As of: March 16, 2024, 6:00 p.m
By: Katharina Bromberger
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Josi Vogele (left) had a “perfect day” with his brother Franz at the Wampeter Schrofen.
There they opened the multi-pitch route “Aufriss”.
© private
Josi Vogele has made it into the DAV expedited squad, the squad for young, extremely talented alpinists.
The Garmisch-Partenkirchen resident has already asked himself: “Is it all worth it?”
Garmisch-Partenkirchen – A wonderful day of ski touring.
The snow is good and the avalanche situation is relaxed.
Warning level one out of five.
Nevertheless, they drive individually, as a precaution.
His dad goes first.
A few swings.
A loud boom - the entire slope starts moving.
And his dad in the middle of the roller of snow.
“So nice, just climbing on the ridge all day long”: Josi Vogele particularly enjoyed the tour over the Teufelsgrat to the Mont Blanc du Tacul above Chamonix.
© private
Josef “Josi” Vogele was 14 years old when he was really scared on the mountain for the first time.
And feels completely helpless.
At the same time for the last time.
Today he is 24 and plans his ski and mountain tours himself. They may seem extreme to some hikers.
But Josi Voegele has developed step by step into a young alpinist who still wants to discover a lot of new things and learn a lot - in order to be able to undertake demanding things and assess the risks.
That's one of the reasons why he signed up for the expedition squad of the German Alpine Club (DAV), a kind of elite group of young alpinists.
In a strict selection process, six athletes are accepted and intensively supported for two years.
Josi Vogele from Garmisch-Partenkirchen is there.
He doesn't make a big deal about it.
He's too modest for that.
Of course he was happy.
But if nothing had happened, he would have gotten his paragliding license, which he has now postponed and is concentrating on mountaineering.
There were moments when he asked himself: “Is it all worth it?”
Friends lost on the mountain, they will never be forgotten: “Thoughts like that keep coming back to me.”
Xari, Beni, Andi, Bertl.
Friends and role models of Josi Vogele.
They are no longer alive and have had an accident in their passion.
The 24-year-old doesn't say much about it.
You make such misfortunes with yourself.
On the mountain.
“You just think about it a lot.
And process it. Little by little.” Long, lonely tours help, deliberately nothing unusual or dangerous.
It takes a while, says Vogele, for the head to cooperate again.
His friends are never completely forgotten.
They accompany him, in a good way.
“A thought like that comes up again and again.” A route, for example, that would have been particularly suitable for a spezl.
Or a reminder to stay focused until the end.
Accidents happen too often when descending or in supposedly easy passages.
Voegele knows about the risk of his sport.
He got to know it early on.
What impressed him was the feeling of standing up there as a boy with only the hammering question in his head: “What do I do now?” His father was not buried at the time, but he did break a vertebra.
He was in the hospital for several weeks.
In the end everything turned out well.
Luckily: “There were really fit people there” who reacted in exactly the right way.
This also influenced Josi Vogele.
The DAV squad gives him the chance to learn from experienced professionals.
Regardless, “we just do really cool stuff.”
The expedited squad of the German Alpine Club
All information about the men's and women's DAV expedition squad, including the current team with Josi Vogele, can be found at www.alpenverein.de/thema/expeditionskader
The young alpinists and their instructors, all state-certified mountain and ski guides, are on the road for around six weeks a year - in snow, ice and rock.
After two years, each squad undertakes a final expedition, the goal of which is a first ascent to a remote place in the world.
It is not yet clear where Vogele and Co. are headed.
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Projects at home: First ascent on Wampeter Schrofen, finish in the Alpspitz area
Regardless of this, the Garmisch-Partenkirchen resident is working on his own projects.
He had a “perfect day” with his brother Franz (26).
The pair managed their first ascent in the summer on Wampeter Schrofen, a challenging multi-pitch climbing area above Biberwier.
They called their route “Outline” and rated it with difficulty 7+/8-.
They drilled the stands, the climbers have to secure the rest themselves.
“A great tour,” enthuses Josi Vogele.
The brothers are also working on a project in the Alpspitz area, but the 24-year-old is not revealing anything about it yet.
Only when it's finished.
He also dreams of the high, famous walls in Yosemite National Park in the USA and the Walker Pillar on the Grand Jorasse in the Mont Blanc massif.
He doesn't know whether Josi Vogele, like his brother, will turn his passion into a career and begin training to become a state-certified mountain and ski guide.
Maybe he would rather continue to enjoy the mountains for himself and with friends instead of bringing others up.
In any case, he is currently pursuing other plans: he is studying mechanical engineering in Munich.
No matter which path he takes, his parents support him and he appreciates that very much.
Especially because he knows about his mom's worries.
“Just be careful.” He rarely sets off without this instruction.
Often accompanied by the question: “Can you do something normal?”