accident on departure
Famous US ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson died in an accident in the Himalayas
Hilaree Nelson and her partner James Morrison in 2018
© Niranjan Shrestha / Picture Alliance
Ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson has died while descending a Himalayan peak. Her body was discovered by a helicopter two days later. What exactly happened is still unclear.
Tragic end of a pioneer: The well-known US ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson died in an accident in the Himalayas. After a two-day search, the 49-year-old’s body was found on Mount Manaslu, tour organizer Jiban Ghimire from Shangri-La Nepal Trek told the AFP news agency on Wednesday. Nelson’s body was taken to the base camp and will be flown from there to Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu.
After a successful ascent of Manaslu, Nelson had an accident on the descent on Monday. On the day of the accident, bad weather conditions prevented helicopters from taking off to search for Nelson. The search operation was led by Nelson’s partner Jim Morrison, who had climbed the 8,163 meter high Manaslu with her.
Successful as a ski mountaineer for two decades
Nelson has been a successful ski mountaineer for two decades. In 2012, she became the first woman to scale the summits of Mount Everest and neighboring Lhotse in just 24 hours. Six years later, she became the first person to descend Lhotse on skis. She was named Adventurer of the Year by National Geographic magazine.
Last week, Nelson reported on her recent Himalayan expedition on the online service Instagram and explained that the ascent was extremely difficult because of “constant rain”. “I didn’t feel as safe on Manaslu as I have on other thin-air Himalayan adventures,” she wrote. “These last few weeks have tested my resilience in a whole new way.”
Second fatality in the fall season
Nelson is the second fatality of the current autumn climbing season in Nepal. On the day of her accident, a Nepalese mountaineer died in an avalanche between Camps 3 and 4 of Manaslu, and around twelve other people were injured, according to the Ministry of Tourism.
Eight of the 14 highest peaks in the world are located in Nepal. They attract numerous mountaineers from all over the world. Because of the corona pandemic, mountaineering in the Himalayas had practically come to a standstill in 2020. Last year, however, the base camps on the mountains were reopened.