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More places to stay in Xabier Erro: "The expedition chiefs were summoned to the police station for putting the emblem on Everest, get the facts out!"
  • The death of mountaineer Xabier Erro (Lesaka, 1946), member of the Basque expedition that reached the summit of Everest in 1980, at his home in Hondarribia.
Jon Torner Zabala @jtorner 2018ko martxoaren 27a

In the 1980s he had a close relationship with LUZ (he made several collaborations and sent beautiful images for the photographic archive), and has also been the protagonist of two interviews.

In 2015 you have the motto of the interview that Gorka Azkarate gave him that refers to the Everest emblem. That's how the 1980s went: "In 1974, the first Basque attempt was made to climb Everest, with the famous Chimist expedition. The company Cegasa was the main sponsor, hence the name of the expedition. (...) They did not manage to reach the summit, and immediately a second attempt was made. At that time, however, it was not as easy as it is today to obtain permits to climb to Everest, and we had to wait a few years (...) Even in that second attempt (in 1980), despite the fact that the company Cegasa was behind, the Municipal Savings Bank of Bilbao donated 8 million pesetas. The expedition was financially supported by the Basque Government and many municipalities in the Basque Country. In addition to many municipalities in the Ribera de Navarra, many municipalities in the Northern Basque Country also contributed financially. This gave the expedition a true nationality character. It was a time of change and we had a huge illusion in that sense too (...) Without a doubt [it was also a political victory in some way]. Very few nations had climbed Everest before us, and that was a huge success for the Basque Country."

“It’s been 35 years and society has changed in the same way. Technology, resources, sponsors... it's all about records and stuff like that. The goal of our expedition was to make the mountain, but it started and ended at home,” says Erro. In the image, during a walk to Aconcagua. / Courtesy of Xabier Erro

Here is the interview I did in 1981: From Everest to Lhotse Shar. Erro spoke of the expedition of Lotse’s sub-summit to Mount Lotse Shar (8,383 m), as well as Everest. Among other things, he said that for this expedition they obtained three million pesetas. "Is it a lot?" Ask the light. And Erro answered: "Look, to mount the expedition necessary to make the Himalayan mountain of eight thousand meters, you have very little money.Doing Everest took 16 million. Other than that, making the film here with the material filmed there has taken another five million. So, the movie and all twenty-one million. And this time we had to do everything with three million because now we have also made a movie 16 mm.tan. (...) Bege moved us in the best conditions in that Everest. In the best hotels in Kathmandu with acclimated wind, e.g. Now in a cheap hotel. Imagine the person and we were paying about fifteen rupees a day - about twenty duros. On the other hand, we were counting on thirty sherpas to make Everest and this time only with two. “We’re going to do this last thing in minimal conditions.”