{"id":16498,"date":"2017-08-30T13:17:59","date_gmt":"2017-08-30T08:17:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tns.world\/?p=16498"},"modified":"2017-08-30T13:17:59","modified_gmt":"2017-08-30T08:17:59","slug":"oscar-cadiach-the-oldest-mountaineer-to-complete-a-feat-achieved-by-just-a-handful-of-others-before-him-retires-being-on-the-top-of-k2-was-eternity-k2-has-given-me-the-best-and-the-worst-remembers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tns.world\/?p=16498","title":{"rendered":"Oscar Cadiach the oldest mountaineer to complete a feat achieved by just a handful of others before him retires; Being on the top of K2 was eternity; K2 has given me the best and the worst; Remembers the loss of his climbing partner Manel de la Matta in 2004"},"content":{"rendered":"

ISLAMABAD, Aug 30 (TNS):<\/strong> For more than 30 years Oscar Cadiach risked life and limb to conquer some of the world\u2019s most unforgiving terrain, driven by a desire to join the ranks of mountain climbing\u2019s elite.<\/p>\n

Now aged 64, the Spaniard will finally retire after summiting the world\u2019s 14 tallest mountains without bottled oxygen, with his undisputed ascents set to propel him into the record books as the oldest mountaineer to complete a feat achieved by just a handful of others before him.<\/p>\n

The quest saw him narrowly avoid plunging to his death. But in July, after three consecutive failed attempts, the Alpine Club of Pakistan confirmed he had topped Pakistan\u2019s Broad Peak \u2013 and, some 33 years after he began, he was done.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like a huge burden being taken off my shoulders,\u201d Cadiach told media in an exclusive interview. \u201cI have done my part and it\u2019s time to retire,\u201d he said, adding that he will still teach climbing and plans to publish his story.<\/p>\n

A mountaineering instructor by profession, Cadiach was first drawn to the \u201ceight thousander\u201d challenge in 1984 after topping Pakistan\u2019s Nanga Parbat, known as the \u201cKiller Mountain\u201d due to the number of people who have died on its slopes.<\/p>\n

Cadiach then set his sights on blazing dangerous new trails across the world\u2019s highest peaks as a freestyle climber \u2013 without the aid of oxygen or the use of ropes. During an expedition to summit Nepal\u2019s Kangchenjunga in 2007, he almost met his demise.<\/p>\n

Half freezing and weathering 100 kilo metre-per-hour winds with frostbite, he clung to the mountainside ropeless for an entire day and narrowly escaped falling to his death.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy hands almost slipped off the rock but I succeeded in pulling myself up,\u201d said Cadiach. Others on the expedition were not so lucky. He explained: \u201cIt was only after that I realized my friend who was dangling from that cliff with me had fallen and was gone forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pakistan\u2019s K2 has provided the Catalonian with his steepest challenges, including the loss of his climbing partner Manel de la Matta in 2004.<\/p>\n

De la Matta died of pulmonary oedema \u2013 a condition when the lungs fill with excess fluid that can be triggered by prolonged exposure to high altitudes \u2013 and was buried at K2\u2019s base camp.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sat beside his grave before the summit telling him either I would bring him the good news or will stay there with him,\u201d he said of his successful 2012 expedition.<\/p>\n

\u201cK2 has given me the best and the worst,\u201d he explained. \u201cBeing on the top of K2 on a full moon night was the best moment of my life, I stood there motionless looking at the stars and the moon and the world below me, and it was eternity.\u201d<\/p>\n

After summiting Mount Everest on two separate occasions, Cadiach says there are stark differences between the challenges posed by the world\u2019s highest peak and its second.<\/p>\n

\u201cMount Everest welcomes you, the weather, the climbing conditions, it\u2019s just hospitable,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s completely the opposite on K2. It rejects you \u2013 the climbing conditions, the weather, it becomes more hostile as you climb it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Barcelona native, who married twice and has three children, says respecting weather conditions and being mentally prepared are important to reaching one of the world\u2019s most treacherous summits.<\/p>\n

But he also admits that \u201cluck is very important on K2\u201d, adding: \u201cSometimes everything is just together but you still fail because it\u2019s just not your moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cadiach participated in 67 climbing expeditions and made 37 attempts to summit the world\u2019s eight thousanders before securing his place in the record books. But after a lifetime conquering the world\u2019s highest peaks Cadiach says he feels rather minuscule.<\/p>\n

He says: \u201cBeing on top of the summit makes you feel great as you look down at the world but at the same time it makes you feel small as you look at the length of the mountain.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ISLAMABAD, Aug 30 (TNS): For more than 30 years Oscar Cadiach risked life and limb to conquer some of the world\u2019s most unforgiving terrain, driven by a desire to join the ranks of mountain climbing\u2019s elite. Now aged 64, the Spaniard will finally retire after summiting the world\u2019s 14 tallest mountains without bottled oxygen, with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[118,589],"class_list":["post-16498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-islamabad","tag-national"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16498","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16498"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16498\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16500,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16498\/revisions\/16500"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16499"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16498"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16498"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tns.world\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16498"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}