Regions

9 May 1956, 12:30 p.m.: the Nepalese sirdar Gyalzen Norbu (37) and the Japanese Himalayan climber Toshio Imanishi (41) stand atop the narrow rocky summit pyramid of Manaslu (8156 m). Our colleague and friend Didier Mille, a high-mountain guide, looks back on this extraordinary epic.

For 20 years, Philippe Goitschel and Breffni Bolze have been cleaning up iconic sites in extreme environments around the world. Last July, in collaboration with Expeditions Unlimited, they tackled a particularly ambitious project: the clean-up of Mustagh Ata (7,546 m), China's iconic mountain.

The 1938 expedition was the last to be led by the British on the north face of Everest. The conquest of the poles eluded them. The French, their long-standing adversaries, took the first 8,000 m ascent from them. That's all they need. Now they have to climb Everest.

Many have attempted to explore the Arctic. The first expedition to the North Pole, though disputed, was credited to the American Edwin Robert Peary on 6 April 1909. These frozen worlds have fascinated explorers, scientists and sailors since the dawn of time. Jean-Pierre Cachard developed a passion for the history of these men and women who contributed to the discovery of this vast ice-covered ocean.

In the 60s, the USSR was at the height of its glory. But borders were hermetic, and Soviet mountaineers expressed their (immense) talent on the many peaks that stretched from one end of the former Empire of the Tsars to the other. The Himalayas are off-limits to them. On October 12 1967, the Bureau of the Central Council of Sports Societies and Organizations of the USSR decided to award a prize to those who succeeded in climbing the five highest Soviet summits.

Last May, an Expeditions Unlimited group reached the summit of Mount Denali at 6190 metres, the highest summit in North America and, as such, one of the Seven Summits — often considered the most difficult, just after Everest.

Drowned in the equatorial mist, the Carstensz Pyramid, 4,884 meters high, located in Indonesian New Guinea (Irian Jaya), was only climbed in 1962. The highest peak in Oceania, its ascent completes the challenge of the Seven Summits, the seven highest peaks on the continents. A look back at the history of the exploration and conquest of Puncak Jaya.

The highest peak in North America, Mount Denali at 6,190 m is a mountain with few equals in terms of challenge and scenic beauty, halfway between the very high attitude and the polar, reserved for experienced mountaineers. Its completely autonomous climbing conditions and extreme weather make it one of the most difficult of the Seven Summits.

Among the ‘Seven Summits’, the seven highest peaks on the continents, Mount Kilimanjaro occupies a special place: Hans Meyer, a man of science rather than a mountaineer, climbed it for the first time in 1889. Above all, he did it for the honour of his country and its Emperor: the Germany of Frederick William II. This first ascent remains unknown to the French. And with good reason, as Bismarck's Germany was our sworn enemy at the time, there was no question of highlighting this masterly achievement.