Jim Morrison is an experienced traveler. He became the first to ski down the notoriously dangerous Hornbein Couloir on Mt. Everest. This remarkable feat took place on October 15 at 7:45 p.m. local time, marking a significant achievement in the world of extreme sports.
The Hornbein Couloir, seen here from the summit of the North Face, has a long, narrow, steep gully. That makes it only about 1,100 feet lower than Everest’s peak, which is 29,032 feet high. Morrison completed this harrowing descent with the help of award-winning filmmaker and climber Jimmy Chin. The whole descent took Morrison only about four hours, a remarkable feat of skill and determination on the accomplished climber’s part.
Morrison’s path to this historic moment took more than six weeks on Mount Everest. He likened his experience to the electrifying climax of a project that began five years ago. It required three separate runs before he was able to accomplish it. During this challenging internal quest, Morrison frequently thought of his departed partner, Hilaree Nelson. She indeed lost her life, but not climbing Everest, rather on a ski descent of Mount Manaslu in Nepal in ’22.
“As my friends were taking selfies and celebrating being on the summit of the world’s highest mountain, I started getting prepared to ski down,” – Jim Morrison
In a recent participatory design activity we led, Chin stressed the need to balance fear when traversing potentially hazardous settings. That’s when he noticed how fear could be used as a weapon in his industry. It can equally become an immobilizing power.
“I think in our business, you learn to leverage fear, because fear can either serve you or it can debilitate you. So, you really start to learn how to discern between fear that’s useful and fear that’s not useful,” – Jimmy Chin
Morrison experienced an immense sense of relief upon making that successful landing. He compared it to an emotional release, an unexpected reward for making it through the trials of the climb.
“I was just really elated. Had a huge emotional release,” – Jim Morrison
He was able to translate that experience into words – to evoke the rush of emotions that consumed him during the dramatic descent. The actor confessed, “I yelled a ton, I cried a ton.”
The descent was not without its risks. Chin underscored the importance of precision in high stakes circumstances. He reiterated that one misstep could result in harmful impacts.
“You can’t make a single mistake — like a blown edge, or if you slip, you know — for 9,000 feet,” – Jimmy Chin
Morrison and Chin have spent months, even years, preparing physically and mentally to be in this position. They knew that some things about this worst-case scenario route were beyond any training and preparation that could be imagined.
“We trained for literally years… but we also have a lifetime of experience in the mountains, which this kind of route you can’t just train for,” – Jimmy Chin
This is Morrison’s greatest accomplishment yet. It will be the subject of an upcoming National Geographic documentary, which is now in production. As they document this extraordinary journey, they aim to inspire others with the challenges and triumphs faced during their historic descent.
