Kilian Jornet tops 177 Pyrenees peaks in just 8 days

Kilian Jornet has chained 177 peaks over 3,000 meters in the Pyrenees in just 8 days.

The Catalan athlete started his adventure at the foot of the Pico de Frondiellas and finished it at the Pica d’Estats. In total, he traveled 485.65 kilometers and accumulated a positive difference in altitude of over 43,000 meters, in over 155 hours of activity.

Jornet defined this trip as one “incredible experience – Rediscovering peaks that I no longer remembered was a spectacular experience and, on the other hand, one of the most difficult things I have ever done”.

Kilian, born in 1987, had long dreamed of returning to the Pyrenees and rediscovering the peaks and landscapes in which he grew up.

“This year I wanted to participate in some races, but an injury prevented me. After recovering, I started thinking about several projects and it occurred to me to chain the peaks of over 3,000 meters in the Pyrenees. I had this idea in my head, but I didn’t know if the challenge would be possible or just madness. After consulting and listening to the advice of people who know the Pyrenees very well, I decided to do it ”, he explained.

His adventure began on Monday 2 October at the foot of the Pico de Frondiellas (Sallent de Gállego, Huesca). His goal, as he himself reported, was not to set a record, but to enjoy the journey and cross the Pyrenees. He managed to chain more than 40 of them in one day and walk 39 hours straight, traveling by bicycle through the connections. As the days went by, other mountains were added to the list – Balaitus, Garmo Negro, Vignemale, Cilindro de Marboré, Monte Perdido, Pic Long, Posets, Punta de Lliterola, Aneto, Sayó, Montcalm or Pica d’Estats – just some of the many linked by the elite climber.

“I had climbed these peaks when I was 13, but I didn’t remember them, and this made the experience very intense … ”, concluded Kilian, who was accompanied for a part of the tour by Jonatan García and Gerard and Marta, of the Colomina Refuge.

 

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