Tahoe climbers summit 26,906-foot peak
By Priya Hutner, Tahoe Weekly
Adrian Ballinger and Emily Harrington returned home two weeks from the day they left Tahoe after attaining their goal to summit Cho Oyu, the mountain known as the Turquoise Goddess, in record time.
Speaking from his home in Squaw Valley, Ballinger had been home less than 48 hours, where he’d returned from the top of the 26,906’ peak five days prior.
Admittedly exhausted, Ballinger was bright, positive and upbeat. He was on a high, overjoyed and elated that the trip was a smashing success. All of the prep, all of the training and all of the logistics favored the team on their whirlwind adventure.
“It was an amazing summit day. It was warm and sunny, there were very few climbers on the mountain and we got to ski the whole way down,” said Ballinger.
