Schutzengelweg first winter ascent on Sagwandspitze in Valsertal by Martin Sieberer, Lukas Waldner

On 20 January 2026 Tyrolean alpinists Martin Sieberer and Lukas Waldner completed the first winter ascent of the summer climb Schutzengelweg on the Sagwandspitze North Face, in the Valsertal valley. This marks the first known repeat in 34 years. Following two repeats in the early 1990s, the route had not been climbed for more than three decades.

Schutzengelweg was first climbed in July 1982 by Andreas Orgler and Reinhard Schiestl. Older guidebooks describe the route as extremely demanding, with difficult protection, generally poor rock quality, and several extremely loose sections. In addition, rockfall has significantly altered various sections passages over the years.

Sieberer and Waldner started from the valley and reached the summit of Sagwandspitze at 7:00 p.m. The approximately 800-meter route was originally graded VI+ by the first-ascent party. Under winter conditions, the difficulties reached M7+ in the mixed sections. In total, the team was on the move for 17 hours. The ascent involved several demanding pitches - especially in rock and mixed terrain - and required "focused climbing in full winter conditions."

Just over a month earlier, Sieberer and Waldner had already been active on the Sagwand North Face together with Benjamin Zörer, climbing the demanding Sagzahn Verschneidung, a route first climbed by David Lama in 2018 and that had only seen one repeat up to that point, at the hands of David Bruder and Martin Feistl in 2020. With Schutzengelweg, Waldner records his tenth ascent on the Sagwandspitze North Face within the last two years.

In the past year, Sieberer also completed, among other climbs, the second winter ascent of Schiefer Riss on Sagwandspitze - both climbers therefore know the face very well.