Sad news for the mountaineering community today as it has been revealed that Slovenian ski mountaineer Davo Karnicar has passed away at the age of 56. He apparently died from injuries that he suffered when a tree that he was attempting to cut down fell on him, severely injuring Karnicar as a result. He died on Monday of those injuries. He leaves behind seven children.
Karnicar first made a name for himself back in 1995 by skiing down Annapurna along with his brother Andrej. But his major claim to fame came in 2000, when he became the first person to ski from the summit of Mt. Everest to Base Camp without having to take his skis off along the way. He climbed on the Nepali side of the mountain and was able to reach BC in just 4 hours and 40 minutes.
His other feats include being the first person to ski all of the Seven Summits. He also made two attempts at skiing K2 as well, but was unable to complete that feat. The first of those occurred in 1993 and the second in 2017, with 24 years passing in-between.
That alone is fairly impressive. His notable summits include topping out on Nanga Parbat, K2, and Shishapangma, while also making a solo climb of the Bonatti Pillar on the Aiguille du Dru as well. Other ski descents include the Eiger and the Matterhorn.
Our condolences go out to Davo’s friends and family in this sad time. He led a full and adventurous life but was taken much too early. He will be missed.
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