On February 13-14, 2026, American climbing legend Tommy Caldwell and Belgian powerhouse Siebe Vanhee achieved one of the most impressive feats in modern big-wall climbing: the first 24-hour free ascent of the South African Route on the Central Tower of Paine in Chilean Patagonia.

📌 The Route at a Glance

  • Location: East Face of the Central Tower of Paine, Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
  • Route: The South African Route
  • Height: 1,200 meters (~4,000 feet)
  • Pitches: ~30 pitches
  • Difficulty: Up to 7b+ (5.12c)
  • Previous Free Ascent Benchmark: The first free ascent by Nico Favresse, Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll, and Ben Ditto in 2009 took 13 days. Caldwell and Vanhee did it in 24 hours.

⏱️ The 24-Hour Timeline

Dubbing their mission "SAIAD" (South African In A Day), Caldwell and Vanhee climbed in a fast and light style. They used no fixed ropes, no portaledges, and both climbers free-climbed every single pitch.

Time / Event Details
The Approach A grueling 10-mile hike with 5,000 feet of elevation gain just to reach the base of the wall, carrying heavy packs with insulation, ice gear, and a massive trad rack.
Feb 13, 3:20 AM The team leaves the ground and starts climbing in the dark to maximize their weather window.
The Crux Pitches They battled wet slabs at the bottom, icy cracks, and a brutal 60-meter off-width pitch rated 5.11+ high on the wall. Vanhee led the grueling off-width in 1 hour and 10 minutes; Caldwell followed via the Dülfer technique in just 20 minutes.
Feb 13, 10:00 PM Reached the 24th pitch in complete darkness. Completely out of water.
Feb 14, 3:20 AM Summit! Exactly 24 hours after starting. They took 1 hour and 45 minutes to brew coffee and rest near the true summit.
The Descent Moments after summiting, a Patagonian storm hit. They endured an 8-hour rappel descent through snow, high winds, and near-zero visibility to get back to base camp safely.