Conditions got better in the afternoon and the snow storm eventually calmed down. We were already on our way back, carefully avoiding the crevasses and keeping a safe distance from the wall with its huge cornices.

Looking back at the death zone between 7000m and 8000m.

And then we saw him. We really did. The Zipflbob God himself.

Inspired by our spiritual encounter, we felt ready for another first descent.

On our way back to basecamp, we gathered for an expedition team photograph. Everyone was still stunned. Zipflbob god was with us all day.

We followed our tracks from earlier that day to get back to the hut, already anticipating the fireplace and a warm welcome with fresh sherpa tea from our expedition cook.

Some didn’t believe that we really knocked off the bastard. They also didn’t believe that we saw Zipflbob god. But we did.