Check Out Iwan Irawan And Nurhuda's Struggle That Successfully Reached The Peak Of Swiss Eiger

Two Indonesian climbers Iwan Irawan and Nurhuda raised the Red and White flag at the summit of Mount Eiger, the Alps, Switzerland. (ANTARA/HO-Eiger)

JAKARTA - Climbers from Indonesia, namely Iwan Irawan and Nurhuda, managed to conquer the peak of Eiger, Switzerland, during 16 days of climbing on the Alpine Trilogy expedition. Iwan Irawan (Kwecheng) revealed that the team on the Alpine Trilogy expedition, which was initiated by the Indonesian Expeditionary Committee (KEWI) and supported by the local brand EIGER, consisted of four people other than himself and Nurhuda. Namely, Muhammad Wahyudi and Muhammad Miftakhudin. Muhammad Wahyudi and Muhammad Miftakhudin were forced to stop climbing in the middle of the road for medical reasons. Muhammad Miftakhudin suffered a swollen knee injury and abrasions. "Finally, on Wednesday 6 September 2023 at 13:50 p.m. Swiss time, the Red and White managed to fly above the peak of Mount Eiger 3,967 Mdpl, one of the most difficult and most dangerous mountains in the world," Iwan Kwecheng said in a telephone line, quoted from Antara, Sunday, September 10. Iwan Kwecheng, who is a senior climber of the Association of Mount Climbers and Climbers (Wanadri), said that during the expedition, extreme temperatures at the end of the summer welcomed a team of climbers in Chamonix City, which is the Gate of the Alps, Switzerland, which has been there since August 21, 2023. Since arriving in Switzerland, this expedition has carried a mission to climb three mountain peaks in the Alps, namely Eiger 3,967 Mdpl, Matterhorn 4,487 Mdpl, and Mont Blanc 4,807 Mdpl. Iwan Kwecheng said it took days to accelerate his body and collect all the necessary information and technical data. "The three destinationed mountain peaks require technical skills and a high climbing experience," he said. Various obstacles take place during the climbing trial process, ranging from extreme heat waves that hit Switzerland to weather that turned into snowstorms also occurred. Due to extreme hot weather that hit Europe, the climb to Mont Blanc had to be delayed because the hiking trail was closed. "We received information suddenly, Mont Blanc was closed because the glacier or large chunks of ice on the track were getting cracked and gaping due to heat waves, not safe to climb," said Iwan. Finally, the four climbers decided to continue the expedition to the second peak, namely Matterhorn at an altitude of 4,487 Mdpl by taking the starting point from Zermatt Village. However, when in Zermatt Village, which is the closest village to Matterhorn, the weather was again not in accordance with the plan, with the outbreak. "Since Zermatt, a big snowstorm came to block us in the middle of the road, to be precise in Solvayhuette. It was too dangerous to continue until the peak of Matterhorn. Finally we returned to Zermatt," said Iwan. After recovering physically and mentally for three days, four Indonesian climbers resumed their third mission, namely Mount Eiger at an altitude of 3,967 Mdpl. According to Iwan, Mount Eiger is technically one of the most difficult climbs in the world. "The first path to the top of Eiger we tried through Heckmair, but the foothold above the Eiger wall ice on the Heckmair line continued to collapse due to hot weather. Finally we changed the lane through West Flank. The condition of the snow that melted due to the hot temperature also occurred on the West Flank route, but the route was not as dangerous as the Heckmair route," said Iwan. Sharp rock is stepped on and held tightly, hands and feet reach for ice and climb vertically, climb the Eiger slopes with techniques, as well as high safety standards. Four Indonesian climbers use technical equipment that requires high flying hours in dangerous climbing affairs. Until finally two climbers, namely Iwan "Kwecheng" Irawan and Nurhuda, managed to reach the top of Mount Eiger. "On Wednesday, September 6, 2023 at 13:50 p.m. Swiss time, the Red and White managed to fly over the peak of Mount Eiger 3,967 Mdpl, one of the most difficult and most dangerous mountains in the world. Thank you for the support and prayers of all my friends including supporters of Wanadri and Eiger," said Iwan. After reaching the peak of Eiger, one night spent recovering and setting up a basin hanging on the slopes of the Eiger rock, after the injured team members slowly recovered, the four Indonesian climbers managed to descend to the foot of the Alps on Thursday (7/9) at 14.00.

"The execution is not over yet, there are still several more trials to complete the Alpine Trilogy mission. Please pray and support, hopefully, the four climbers from Indonesia in the Alps will always be given protection, safety and health until they return to Indonesia," said Iwan.