Sasha DiGiulian is already a champion climber, but now the 22-year-old is scaling the dangerous and deadly Eiger mountain in the Swiss Alps. In the summer between her junior and senior year at Columbia University, DiGiulian is hoping to pad her resume by becoming the first woman to scale the alpine peak with the nickname "murder wall." 
 
 The 6,000-foot vertical sheet of grey limestone is considered one of the world's most dangerous climbs. Dozens have died trying to reach the top. 
 
 After a long day scaling the mountain, DiGiulian Skyped with CBS News Tuesday night from her makeshift bed perched on the edge of a cliff. 
 
 "When you're alpine climbing, you're dealing with factors like unanticipated weather, which means storms can roll through," DiGiulian said. "It's really full on. You're facing like 12 to 18 hour days." 
 
 In his book "Eiger Dreams," mountaineer Jon Krakauer wrote, "The rockfall and avalanches that rain continuously down...are legendary. ...This makes the Eiger North Face one of the most widely coveted climbs in the world." 
 
 DiGiulian is attempting to become the first woman to reach the summit. 
 
 "When other women open the floodgates to showing that something is possible then all of a sudden you see progression in a sport," DiGiulian said, explaining why this climb was important to her. 
 
 DiGiulian, who's been climbing since she was 6 years old, won three national rock climbing championships and was female overall world champion. She's traveled to dozens of countries to compete and climbed some of the world's most difficult rock formations. 
 
 But when she decided to attempt Eiger, she said she faced more resistance than she expected. 
 
 "People saying like, 'Little girls don't belong on the Eiger.' Actually like in real life being laughed in my face when saying I was trying something on the Eiger," DiGiulian said. 
 
 That hasn't stopped her. Nor has the fear she admits she sometimes feels up there. 
 
 "I think that it's wrong to think that people can be fearless. I think that fear is inevitable, but I don't think that fear needs to be inhibiting," DiGiulian said. 
 
 Fear certainly hasn't inhibited her. DiGiulian hopes to reach the summit sometime next week, but it could all depend on the weather, which can be brutal there. Her father, who died last year, used to tell her three things before every climb: have fun, be safe and do your best. ||||| Welcome back to Extreme Exposure, a weekly column bringing you the best photography and news from the world of action and outdoor sports​. This week Durango, Colo., mourns a river-running crown jewel, Sasha DiGiulian chases her Eiger Dreams and more. 
 
 Eiger Dreams 
 
 Sasha DiGiulian certainly isn’t taking it easy on her summer break. The Columbia University student is in the midst of her Eiger Dreams project in Switzerland where she’s attempting to be the first female and third person to ascend La Paciencia, the toughest route (5.13b) on the Eiger’s North Face. DiGiulian won a world title in 2011 but at 22, has excelled outdoors. “I’ve had this competition success,” she told SI.com. “(But) now I can do bigger pursuits outside. This is the hardest route up the Eiger, a 23-pitch climb.” 
 
 DiGiulian’s progress up Paciencia has been hampered by bad weather. Her and climbing partner Carlo Traversi have had to wait out a series of storms. They’re back up on the mountain now and you can follow their web series on the project here: 
 
 Instagram Jan 1, 2015 at 6:47pm PST 
 
 Instagram Jan 1, 2015 at 6:47pm PST 
 
 Toxic Sludge 
 
 In another environmental catastrophe, last week the Environmental Protection Agency accidentally dumped one million gallons of wastewater from the shuttered Gold King Mine into the Animas River, filling one of Western Colorado’s most pristine recreational gems with toxic sludge while potentially wreaking havoc on the native trout population and other wildlife that calls this grand drainage home. The river—a legendary whitewater run and trout fishery—actually turned bright orange and forced the city of Durango and La Plata County to declare a state of emergency while officials have told recreationists to avoid the river all together (the river’s waste-filled waters have now flowed into New Mexico). 
 
 The EPA says one of its teams was in the mine attempting to clean the toxic waters when it accidentally spilled the wastewater containing iron, zinc and copper into a tributary that then spilled into the river. “The magnitude of it, you can’t even describe it,” New Mexico Governor Susan Martinez told CNN. “Your mind sees something it’s not ready or adjusted to see.” According to one Yahoo report, the Federal Government claims that 40 percent of Western headwaters are at risk to similar spills. 
 
 Instagram Jan 1, 2015 at 6:47pm PST 
 
 Good Recovery 
 
 Jordy Smith has had a rough year on the injury front. Currently ranked No. 22 in the world, he hurt his arm at the end of 2014 at the Pipeline Masters and tore the meniscus in his knee free surfing, forcing his withdrawal from the Margaret River Pro. Then he tweaked his back in South Africa at the J-Bay Open. 
 
 But that didn’t stop him driving surf pundits half bonkers last week when he released a video clip from Western Australia, where he pulled one of the most radical combo moves in recent memory, weaving through a tight barrel at Mach speed before pulling a ginormous Alley-Oop. You can actually see the tiptoe athleticism as he keeps the board on his feet without grabbing the rail. Smith’s feat was summed up perfectly by his wife, Lyndall, on her Instagram account: “My husband’s a freak.” 
 
 Instagram Jan 1, 2015 at 6:47pm PST 
 
 MORE EDGE: Getting tested to the limit at Red Bull endurance camp 
 
 Throwing Down in Pairs 
 
 In a show of pure riding skill mixed with aerial prowess, Tyler McCaul (right) defeated Kyle Strait in Whistler British Columbia during Crankworx’s Dual Speed and Style Competition on a rain-soaked course. “We were a little worried about the ramps being slippery, but luckily it had traction on it,” McCaul said. Riders are judged on speed through the course and their tricks in the air, moving through rounds in man-on-man format. 
 
 This was the final stop on the Crankworx tour that also included Rotura, New Zealand and France’s Les 2 Alps, awarding Triple Crown titles for slopestyle, downhill and enduro. Bernard Kerr of Great Britain won the Triple Corwn for Dual Speed and Style. The event runs all week in Whistler. ||||| The climb thoroughly earned its name (paciencia is Spanish for patience), as it wasn’t until 2008 that Steck finally made the first free ascent. 
 
 It’s a surreal experience waking up on such an intimidating face to the sound of a door opening and two climbers walking out of a train full of Japanese tourists. 
 
 I first glimpsed the face at age 9, in 2004, during a hiking holiday with my parents. The imposing cliffs of the north wall only appeared briefly from the thick cover of mist and cloud, but this glimpse was enough to inspire me to read Heinrich Harrer’s The White Spider. Tales of the first attempts on the Nordwand—termed by some the Mordwand or Murder Wall after many aspirants died—made for chilling yet compelling reading.Although the efforts were heroic in my eyes, perhaps there was some truth in Strutt’s description that the face was "an obsession for the mentally deranged."Many young and talented climbers lost their lives on that face; since 1935 over 60 climbers have died on the Nordwand. Sections of the cliff became synonymous with danger, even gaining names following notable successes or deaths. Behind each name lies a gripping story in its own right, such as Karl Mehringer and Max Sedlmeyer’s ill-fated 1935 attempt, which ended at the grimly named Death Bivouac.To this day, the tension traverse where Andreas Hinterstoisser perished remains one of the most technical sections of the 1938 Route when fixed ropes aren’t in place.Some of my favorite Eiger stories were of the early British attempts and ascents. Don Whillans, on his only attempt on the face, decided that the rockfall danger was too great and bluntly told two Japanese alpinists who seemed unfazed by the risks that they might be going up a lot “higher” than they thought! Eric Jones’ 1981 solo ascent of the face also stood out as a wild ride and became all the more prominent as I regularly visited his cafe beneath the Welsh cliffs of Tremadog. The photos in the cafe of this quiet, unassuming pensioner climbing and BASE jumping around the world were inspirational to me to say the least.Last March, nine years after my first glimpse, I was again looking at the north face. This time the wall was clear of cloud and I could distinguish the features I had read so much about. Under its wintry coat the ice fields and the infamous White Spider became all the more prominent. Andy Woolston and I walked through deep snow from Kleine Scheidegg to bivi at the base of the wall ready for an early start on the 1938 Route the following morning. My dreams were vivid that night as I anticipated the coming day’s climbing. In one, I imagined I was slowly being smothered by snow.After a cold night, I awoke inside my zipped-up bivi bag to a muffled world. Snow surrounded me on all sides. After wriggling free I realized that my intense dreams were probably due to hypoxia. A storm had dumped around three feet of snow and my Eiger dreams were put on hold.Five months later I was back in Grindelwald, this time with Dave MacLeod, our sights set on a very different route. In 2003 Ueli Steck and Stephan Siegrist opened a new line they called Paciencia on the overhanging Rote Fluh and Czech Pillar, huge limestone walls on the far right side of the north face. The climb thoroughly earned its name (paciencia is Spanish for patience), as it wasn’t until 2008 that Steck finally made the first free ascent. It took that long for the unlikely convergence of a strong partner, good weather and suitable conditions to occur. Although the route mainly relies on bolts, it’s no sport route. Most pitches below 5.12b are runout, and on the upper section of the Czech Pillar the rock deteriorates into poorly stacked Jenga. The quality of limestone on the harder pitches is immaculate, however, and if you’re able to free climb the Rote Fluh you should be able to deal with the psychologically trying pitches on the lower-angled exit rubble.==I learned of Paciencia in 2011 when David Lama made his impressive two-day ascent. On his blog he described Paciencia as “by far the most difficult rock route I have climbed to this date in the Alps”—quite a statement considering his previous alpine achievements, including a two-day repeat of Bellavista, a 5.14b in the Dolomites, and a two-day repeat of the Voie Petit (5.13d) on the Grand Capucin, Mont Blanc, on-sighting all but one pitch of both routes. The fact that David, who make the first free ascent of the Compressor Route on Cerro Torre, thought that Paciencia was nails hard was worrying for any climber with prospects on the wall.Although Dave MacLeod and I had never climbed together, when we met in Chamonix in August we both had Paciencia at the front of our shortlist of routes. Dave hadn't climbed in the Alps, but I reasoned that since he’s one of the world's best all-round climbers, with ascents of 5.14R/X trad, 5.14d sport, V15 and M12, he shouldn’t have trouble walking on a glacier.We got on well as we discussed tactics for the route. Dave’s a thoughtful guy who philosophizes about climbing on his blog and has written an entire book on training. He’s also one of the most motivated climbers around, getting after it in all seasons and styles. He made the first ascent of his route The Hurting (M10), for example, ground up, placing all the pro on lead, in a blizzard! Not only did I feel like I could trust him immediately, but he’s someone I could have a laugh with, which is always nice when you’re alone together on a multi-day route.We arrived in Grindelwald, Switzerland, at the tail end of three days of storms. Waterfalls cascaded off the north face, with huge wet streaks down the Rote Fluh. Procrastinating in the valley was not what we were there for, but having read so many Eiger epics, I knew this was just part and parcel of the adventure.Two days later, with a promising forecast we prepared for a quick recce of the first pitches of Paciencia. We caught the Jungfraujoch train from Grindelwald in late morning hoping to get dropped off at the Stollenloch, the window cut from the 1912-era tunnel that goes straight through the Eiger and to an observatory and restaurants on the Jungfraujoch, a saddle between the adjacent peaks of the Monch and Jungfrau. For climbers, access from the Stollenloch cuts off the Eiger's lower rubble slabs, making it possible to quickly access Paciencia and the other rock routes. The conductor gave us bad news, however: We needed special permission for the train to stop at the Stollenloch. He did say that we should not worry because the climb to the window from the outside only takes Ueli Steck 15 minutes! We refrained from saying that it took Steck a further seven and a half years to get from the Stollenloch to the top of the Czech Pillar.The scramble up to the Stollenloch took three hours on first acquaintance. Scree, snow and loose, wet rock bands weren’t easy for us in our approach shoes while carrying heavy packs, especially when clouds descended. After the precarious climb up the lower flanks, we had to descend all the way back to the base of the Nordwand, pick up the rest of our kit and climb once again to the bivi spot next to the Stollenloch.It’s a surreal experience waking up on such an intimidating face to the sound of a door opening and two climbers walking out of a train full of Japanese tourists. Robert Jasper (German) and Roger Schaeli (Swiss) both had ambitions of their own on the face—an impressive new route crossing Paciencia at the 20-foot roof of the Rote Fluh. They pointed out the way to us, still bleary eyed, and were off up their fixed lines before we’d even had breakfast.When we finally dragged our damp and cold selves out of our bags, we made our way up to the first tricky pitch. Originally graded at 5.12b by Steck, it was pronounced a sandbag by Lama who upgraded the pitch to 5.12d. Keen to make a good start to the route, I fought my way upward to flash the pitch by the skin of my teeth. Despite cold hands—something we had to get used to— Dave led through the following pitch. The climbing was fantastic with sustained moves on small but positive crimps and pockets, reminiscent in many ways of Ceuse or the Verdon Gorge. Although we were both happy with our progress and the feasibility of the lower section, we were concerned about how tired our arms felt after comparatively so little climbing—especially considering the crux pitches were higher up the wall.Once back at the Stollenloch, we hitched a lift on the train down to Kleine Scheidegg. All you need to do to stop the train is flash your headlamp up the tunnel and the driver will happily let you jump on board. We were joined by Roger and Robert who spoke eagerly about the north face. Their current project will be an amazing route and perhaps the next step up in difficulty on the face. When we arrived at Kleine Scheidegg, I decided to hop off the train to save both money and my return ticket for the descent after our send. This was naive of me as the descent to Grindelwald was significantly farther than I anticipated and running in my approach shoes and softshell trousers on a summer’s evening left me hot and sore.==We rested for several days, letting the wall dry, and headed back up, joined this time by the talented alpine photographer Alexander Buisse who was keen to get shots. We were mainly unburdened scrambling up the lower part of the face, having stashed most of our kit at the Stollenloch, and the scramble passed pleasantly. Unfortunately for Alex, on one of the steeper sections a hold broke and he saw his life flash before his eyes. Despite having recovered his balance, Alex was understandably rattled. I climbed down to him and cautiously plucked the bag off his back, which contained the only rope between the three of us. I quickly passed an end to Dave and he found a belay before Alex climbed onto easier ground. “I owe you guys a drink,” Alex said nervously, and we continued upward trying to pretend that nothing had happened. The experience reminded us of just how dangerous this wall is. The treacherousness was further underscored by the fact that our relatively comfortable bivi was little more than a stone’s throw from where Toni Kurz met his untimely demise in 1936.That evening, we climbed the first four difficult pitches up to the crux in thick clouds so that we could spend as much time as we needed the following day on the 5.13b. The climbing went quickly and relatively easily, filling us with confidence for what lay ahead. We fixed our ropes and rapped to the bivy.The next morning we woke to blue skies and fresh arms and after hauling our bags, we were back at our highpoint. The crux of Paciencia is spectacular, breaching a roof 650 feet above the approach slopes before continuing up a gently overhanging wall. From here, we had a perfect view of the BASE jumpers and wingsuiters who lept from the giant mushroom feature now nearly level with us on the right side of the face.Although never desperate, the crux is sustained, requiring endurance and a thoughful pace to prevent blowing any moves. The holds are perfectly spaced, square-cut edges and small pockets, and as Dave set off on lead he said, “This is what we came here for, Calum!”We both managed to redpoint on our first attempt, though not without a fight. Jubilant after having climbed such a great pitch, we progressed steadily up the difficult and time-consuming upper section of the Rote Fluh, reaching our second bivi beneath the Czech Pillar late in the afternoon. Satisfied and tired after our day’s work, the ledge seemed a comfortable hang and was sheltered from rockfall by a large roof.We rose the second morning to a remarkable cloud inversion and slightly cooler temperatures. The tinkle of cowbells emanated clearly from the meadows several thousand feet below us as we prepared ourselves for more hard climbing. Both Dave and I felt tired and, although we succeeded quickly on a bouldery pitch, we felt utterly wasted on the next pitch of the same grade, a long and technical 5.13a. Our skin was so thin at this point that every small hold seemed to burn our fingertips. It ought to have been my lead but, with nearly no gas left in the tank, I handed the reins over to Dave, who kept it together and redpointed the pitch despite a hold breaking near the top. After a couple more pitches, climbed with extremely cold hands, we fixed the ropes to the bivi ledge to spend what we hoped would be our last night on the face.We were exhausted and dreaded the next day, which would involve one more difficult pitch and a number of moderately tricky ones. It must have been worse for Dave, who found that his dehydrated meal tasted of burnt rubber.“It really must be bad if a cold and hungry man on the north face of the Eiger can’t eat it!” he said.That night the whooshing sound of a large rockfall from directly overhead woke us. Fortunately, the big roof protected us. Unfortunately, the experience cost us our sleep.
– Between semesters at Columbia University, Sasha DiGiulian is summering at the Mordwand in the Swiss Alps, which sounds like a lovely getaway until you find out "Mordwand" is German for "murder wall." Per CBS News, the 22-year-old world-class climber is trying to become the first woman to scale the 13,000-foot Eiger mountain the hard way: by ascending the dangerous north face of the peak, a sheet of limestone that's more than a mile high and that was once described by a British mountaineer as "an obsession for the mentally deranged." Even DiGiulian, who's been tweeting terrifying pics of her climb as she goes, acknowledges the task before her—one that's claimed dozens of lives—telling Sports Illustrated, "This is the hardest route up the Eiger." Not that DiGiulian's an amateur. She's been climbing since she was 6 and nabbed top honors in national and world rock-climbing championships, CBS notes. Yet she still gets discouragement on her attempt, which she hopes to complete next week. "People saying like, 'Little girls don't belong on the Eiger,'" she told CBS last night in a video chat from the mountain. Not that it's stopped her, even with unpredictable weather and 12- to 18-hour days. "I think that fear is inevitable, but I don't think that fear needs to be inhibiting," she says. She also keeps in mind her late dad's advice ("Have fun, be safe, and do your best") and her dream to be a female pioneer. "When other women open the floodgates to showing that something is possible, then all of a sudden you see progression in a sport," she notes. (Hundreds were stranded on Everest in April).