Iker & Eneko Pou establish new climb on Nevado Jurau A in Peru's Cordillera Huayhuash

Eneko and Iker Pou have made a three-day, alpine style first ascent of on Nevado Jurau A (5,520m) in the wild Cordillera Huayhuash mountain range within the Andes of Peru. The Basque brothers encountered difficulties up 6c, 70°, M5 along the 1,575m climb, which they have called Kuntur, Condor in the indigenous Quechua language, in honor of the four massive condors that soared above them for much of the climb.

Providing details of their ascent, they explained “We topped out with the last light of day two, after a rough bivy on a tiny ledge at 5,000 m. We rappelled from the summit for two hours in the dark, then crashed again at 5,250 m — we were cooked. It had been a 13-hour push that day, on top of 12 the day before and another 5 on the approach… On day three we woke up totally worked, but still had to figure out the descent route. It took us another 7 hours to get back to base camp."

The pair left no gear insitu. "It’s mostly a big rock climb — think La Esfinge style — but longer, higher, and with the final pitches on snow and ice, which makes the climb even more complete. The crux pitches aren’t insanely hard, but they’re super heady — tough to protect, and in most cases, you really don’t want to fall... We didn’t leave any fixed gear, so it’s a proper serious climb. Plus, hauling bivy gear and food for three days made it a real grind — physically brutal and logistically complex."

Success comes after climbing Nevado Churup (5,493m) above Huaraz, but above all after taking part in a rescue mission for three climbers who went missing on Mount Artesonraju at the start of June. Unfortunately this proved unsuccessful and the bodies were found at the start of July.

The brothers stated "This was a big one. We were looking for something major — and we pulled it off. But the hardest part wasn’t the climb itself — it was overcoming the emotional toll. First, the tragic accident on Artesonraju, where we tried and failed to recover three fellow climbers — not until nearly 20 days later. Then, the news kept
coming — one friend after another dying in the mountains around the world. Eight friends lost in less than three weeks… That kind of pain hangs heavy. We nearly didn’t go through with this. For days we felt drained, unmotivated, unable to face such a demanding climb."

Nevertheless the climbers prevailed. "Besides the effort, the difficulty, the altitude, the highs and lows of opening a new line, what truly marked us was this raw and overwhelming display of nature. After seven seasons in the Blanca, we’d never experienced anything like this. Sharing the wall with condors — something so rare and powerful — was just incredible."