Recently, part of the 23rd Antarctic expedition led by scientist, polar explorer and chairman of the Bulgarian Antarctic Institute, professor Hristo Pimpirev has returned to Bulgaria. This time part of the expedition were experienced climbers - Nikolay Petkov, Doychin Boyanov and Alexander Shopov. They went to Livingston Island to climb and make geodetic measurements on the peaks of the Tangra Mountain, which is located near the Bulgarian research base "St. Kliment Ohridski." Here is what professor Hristo Pimpirev told Radio Bulgaria about the work of the climbers:

"These were the first ascents of peaks of the most Bulgarian mountain outside Bulgaria - Tangra. The project was successful. Despite the severe weather conditions, the first ascents of several peaks were achieved and measurements with the GPS equipment provided by the military topographical service of the Bulgarian Army were made. Now these peaks can be placed on the world map with their exact heights," Hristo Pimpirev says.

Two-time conqueror of Everest, Nikolay Petkov says that what attracted him to join the expedition was the possibility Bulgarians to become researchers and explorers of the 30-km long mountain range of Tangra and the most important of its peaks.

"For me, the challenge was climbing the Great Needle Peak. I was impressed that it was this peak that was one of the first seen on Livingston Island in the 18th century by sailors who gave it this name. And there is no coincidence in it. The Great Needle Peak is an impressive snow-ice pyramid, springing straight from the sea. We were lucky that a few centuries later it was not climbed yet. This has become an interesting goal for us," Petkov says.

Climbing Great Needle Peak (1679 meters and 49 centimeters), took place on January 8, 2015 . this is the second highest peak  on the island after Mount Friesland. During the expedition a human foot stepped for the first time on top of the Plana and Sofia peaks. Challenges to the Bulgarian climbers were many - glaciers, ice cracks and ice formations, but the most difficult obstacle turned out to be the bad weather. Here's what conqueror of Everest without oxygen mask, Doychin Boyanov, said about the ascent of one of the most beautiful peaks on the island – Lyaskovets.

"When conquering this peak we had to climb a 40-50 m high ice wall. The ice impressed me with shapes formed by the humid oceanic climate, low temperatures and hurricane winds. According to scientists, this is the place on the planet with the worst climate and I can that this is true. During the 30 days that we spent on the island, we had one afternoon with good weather and we used it to climb the main ridge. It took us a lot of effort and courage to break through 1300 meters of thick clouds before we saw clear skies and sunny weather above.”

"It was like we showed up from hell to see the fantastic glare of the sunset," adds Nikolay Petkov. Mountaineers point out that meteorologist of the Spanish expedition on the island - Fausto had an important role in the success of their mission. He provided the Bulgarian climbers with information about the weather and was emotionally devoted to their goal. Boyanov and Petkov have been astonished to find out that in the 21st century, despite the existence of satellites, there are white spots on the map of Antarctica, and even the outline of the coast of Livingston Island is depicted in a wrong way on the map. "This is the last continent that remains unexplored enough. Bulgaria is there and has its polar base. Our obligation is to make a detailed map of the island and to fill the blank spots in the map of the Antarctica," says prof. Hristo Pimpirev who manages to organize successful Bulgarian scientific expeditions to the icy continent with a fragile budget of € 175,000 and the help of sponsors.

English: Alexander Markov

Photos: Bulgarian Antarctic Institute