On Sunday, September 1, 2024, Kilian Jornet finished climbing all 82 of the 4,000-meter peaks in the European Alps. And he did it all under his own power, meaning that after he finished running and climbing a peak, or set of peaks, he traveled by bike to the next one.
The route, which he called Alpine Connections, was 1,207 kilometers (750 miles) long and had 75,344 meters (247,000 feet) of elevation gain. It took him 19 days, and nearly 268 hours of moving time with 87% of the time spent on his feet and the remainder on his bike. The Spaniard, who lives in Norway, said on his Instagram, “This was, without any doubt, the most challenging thing I’ve ever done in my life, mentally, physically, and technically, but also maybe the most beautiful.”
Kilian Jornet running on the first stage of Alpine Connections. Photo: Nick Madelson
That’s saying a lot for someone who has seemingly won every big trail race in the world, including UTMB four times, the Hardrock 100 five times, and the Zegama-Marathon 11 times. And that’s saying nothing of the many non-race ultra adventures that he’s undertaken around the world.
For this 16-stage traverse of the Alps, he started at Piz Bernina and finished on Dôme and Barre des Écrins. He traveled roughly east to west, climbing peaks and riding his bike between them along the way. Getting up the high peaks of the Alps involves not only trail running and scrambling, but also mountaineering, and Jornet’s goal was to link up as many of the peaks via ridges and classic lines as possible. Jornet was joined by many friends for various peaks and supported by a small crew who assisted with the logistics.
The days were filled to the brim with movement of some sort, with several pushes over 24 hours, and Jornet only took one complete rest day 11 days into the project.
Jornet climbing a peak in the Valais area of Switzerland during Stage 8 of the project. Photo: Nick Madelson
While Jornet started the project stating that he wanted to try to summit as many of the 4,000-meter peaks as possible, it was clear that if conditions allowed, he would attempt them all. Starting the project just three days after a dramatic win at Sierre-Zinal, he headed up Piz Bernina in the Swiss Engadine valley on the eastern edge of the range. After running and climbing 29 kilometers with 2,573 meters of elevation gain, he got on his bike and pedaled 210 kilometers with 4,000 meters of elevation gain to the base of his next peak. The following day, even with bad weather, he summited Lauteraarhorn (4,042 meters), Schreckhorn (4,078 meters), and Finsteraarhorn (4,274 meters) in the Bernese Alps area.
And that was just the first two days. At the end of the third day, after posting a video of him solo and scrambling in the fog on a precarious-looking ridge, he wrote, “It was a hard day, but that’s part of what makes these mountains so special — they keep you on your toes and make you appreciate every step.”
Jornet tackling Mont Blanc during Stage 14. Photo: Noa Barrau
Day after day, peak after peak, he completed classic alpine traverses in one push that most groups take days or a week to do. He summited Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest peak, during Stage 14 of the project, a 30-hour push where he ticked off 16 peaks in the area. From there, it was just a few more less demanding peaks over the course of two days before he finished and was greeted by his crew with a well-earned pizza.
Afterward, he wrote, “It’s difficult to process all my emotions just now, but this is a journey that I will never forget.”
Kilian Jornet on the way to summitting Grand Combin during Stage 10 of Alpine Connections. Photo: Nick Danielson
