The American Everest Ski Project Aborts Hornbein Couloir Attempt

American Jim Morrison's attempt to ski the Hornbein Couloir has been called off for the second straight year.

Mt. Everest North Face / Carsten.nebel - Own work Wikipedia

The American Everest Ski Project

The American Everest Ski Project led by Jim Morrison has been on the north side of Mt. Everest this fall climbing season seeking to ski the steep Hornbein Couloir. Morrison’s team was turned back in 2023 attempting the same feat due to bureaucratic and logistical issues. Morrison sought to ski the couloir as a tribute to his late wife Hilaree Nelson, who died while skiing with Morrison from the summit of Manaslu in 2022 when caught in an avalanche. Manaslu is the 8th highest peak in the world.

Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson / Jim Morrison's Instagram

Angela Benevides reported in an article for ExplorersWeb titled ‘Americans Return to Ski Everest’s North Face’ that the 2023 expedition, supported by The North Face and National Geographic and dubbed by Nepalese media as “the multi-million dollar expedition,” never got off the ground. Chinese authorities refused entry visas into Tibet for Oscar award-winning documentary maker Jimmy Chin and team member Conrad Anker. After much hassle, the attempt was called off. (Related Article)

This year’s expedition was off to a far better start as Morrison and the team had moved to Advanced Base Camp on Everest’s north side. The group includes several Tibetan climbers and Elite Exped partner Mingma David Sherpa. Chin and fellow cinematographer Mark Fisher were prepared to film the ski descent for a documentary. Morrison is a world-class extreme skier, and determined to honor his late wife on Everest. The team was required to use supplemental oxygen on the climb as the China-Tibet Mountaineering Association announced that supplementary oxygen is mandatory on all mountains above 7,000 meters on the north side.

It has now been reported by Angela Benavides in an article for ExplorersWeb that the 2024 expedition has met a similar fate to the 2023 attempt. Morrison’s expedition attempting to film a ski descent of the Hornbein Couloir on the North Side of Everest has aborted its attempt. The team had advanced as high as Camp 3 on Everest’s north side, but has battled poor conditions throughout the expedition. With time running out on their plans, they called off the attempt. Few other details are available at this time.

Remembering Hilaree Nelson

Nearly two years ago, Hilaree Nelson and her life-partner Jim Morrison summited 26,781-foot Manaslu – the eighth highest peak in the world. Both accomplished climbers and skiers, they donned their skis and set off from the summit. A small avalanche quickly derailed Nelson, abruptly sending her 5,000 feet down the formable mountain to her death.

Nelson was an exceptional skier, having grown up in Seattle and learning to ski in the rugged Cascade Mountains. She further refined her skiing abilities in Europe, and in 1996 won the European Extreme Ski Competition in Chamonix, France. In 2015, she was the first female to descend Makalu La Couloir on 27,766-foot Makalu. In 2018, she and Morrison made the first ski descent of Lhotse, the fourth highest peak in the world, making her one of National Geographic’s Adventurers of the Year.

She was also an elite climber.  In 2012 Nelson summited Everest and Lhotse in a 24-hour window, making her the first woman to climb two 8,000-meter peaks in one day. Instantly one of the most accomplished mountaineers in history met the same fate as so many legendary climbers before her. The beautiful, strong, humble, and inspiring Hilaree Nelson left behind two sons – Graydon and Quinn.

The lure of the mountains can be intense, though the consequences of going are often fatal But to many adventurers, the exhilarating journey is worth the lofty risk.