photo @ Leo Hoorn
photo @ Leo Hoorn
Crows Christina Lustenberger and Jim Morrison, accompanied on this flight by Chantel Astorga, achieved the feat of skiing the west face of the Grand Trango last spring. Ahead of the film’s release, we take a look back at this resounding adventure.
“Most of the best ski lines are climbing routes,” said Christina Lustenberger, known as Lusti. With this observation, she summed up perfectly the incongruous project of skiing the Tours de Trango in Pakistan – legendary for being among the most challenging big walls in the world. A vision, a line, born of the imaginations of two skiers, Lusti on the one hand, attracted by Pakistan and who would have envisaged this line from a photograph, and Jim Morrison on the other, to whom Andres Marin and Anna Pfaff, just back from the Tours de Trango, would have whispered: ‘Of course you could climb them, you could even ski them’.
Whatever the origin of this line. It was one thing to imagine it, but quite another to climb it and then ski back down, which is what Lusti and Jim did with team-mate Chantel Astorga. The Towers of Trango, renowned for their great climbing routes on compact granite at an altitude of over 5,000 metres, are nonetheless mountains made up of different slopes, some of which may hold snow. The target was the west face of Great Trango, a massif with three distinct summits: the main summit (6,286 m / 20,623 ft), the east summit (6,231 m / 20,443 ft), and the west summit (6,223 m / 20,417 ft). To ski down from the main summit via the west face, you would have to navigate a series of slopes and ledges that follow a system of snow-covered ridges to the summit, all between 5 and 6,000 metres – a ribbon of snow weaving its way through vertical walls, offering the possibility of a modern ski descent.
photo @ Erich Roepke
Crows Christina Lustenberger and Jim Morrison, accompanied on this flight by Chantel Astorga, achieved the feat of skiing the west face of the Grand Trango last spring. Ahead of the film’s release, we take a look back at this resounding adventure. However, tragedy struck that autumn during an expedition to Manaslu. After summiting at 8,163 meters, Hilaree fell down the south face in front of Jim. Her body was found two days later, nearly 1,000 meters below. The heartbreak put Jim’s participation in a new expedition the following spring in question, but after a period of reflection, he decided to return up there.
Joining them was Nick McNutt, a seasoned skier from British Columbia. In April 2023, the team reached the Hunza Valley in northern Pakistan and set up base camp at the foot of the Trango Towers—a climber’s paradise in the Baltoro Muztagh, a sub-range of the Karakoram.
photo @ Savannah Cummins
photo @ Savannah Cummins
“Base camp sits just over 4,000 meters. From there, you enter the nameless gully, the same route climbers use to approach the Nameless Tower,” Lusti explained. “High camp is at 5,000 meters, tucked under a massive boulder offering some protection from avalanches and rockfall. From high camp, the route trends climbers’ right, ascending toward a ramp system—a stunning line leading to the upper mountain.”
About halfway up the ramp lies a technical 5.9 rock step. “I led this pitch and fixed a line for the team to ascend,” said Lusti. Beyond the final rock stance, they traversed onto a glacier face, aiming for a narrow passage that ended at a massive crevasse around 5,800 meters. Here, the expedition encountered their first major obstacle.
photo @ Savannah Cummins
“The crevasse was far wider than in previous years, and the snow bridge was dangerously thin,” Jim recalled. “We weren’t prepared for such conditions and had to turn back.” Back at base camp, Lusti and Nick fell ill, and their recovery coincided with the arrival of bad weather. The summit would have to wait. Despite the setback, Lusti remained resolute. “It was a success in many ways, but we didn’t reach the top. The vision and the creative challenge of this mountain made it clear we needed to return,” she explained.
In mid-April the following year, Jim and Lusti returned to Hunza for a second attempt. This time, Nick McNutt, anticipating the birth of his child, stepped aside. Fortunately, The North Face’s extensive network provided a remarkable replacement: Chantel Astorga, an accomplished American mountaineer, climber, and skier from Idaho, nicknamed “Miss Denali.” Before the team convened in Pakistan, Lusti took the opportunity to engage with the local community by mentoring female Pakistani mountaineers.
photo @ Savannah Cummins
“Our first trip felt rushed—we went straight to base camp and missed out on the cultural experience. This time, I arrived two weeks early to teach and guide a group of Pakistani women,” Lusti shared. Organized by Nafessa Andrabi, the mentorship program was an inspiring introduction to the country. “Afterward, I spent a week solo in Hunza, climbing and bolting routes with a local climber. It was amazing to explore the region at a slower pace before the expedition.”
photo @ Christina Lustenberger
photo @ Christina Lustenberger
photo @ Savannah Cummins
When Chantel and Jim arrived, the team quickly settled into their routine of acclimatization and route reconnaissance. However, their progress was hampered by bad weather and illness. Lusti suffered a bout of food poisoning followed by high-altitude pulmonary edema. Recovery was grueling. “It was probably the most challenging part for me. Losing all my energy and doubting my ability to climb such a line when I could barely leave my tent.”
By the time she regained her strength, the expedition was nearing its end, and Jim faced a pressing commitment back home. “I had to leave for an important speech – I was the only person on stage. I could maybe stretch one more day, but not more,” Jim recalled. Fortunately, as their departure loomed, the weather finally cleared, offering a window of opportunity.
photo @ Savannah Cummins
On the night of May 9, the team ascended under partially cloudy skies. “The weather wasn’t my biggest concern,” Jim explained. “It was the snow warming as the day progressed. We were using carbon plates to stay above deep snow—something I’d never tried at this altitude. It was a gamble, but we were so close.”
Crossing the crevasse proved pivotal. “I was belayed across, protecting with three ice screws and building an anchor for the others to follow,” Lusti recounted. Above the crevasse, the terrain consisted mostly of snowfields, interspersed with steep sections requiring careful evaluation. The summit ridge, steep and guarded by a bergschrund, marked the final challenge.
photo @ Christina Lustenberger
photo @ Christina Lustenberger
Photo @ Leo Hoorn
“We belayed Jim across first and watched him climb to the summit,” said Lusti. “It was incredible to see him reach the top, especially after all he’d endured. His last major expedition ended in tragedy, and this moment felt redemptive.” She and Chantel soon followed, standing together on the summit at last.
Descending was no less thrilling. While Chantel prefered to rappel down the first pitch, Christina opened the ski descent, followed by Jim who skied the first 500 meters in one continuous run. “At this altitude, you usually stop every few turns to recover, but we were so well acclimatized that I skied fast and fluid,” he said. He chose heavier Solis skis for stability, while Lusti opted for the lighter Camox Freebird, better suited to high-altitude descents.
Photo @ Leo Hoorn
Photo @ Leo Hoorn
Crossing the crevasse again with a V-thread anchor, they completed the descent with one final rappel. “We were four in total, including Erich Roepke, who joined us below the summit. We skied down past high camp, walked a short section, and skied again, finishing under the stars. We reached base camp around 10 p.m.,” Jim concluded.
The two-year journey to ski one of the world’s most iconic climbing destinations stands as a testament to perseverance and creativity. With Lusti, Jim, Chantel, and Nick contributing to this groundbreaking feat, their daring descent through the towering granite spires of Trango carved a new chapter in the history of extreme skiing. This visionary line, zigzagging through a cathedral of verticality, reflects the essence of the sport: skiing wherever the snow holds.
