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2026-01-31 00:00:20

The Tragic Story Of Hannelore Schmatz, The First Woman To Perish On Mount Everest

Gerhard Schmatz/Andrey Buzik/Wikimedia CommonsHannelore Schmatz was the fourth woman to summit Mount Everest and the first woman to die there.In October 1979, Hannelore Schmatz set out to do what just three other women had ever accomplished: summit Mount Everest. She had climbed some of the worlds highest mountains with her husband, Gerhard Schmatz, and Everest was the next one to cross off the list.Against all odds, Schmatz reached the peak on Oct. 2. Then, things took a tragic turn.During the descent, Schmatz and one of her fellow climbers, Ray Genet, became exhausted. They stopped to rest against the guidance of their Sherpa guides, and Genet soon succumbed to hypothermia. Schmatz then continued on but she collapsed and died before reaching the next camp.For years following her death, Hannelore Schmatzs frozen corpse sat along the path to the peak, serving as a grisly warning for other mountaineers attempting the same feat that killed her.Preparing To Climb The Worlds Highest MountainHannelore Schmatz wasnt new to the world of mountain climbing. Her husband, Gerhard Schmatz, was the first European to climb all Seven Summits the highest mountain on each of the seven continents. He introduced her to some of Earths tallest peaks after they wed in 1962. In 1973, they summited Manaslu in Nepal, the worlds eighth-highest mountain that rises to 26,781 feet above sea level. Upon their return, Gerhard ambitiously decided to apply for permission to climb Mount Everest.The Schmatzes didnt hear back for four years. In the meantime, they continued to climb mountains, from Terich Mir in northern Pakistan to Lhotse, Earths fourth-highest mountain that is directly next to Everest. Just after returning from Lhotse, Gerhard and Hannelore Schmatz learned that their application had been approved, and they started planning their return to Nepal.YouTubeHannelore Schmatz had climbed several of the worlds highest mountains before she attempted to summit Everest in 1979.Their permit was for the autumn of 1979, so they had two years to prepare. Gerhard later wrote that Hannelore was an absolute genius when it came to procuring and transporting expedition supplies, so she oversaw most of the technical and logistical preparations for their journey.Finally, the time came for them to travel to the Himalayas. They were joined by six other mountaineers: Nick Banks, Hans von Knel, Tilman Fischbach, Gnter Kmpfe, Hermann Warth, and Ray Genet. They also hired five Sherpas to assist with the expedition. They began their hike to Base Camp at the end of July. Their journey to the summit took two months, with each step bringing Hannelore Schmatz ever closer to her goal.The Fourth Woman To Summit Mount EverestBy Sept. 4, the group had reached Base Camp and overcome their first major obstacle, the Khumbu Icefall. They continued on, making it to Camp II at an altitude of around 20,600 feet and climbing the steep Lhotse Face to reach Camp III. Their next goal was South Col, located on the ridge that connects Mount Lhotse and Mount Everest at an altitude of roughly 26,000 feet the gateway to Mount Everests Death Zone.According to Gerhard, Hannelore had initially intended to stop at this point. Even before the start of the expedition, he wrote, Hannelore had repeatedly stated that the South Col was her goal. However, throughout the course of the journey, it had become clear that she, like all other participants, was in excellent physical condition, [so] she also wanted to attempt to reach the summit.They reached South Col on Sept. 24, and after a short delay due to bad weather, they continued their ascent. Gerhard went first with Hermann Warth, Hans von Knel, and two Sherpas. We wanted to take on the task of breaking trail and thus not burden Hannelore with it, Gerhard explained. The second group consisted of the remaining men and one Sherpa, and Hannelore Schmatz brought up the rear with the final two Sherpas. This way, if she wanted to turn back, she could do so without impeding the other climbers progress.Gerhard Schmatz/Schmatz OnlineA photo Gerhard Schmatz took of their camp at South Col during the expedition.On the morning of Oct. 1, Gerhards group began their final push to the summit. They reached the peak around 2 p.m. and returned to South Col that same evening. Everyone else was planning to summit the mountain the following morning, but Gerhard warned Hannelore that conditions were deteriorating. We urged her to abandon her plan to also attempt the summit, he said but she was determined.So, on the morning of Oct. 2, 1979, Hannelore and the remaining climbers set off. We kept looking anxiously at the sky, as the weather was visibly deteriorating, Gerhard recalled. We didnt think our companions would continue the ascent and expected them to turn back. In the evening, our predictions proved wrong.The mountaineers did reach the peak of Mount Everest around 6 p.m. Hannelore Schmatz had done it. She was the fourth woman to summit Everest.Sadly, she would never leave the mountain.The Tragic Death Of Hannelore SchmatzSince Hannelore Schmatz and her fellow climbers hadnt reached the summit of Everest until evening, their journey back to South Col was a race against nightfall. During the descent, Schmatz and Ray Genet became exhausted. They decided to bivouac make a temporary camp with little to no shelter so they could rest. The Sherpas warned them against this, as they were still in the Death Zone, and advised them to push on to South Col.However, Genet was out of oxygen, and he had reached his breaking point. He stayed and he succumbed to hypothermia within hours. Hannelore Schmatz and the Sherpa who had remained behind, Sungdare, were forced to leave Genets body and continue their descent. But it was too late. Schmatzs body couldnt handle the physical toil in the frigid conditions. Around an altitude of 27,200 feet, she told Sungdare, Water, water. Then, she collapsed.At 39 years old, she became the first woman to die on Everest.Tirthakanji/Wikimedia CommonsA camp on South Col with Everest towering in the background.Sungdare remained with her body, resulting in the loss of most of his toes and fingers from frostbite.At the time of Schmatzs death, Tilman Fischbach and Sherpa Ang Nawang were on their way back up to see if they could assist their fellow climbers. Sungdare told them the incomprehensible news, and they all made their way to camp, leaving Schmatzs corpse behind.Hannelore Schmatzs Legacy In Mount Everests Death ZoneGerhard Schmatz later wrote, I was so stunned that I only vaguely grasped the scope and tragedy of what had happened Hannelore and I had been closely connected for 20 years, not only in daily life, but also, and especially, in dangerous situations in the mountains of the world on almost every continent.Despite Hannelore Schmatzs experience and skill, however, the lethal conditions on the worlds highest mountain were simply too much. The team came home, said Gerhard. But I alone without my beloved Hannelore.Her corpse remained at the very spot where shed drawn her final breath, mummified by the extreme cold right along the path that thousands of other climbers would take during their attempts to summit Everest.YouTubeHannelore Schmatzs corpse remained on Everest for several years before the high winds on the mountain blew it over a slope.Norwegian mountaineer Arne Nss described passing Schmatzs body in 1985, as recorded in Lene Gammelgaards book Climbing High: I cant escape the sinister guard. Approximately 100 meters above Camp IV she sits leaning against her pack, as if taking a short break. A woman with her eyes wide open and her hair waving in each gust of wind. Its the corpse of Hannelore Schmatz, the wife of the leader of a 1979 German expedition. She summited, but died descending. Yet it feels as if she follows me with her eyes as I pass by. Her presence reminds me that we are here on the conditions of the mountain.In 1984, two men died while trying to recover Schmatzs body during a police expedition. Not long after, the wind blew her remains over the edge of the slope, and Hannelore Schmatz was forever lost to the elements.After reading about the death of Hannelore Schmatz, go inside the story of Beck Weathers and his incredible Mount Everest survival story. Then, learn about Rob Hall, the experienced mountaineer who died just after summiting Everest for the fifth time.The post The Tragic Story Of Hannelore Schmatz, The First Woman To Perish On Mount Everest appeared first on All That's Interesting.

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