forced them to turn around at 5950 m. They were the first people who ever skied down the mountain. Same year they also skied from the summit of Gasherbrum II
Gasherbrum II
Gasherbrum II , also known as K4, is the 13th highest mountain on Earth, located on the border of Gilgit-Baltistan province, Pakistan and Xinjiang, China...
(8035 m), Ericsson's second 8000-meters peak.
Ericsson returned to the Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
in 2007 to attempt his third 8000er, Dhaulagiri
Dhaulagiri
Dhaulagiri is Earth's seventh highest mountain at ; one of fourteen over eight thousand metres. Dhaulagiri was first climbed May 13, 1960 by a Swiss/Austrian expedition....
(8167 m) in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. Massive amounts of snow and dangerous conditions forced him to turn around at 8000 meters, from where he skied 3000 vertical meters down to base camp.
Ericsson also skied in places like Turkey, Iceland, Sicily and Svalbard. He was featured in documentary films such as Skiing Everest
Skiing Everest
Skiing Everest is an American adventure documentary directed by Les Guthman and Mike Marolt; written by Les Guthman, and featuring high-altitude skiers Mike Marolt, Steve Marolt, John Callaghan, Jim Gile, Hans Kammerlander, Chris Davenport, Laura Bakos, Mark Newcomb and the Fredrik Ericsson who...
and ski movies like "Free Radicals 618" and "Kong Vinter 3".
Death
On 6 August 2010, Gerlinde KaltenbrunnerGerlinde Kaltenbrunner
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner is an Austrian mountaineer. In August 2011, she became the second woman to climb the fourteen eight-thousanders, and the first woman to do so without the use of supplementary oxygen....
joined Ericsson and his partner Trey Cook on the way to the summit of K2
K2
K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest...
, leaving Camp 4 (8000 m) at 1:30 a.m. Weather conditions included light snow, 100-meters visibility, 40-km wind, around −15˚C with a forecast for conditions to improve throughout the day. Between 6:30 and 7:00, just below The Bottleneck, Cook turned back due to cold hands that had been frostbitten weeks earlier while establishing the team's Camp 3. Ericsson and Kaltenbrunner continued up The Bottleneck and, while Ericsson placed a piton, a rock dislodged, knocking him from his stance. He fell 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) and was killed. Kaltenbrunner aborted the summit attempt. http://www.stern.de/news2/aktuell/oesterreicherin-bricht-nach-tod-ihres-gefaehrten-besteigung-von-k2-ab-1590619.html (German)
Ski descents
- In 2003, Ericsson climbed Peak Somoni (Peak Communism) and skied from the summit at 7495 m to 4500 meters.
- In 2004 he climbed the central summit of Shisha Pangma and skied down to 5600 meters.
- In 2005 he climbed Gasherbrum IIGasherbrum IIGasherbrum II , also known as K4, is the 13th highest mountain on Earth, located on the border of Gilgit-Baltistan province, Pakistan and Xinjiang, China...
(8035 m) together with Norwegian Jörgen Aamot and they skied from the summit to 5500 meters.
Other significant ski descents include Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc or Monte Bianco , meaning "White Mountain", is the highest mountain in the Alps, Western Europe and the European Union. It rises above sea level and is ranked 11th in the world in topographic prominence...
, the Gervasutti Couloir on Mont Blanc du Tacul
Mont Blanc du Tacul
Mont Blanc du Tacul is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif of the French Alps situated midway between the Aiguille du Midi and Mont Blanc....
and the Y-couloir on Aiguille d'Argentière
Aiguille d'Argentière
The Aiguille d'Argentière is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif on the border between France and Switzerland.The first ascent of the mountain was by a British party comprising Edward Whymper and A. Reilly with guides Michel Croz, M. Payot, H. Charlet on 15 July 1864...
.
External links
- Fredrik Ericsson's website
- Fredrik Ericsson's athlete profile on Osprey website
- Fredrik Ericsson's athlete profile on Hestra Gloves website
- Article about Fredrik Ericsson on Freepresse.com
- Film from Fredrik Ericsson's expedition to Dhaulagiri on the Adidas Eyewear website
- Article on diepresse.com
- Article on orf.at
- Fredrik died on K2 (Spanish)