Da Polenza, mountain is a tricky task

Born on August 28, 1955 in Gazzaniga, Bergamo, Agostino Da Polenza approached mountain’s world when he was still a student at high school. He ventured on high altitude since very young, perhaps without imagining, at that time, that this passion would have turned into a big and original career as entrepreneur.
  
After getting his Diploma at the Liceo artistico in Bergamo in 1974, he attended the Faculty of Architecture in Milan, and at the same time he began an Alpine Guide. His first climbings were on the Alps: he carried out some among the most difficult climbing on the alpine Arch, like for instance the Via degli Americani at Dru, in Alta Savoia.
    
The following year he spread out his mountaineering horizons more over Europe: indeed, he join an expedition in Perù, on the striking face of the Puscanturpa Norte. The climbing-exploratory adventure had the merit of opening a new way on the North-East spur.
          
He enjoyed so much the Andes that the year after, in 1976, he went back there with his friend Renato Casarotto. They climbed together the dizzy South face of the Huandoy, 6.164 metre, still today one of the most difficult way on the South-American Cordillera.
          
In 1978 he looked for the first time at the Himalaya, on the Nepalese territory: he took part in an expedition aimed opening a new way on the Tukuche Peak, a mount of 6,920 metre. The altitude was rising: Da Polenza was getting nearer and nearer to the roof of the world.
               
He went back to those mountains on 1980, but after a break again on the Andes, this once in Bolivia. The selected mount was the Ancohuma (6,427 metre), climbed thought a new way as well, on the East-North-East face.
           
But the following year was the turning point: again the Himalaya, Lhotse the destination. He missed the target to climb the summit (8,516 metre), but he reached the 8000 metre: for the first time in his life Da Polenza put a foot on an altitude too much prohibitive for the most. It was the incipit of a route among the highest peaks of the world.
                
In 1983 he celebrated his first big success, in Karakorum on the K2. From now on, this will be a special mountain, that one of life, source of joys and sorrows. Here dreams came true, here burst out the gloomiest of sorrows: "a huge magnet that attracts and fascinates, strong and spectacular, but meanwhile a monster”.
              
The summit of the second highest mountain in the world, the "Karakorum2" (8,611 metre), was climbed after two months of training and hard commitment for the organization, almost a prelude of a clear personal choice, those of professional mountaineering. Agostino Da Polenza together with the expedition companion Joseph Rakoncaj touched the sky of K2 on July 31, 1983. It was the first Italian climb of the Northern face. Clearly in pure mountaineering style, without oxygen.
              
Beginning from the year after, that range of initiatives around the world of mountaineering and mountain, which today deeply characterize his work, started to come true. On 1984 he founded, and leaded until 1987, "Quota 8000", the first integrated project of mountaineering, culture and communication.
                
In the following three years this team, run by Da Polenza as expedition leader, summited other five 8000 metre: Gasherbrum I e II, Broad Peak, again K2, with an excellent performance from the South side, and finally the mythic Nanga Parbat, from the Diamir side.
           
In 1987 mountaineering-scientific expeditions became more frequent: of this year those on the Nepalese Himalaya, to survey new measurements of Everest and K2, while the "Makalu 1987" Expedition was aimed at environmental and tossicological research in remote areas.
                
A year later he founded and managed together with his friend Benoit Chamoux the project "Esprit d'Equipe", the most important team operation in the history of mountaineering and climbing communication. Thus he went on along the way of big enterprises, first as organizer, then as logistic manager. Were climbed the Annapurna (8,091 metre), the Manaslu (8,163 metre), the Cho-Oyu (8,201 metre) and the Shisha Pangma (8,046 metre).
               
In 1989 a new chapter opened in the life of Agostino Da Polenza, which last still today and is rather at the height of his growth and capacity. With his friend and Professor Ardito Desio, expedition leader of the first worldwide climb on the K2, realized by Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli on July 31, 1954, he founded the Ev-K2-CNR Committee, that he still lead today as President.

It is a project of scientific and technological research and cooperation in Himalaya, Karakorum and Hindu Kush, whose organizative heart is the “Pyramid Laboratory-Observatory”, installed in 1990 at the height of 5,050 metre, at the base of the Nepali side of Everest. The Pyramid is a high altitude research centre of international excellence which today has the name of Professor Desio.

The 90’s were an escalation of mountaineering-scientific expeditions, in which Da Polenza was involved in several ways, as expedition leader, organizer, logistic manager or coordinator. In this decade he participated in several projects regarding K2 and Everest, but also on other peaks of the Karakorum and Himalaya.

However, at the same time he didn’t lose sight of his starting reality: for instance in 1998 he coordinated the project Sviluppo Area Orobica for the Province of Bergamo, while the year later he participated in the construction of the Consorzio Asist for the promotion and development of mountains territories Of Lombard Region.

At the beginning of 2000, he started up in Italy the initiative which brought to proclamation of the International Year of Mountains by founding the Italian Committee, seat in Bergamo, of which he was designated executive director. This celebration has turned out of special importance by strongly contributing at acquiring the awareness of the importance of mountains among media and within the political and international sphere.   

In 2004 he had another important success, definitively ratifying his big talent as organizer of mountaineering-scientific expeditions. He is once again in Asia, in that part of the world of which he is an expert by now. As expedition leader of "K2-2004, 50 years later" – enterprise realized on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the climb to K2 – he can announce that the enterprise has been a success, the target has been hit. Indeed, on this occasion, has been measured the sum of the Earth’s highest and mountain scientific researches in several fields have been carried out both at Everest and at K2.