Pumori, The Daughter Of The Mountain

Original · Pumori, Mendiaren Alaba

In October 2001, five Basque mountaineers, Beñat Arrue (22), Iñaki Aiertza (27), Aritz Artieda (23), Javi Arkauz (22), and César Nieto (23)—lost their lives while climbing Mount Pumori (7,161 m) in Nepal. After the fatal avalanche, the five other members of the expedition alerted rescue services and organized an unsuccessful rescue attempt. A year later, Arantxa Gurrutxaga and Peio Arrue, Beñat Arrue's parents, returned to Nepal to pay their respects at the site of the tragedy and try to find the young Nepalese girl who appeared with their son in the last photograph of him before the accident. A growing bond developed between Suku Maya, the mountain girl, and Beñat Arrue's family, who would support and accompany him over the years. Catharsis, from tragedy to love, the death of the five young mountaineers allows Suku to have a new chance in life.