WATCH: Mountaineer Eva ready for Annapurna adventure
He will become the first South African to reach the summit of the Annapurna, which should be between April 20 and 25, weather permitting.
After ascending the K2 in Pakistan, the world’s second highest peak, in 2022, Benoni alpinist Warren Eva and his friend, John Black, are gearing up to climb the Annapurna 1 in Nepal.
The duo became the first all-SA team to summit the K2 and will now try to ascend one of the most dangerous eight-thousander summits in the world, infamous for its dreadful death climber rate.
Inspiration
The Annapurna, the 10th highest mountain in the world at 8 091m, is the only part of the Himalayas Eva has never been to.
The 43-year-old and Black, from Roodepoort but now a UK citizen, will attempt this climb without oxygen.
“I’ve been to the Everest valley and climbed a few peaks there but never been to the Annapurna region. John and I wanted to challenge ourselves with another 8 000m climb after K2 and challenge ourselves with no oxygen. It will be a proper challenge that will come with lots of experiences,” said Eva.
He has been on many expeditions on all seven continents, but none will be as challenging as climbing the Annapurna. He said the allure of the mountain’s wide variety of topographical features inspired his latest adventure.
“We enjoy the technical challenges of mountaineering. Some mountains are more of a walk to the summit. The Annapurna ticked all the boxes. It comes with a lot of technical climbing. It’s a difficult mountain. It’s not busy. We’ll be with some of the most experienced climbers in the world. Those are all appealing aspects,” he said.
Charity
Like their K2 adventure, Eva and Black will do the climb to raise funds for Food 4 Hope, which helps children in rural areas with food, clothing, school fees and medical needs.
They raised over R180 000 for the organisation in 2022.
“It’s a real privilege to take a charity along with us. We are just going for the love of it. If we can do something good with that, it makes it 10 times better.”
To donate, contact Linda Niëmoller on 072 877 7337 or email info@food4hope.org.za for more info.
Beginnings
Born and bred in Benoni, the Benoni High alumnus’ mountaineering journey started 25 years ago. Eva was awarded the Order of Ikhamanga by President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2023 for his contribution to action and endurance sports.
An outdoorsy person growing up, Eva’s love for climbing started at the Sixth Benoni Scouts, where rock climbing ignited his passion for mountaineering and introduced him to Black, a Scout in the West Rand.
“I was into Scouting, and it introduced me to rock climbing. Rock climbing introduced me to the guys I climb with nowadays. We progressed to mountaineering and decided to climb the highest peaks in Africa 25 years ago. May expeditions later, we’ve climbed on all seven continents,” Eva said.
On his friendship with Black, he said, “We’ve done many summits together. It’s special to be attempting the Annapurna with him. We know each other well. It’s a privilege to climb with someone of his calibre.”
They will leave SA on March 19, and Eva will become the first South African to reach the summit of the Annapurna, which should be between April 20 and 25, weather permitting.
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