Seven Oceans, Six-and-a-Half Summits » Explorersweb

In the brand new lists division, American Rob Lea says he has turn into the primary particular person to swim the Oceans Seven — seven notoriously tough channel crossings all over the world — and climb the Seven Summits. Well, virtually the Seven Summits.

The undertaking has taken the previous triathlete 17 years. This week, he accomplished his final swim by crossing Japan’s Tsuguru Strait, the 40-45km channel between Honshu and Hokkaido. Fighting chilly water, robust currents, and distance, Lea’s spectacular swim took him 11 hours and 44 minutes.

 

As in all his earlier swims, Lea didn’t put on a wetsuit, which — not like in triathlons — is just not permitted in marathon swimming. Dealing with chilly is taken into account a part of the problem. Many marathon swimmers fatten as much as insulate themselves in opposition to water temperatures that may dip to 16˚C or colder. Lea himself intentionally packed on 9 kilos for cold-water resistance. Olympic swimmers could also be quicker, however can’t deal with such temperatures.

Former triathlete

Lea had hoped to turn into an expert triathlete — he was an age group file holder for the half Ironman — when a sequence of accidents in 2012 reduce brief his operating profession. By then, he had already summited Aconcagua and Denali. Looking for brand new challenges, he devised his personal triathlon in 2019: swimming the English Channel, climbing Everest, and biking throughout the United States, all inside six months.

 

Lea contacted ExplorersWeb about his present undertaking two months in the past, declaring he had performed all of the swims besides the Tsugura Strait and all of the peaks besides one, Elbrus. Since it lies in Russia, he stated, it’s tough for a U.S. climber within the present political local weather, and he talked about that he was contemplating doing Mont Blanc as a substitute.

“Given the current security situation for American citizens in Russia (State Department Level 4 advisory, explicit warning against climbing Elbrus), I’m evaluating whether to complete the project with Mont Blanc…or delay until Elbrus is feasible…for an American climber,” he wrote us.

A stretch

Mont Blanc is the very best peak in Western Europe however it’s a stretch to attempt to make a case that it’s the highest in Europe. But that appears to be what he has determined to do.

“We recognize Mont Blanc over Elbrus for several reasons,” wrote his accomplice, Caroline Gleich, on Instagram earlier this 12 months, “the biggest one being that under the Kuma-Manych geographical convention, the Caucasus actually sits in Asia…”

If you lookup “Seven Summits” on Wikipedia, you’ll find seven variations of the very best peak on every continent to select from. Dick Bass, arguably acknowledged as the primary to finish the Seven Summits, selected Kosciuszko, the very best peak on the Australian mainland. Nowadays, Carstenz Pyramid/Puncak Jaya, the very best peak in Oceania and the one technical climb among the many Seven Summits, is sort of at all times thought of the seventh. Lea, in actual fact, did do Puncak Jaya, so he selected the tougher one. Likewise, few of the a whole lot of Seven Summiters do Mont Blanc as a substitute of Elbrus.

It’s too unhealthy that they’ve determined to make this Mont Blanc declare, as a result of the swims (and Everest) have been by far the toughest half. Three years in the past, once we final lined the Oceans Seven problem, a mere 24 folks had accomplished all of the swims. Presumably, no competitor is nipping at Lea’s heels to turn into the primary to finish this so-called Double Seven.

Elbrus not off limits

Most importantly, Elbrus — a walk-up, involving a ski carry partway — is just not as off-limits as Lea feared in his electronic mail to us. Westerners are, in actual fact, nonetheless climbing the mountain. Madison Mountaineering led a celebration of Americans to the summit a couple of days in the past.

“It’s okay for Americans to travel here, as long as we are in compliance with local Russian regulations and the sanctions that the U.S. has imposed on us,” Garrett Madison informed ExplorersWeb. According to the Madison Mountaineering web site, their subsequent climb of Elbrus is in July 2027.

Sometimes politics does are available the best way of journey, particularly in case you are doing lists. Those who’re engaged on the 14×8,000’ers can’t end till China reopens Cho Oyu and Shisha Pangma. Many long-distance journeys have gaps due to closed borders or battle zones. Puncak Jaya itself is in a politically unstable space, and would-be Seven Summiters can’t go on their very own as they did within the Nineteen Eighties; they need to function by means of a neighborhood clothing store and fly each to and from the mountain to keep away from potential hassle.

We reached out to Lea earlier this week to ask whether or not he has any plans for Elbrus sooner or later. So far, we now have not heard again.