Piz Güglia NW Couloir established solo by Roger Schäli

After two days of preparations, on 20 March 2024 Swiss mountaineer Roger Schäli made the first ascent of the obvious NW Couloir on Piz Güglia, the 3380m peak also referred to as Piz Julier in the Albula Alps in eastern Switzerland.

Described as a "superbly beautiful mixed climb", the 600m climb follows an obvious and aesthetic line of ice past challenging mixed terrain in the lower section of the route. Vertical ice on the third pitch provides the crux as  this winter's abundant snowfall resulted in thin ice and plenty of compressed snow. Schäli could not place any good ice screws and the climbing became so psychologically demanding that he was forced to move right and finish the pitch up an exposed rock ramp.

The 45-year-old explained "the climbing is actually pretty demanding on the first four pitches, then it transforms into classic north face terrain, straight up the snowy couloir. The ridge to the summit was more alpine and exposed than I expected, providing some very impressive climbing! Piz Güglia in winter via this north face couloir and the north ridge is a complete winter adventure that can be done in single day from the Julier Pass by strong parties. Standing on top of Piz Güglia feels like you're in Alaska or Canada due to its isolated position and sharp summit. It'll certainly become a coveted climb in the future I reckon."

Links: rogerschaeli.ch, La Sportiva, Petzl