The inspired big wall climber Alex Honnold successfully free-soloed El Sendero Luminoso, a sustained 5.12 route on a 1,500-foot big wall in El Potrero Chico, Mexico. In his customary style, without a rope and moving quickly, Honnold completed the route, which often takes climbing parties two days, in just three hours.
Camp 4 Collective captured this amazing footage by installing a camera on the route. The effect of the lone camera, the blusters of wind, and the deep breathes of Honnold as he traverses with a crossover move from a gaston, where he reaches across his body with his left hand while putting counter-pressure on his right, is deeply unnerving. Notice too how his feet precariously balance on the micro-edges of this routes’ notoriously brittle limestone while thousands of feet above the deck.
This glimpse into the full-length film coming out by the North Face later this year is enough to convince that this route is certainly one of Honnold’s greatest achievements of his already illustrious young career.
