"CBS Saturday Morning" meets Jim Morrison, the mountaineer who became the first to successfully ski down Mount Everest's North Face. He enlisted a camera crew to document the harrowing journey.

Kathmandu

Jim Morrison, accompanied by a team that included filmmaker Jimmy Chin, achieved the first ski descent of Mount Everest's North face. The route, considered the most technically challenging on the mountain, had never been skied before and required special permission to reopen after years of closure. 

Morrison's accomplishment was deeply personal, as he fulfilled a promise to his late wife, Hillary Nelson, with whom he had shared the dream of this descent. The journey, marked by previous personal tragedies, was documented for an upcoming film and is being hailed as a landmark achievement in extreme sports and mountaineering.

Personal loss fuels mountaineer's historic trip down Mount Everest

The North face of Mount Everest a 9,000 foot sheet of ice and rock has enthralled climbers and skiers for decades, some have died trying and no one has skied down until a group of elite mountaineers made the journey trailblazing mountain climber and skier Jim Morrison enlisted Oscar winning filmmakers, Jimmy Chen and Chai Vasarely to document the feet Lillian Luciano sat down with Jim and Jamie just 2 weeks after they completed the Holy Grail of climbing and for Morrison, a ski run, no one had ever done before. We made it to the top of the world and I got to ski down Jim Morrison and Jimmy chin had already achieved the impossible top of the world. Morrison and his wife, Hillary Nelson. With the first to ski down Mount load say in the Himalayas another 500 feet summit chin along with mountaineers Conrad anchor and Brennan Oster were the first to summit the notorious shark's fin on India's Maru peak. Which he documented in the film Maru. Alex is having the best day of his life. He also reached the pinnacle of filmmaking winning an Oscar for directing the documentary free solo. But there was one obsession that captured both mountain athletes for decades summiting and for Morrison skiing down the North face of Mount Everest. It is the biggest. Most technically challenging not just ski descent but climb on the biggest face. On the tallest mountain on Earth, there's no other harder or bigger or scarier line on the planet. The last the Holy Grail it is a man here, there's only one that that is the one. Last year, Jim and Jimmy led 12 people on the summit all made it down all safely all 10 fingers and toes was a really miraculous adventure. The North side of Mount Everest goes up 29,000 feet darker colder and far more exposed than other routes, there's never a break, there's no place to hide. Meaning that when if there's avalanches or rockfall it can be quite dangerous so dangerous, it's only potentially climbable during a tiny window that happens once a year and it had effectively been taken off the map the mountain had been closed for 5 years. So we literally had to get the mountain reopen the North face of Everest have been closed for something like 15 years. So not only do we have to get them out and open the next step was to get the North face of Everest opened. The attempted climbs twice in the last 3 years thwarted by storms and crew issues their 3rd and final try was last October. We went back with the dream team and had a just exceptional run up this historic route on the North face of Everest got to the top but for Morrison the true test was still uncharted my friends were up there celebrating and taking selfies and really excited to be at the summit of Mount Everest coming up the direct North face and that's when I strapped into my skis and had the challenge of OK how am I going to make this first turn and how am I going to make the second turn. For the next 4 hours, he would be all alone with 0 margin for air. Any slip any mistake that said I was going 9,000 feet to the bottom. So you are ready for that. Well prepared for that we call it no fall zone. Where you can't make a single mistake if you blow an edge or you lose your balance at all. It's the equivalent of skis free soloing there's also moments where I want to stop turning and I want to go over to the rope and I want to use the rope to get down, but I think wait a second, I'm here right now this is my life's dream. It's happening. I'm going to make 2 more turns right here. The dream wasn't his alone making it was also a promise to his wife Hillary. This is one of the reasons I love being in the mountains is just beautiful. The couple spoke with CBS mornings in 2019. I think we've been through enough experiences that we really appreciate being in the moment. 3 years later, Hillary died while Mount Mearing. Hillary was my partner in life and in the mountains and she fell climbing and skiing on Monticello another 8,000 meter peak in Nepal and lost her life doing the sport that she loved. And this was a shared dream that the 2 of you had. This was a shared project that we had worked on together conceived together and I felt determined to try to complete it. Sadly losing Hillary wasn't his first lesson turning grief into grit. In 2011, my wife and kids were killed in a plane crash. And at one point I was able to step over the crack top of my driveway. And that was an extraordinary milestone for me. I was so proud of myself for just making that step forward. It's in those steps that he hopes his legacy will become a message to anyone. I hope that people walk away with a spring in their step and a renewed sense of confidence that they can go out and achieve their dreams. And that extraordinary journey on Mount Everest will live on a world-class Mount Mearing and film crew risked it all to document it. Chin hopes to release that film later this year for us for the rest of us who have been on this journey with Jim to see him execute at that level was extraordinary in itself, but to see him come out the other side and the relief it is it is the most significant ski descent that you can do on planet Earth. I tend to just stay focused on what I can do right now and where I can go now and what I can accomplish and setting goals for myself and trying to achieve great things is something I've always and good at and here I I tried to shoot for the stars. Once you have reached the summit of your dream and the dream of any Mountaineer for generations. What's next. The day after we skied from the top of the world down the North face the wind blew erased all the tracks. Race the whole thing and it's just back to nature just spend your whole life trying to achieve this you paint a line down the mountain and the wind blows it all the way and it's just back to Mount Everest like it never happened. Yeah. He aimed for the stars and landed on top of the world for CBS Saturday morning. I'm Lillian Luciano in New York.

Large crowds of demonstrators marched through Copenhagen and other Danish cities on Saturday in support of Greenland's sovereignty amid tensions with the US.

Copenhagen

Thousands take part in 'Hands off Greenland' protests in Denmark

The United States will impose increasing tariffs on several European countries until the U.S. is able to purchase Greenland, President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social. Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland would face the tariff.

Nuuk

Global Tariffs

Greenland Stand-Off

Trump threatens tariffs against European nations over Greenland support

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni won his seventh term with 71.65% of votes, according to official results Saturday, defeating the youthful challenger who campaigned for change after four decades of the same government.

Kampala

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni wins seventh term

There will be no territorial concessions in Ukraine, the Ukrainian president said, answering Euronews' question on whether Kyiv is now being pressured into territorial concessions.

Brussels

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine will not cede any of its territory, Zelenskyy says

The United States on Thursday said Iran halted 800 executions of protesters under pressure from President Donald Trump, after Gulf allies appeared to pull him back from military action over Tehran's deadly crackdown on demonstrations.

Tehran

U.S. claims Iran halts executions of protesters amid crackdown

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met with President Donald Trump on Thursday at the White House. She presented Trump with her Nobel Peace Prize medal, which was seen as a peace offering to win his support.

Washington

Venezuela Strikes

Venezuelan opposition leader presents Trump with her Nobel Peace Prize

A U.S. Senate delegation is meeting with Danish officials on Friday to defuse the standoff between President Donald Trump and Denmark over Greenland. Denmark sent soldiers to Greenland and they will be joined by military units from various NATO allies.

NATO troops head to Greenland amid Trump's threats

NASA says it could be just weeks away from launching astronauts on a flight around the moon for the first time in more than half a century. Final preparations are underway at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where the Artemis II moon rocket is expected to roll out to the launch pad on Saturday.

Cape Canaveral

Final preparations for Artemis II launch underway

A South Korean court on Friday (January 16) sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison on charges that included obstructing attempts by authorities to arrest him following his failed bid to impose martial law in December 2024.

Seoul

Five years' jail for South Korea's Yoon in first martial law penalty

US President Donald Trump is threatening to use military force against Americans after clashes between protestors and law enforcement in Minneapolis. The city has been on edge since the fatal shooting of a protester, Renee Good, by an ICE officer.

Minneapolis

Trump threatens to use military against Minneapolis protests

The U.S. and Taiwan clinched a trade deal that cuts tariffs on many of the semiconductor powerhouse's exports, directs new investments in the U.S. technology industry and risks infuriating China.

U.S., Taiwan strike deal on tech tariffs risking China's ire

The United Nations Security Council has held an emergency meeting to discuss the deadly anti-establishment protests in Iran at the request of the United States. President Donald Trump has refused to rule out military action on Iran over the killing of protesters. Tehran has vowed to retaliate if that happens.

Iran, U.S. clash at UN over protests as calls grow for restraint

Tensions are soaring in Minneapolis as protesters face off against federal agents. As Matt Gutman reports, it comes after a Venezuelan migrant was shot by an ICE agent after allegedly trying to flee federal officers.

Tensions flare in Minneapolis after second shooting by ICE agent

Ali Shaath, the Palestinian former government official chosen to administer Gaza under a U.S.-backed deal, has an ambitious plan that includes pushing war debris into the Mediterranean Sea and rebuilding destroyed infrastructure within three years.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

U.S. backs Palestinian civil engineer to administer Gaza

The U.S. has announced the launch of the second phase of President
Donald Trump's peace plan in the Gaza Strip, which will involve moving from a ceasefire to demilitarization.

Jerusalem

Middle East Conflict

Gaza deal's second phase to begin

CBS News met with fighters from an armed and outlawed Iranian opposition group in the mountains of northern Iraq who said the protests in Iran have given them hope. They believe the regime can be toppled "if the people who are demonstrating on the street get international help."

Iranian opposition group says protests give hope to topple regime

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday a "state of emergency" will be declared in the energy sector, after relentless Russian strikes on heat and electricity supplies during freezing winter temperatures.

Kyiv

Ukraine: Zelensky declares energy emergency after Russian strikes

Military personnel from several NATO countries including Germany, France, Sweden and Norway headed to Greenland on Thursday as Denmark and its allies prepared ⁠for exercises to try to assure US President Donald Trump over its security as he pushes to acquire the island.

Several European countries and NATO allies send troops to Greenland

Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company xAI said late on Wednesday it imposed restrictions on all users of its Grok AI chatbot that limit image editing after the service produced sexualized images that sparked concerns among global regulators.

California

Musk's xAI curbs Grok image editing after concerns

Protests in the U.S. city of Minneapolis as another person's been shot by an immigration officer.

Protest erupts in Minneapolis after ICE agent shoots man during raid

The United States has completed its first sale of Venezuelan oil, generating around $500 million, a US official said Wednesday, the first major energy transaction since Washington’s dramatic intervention in Venezuela earlier this month.

United States completes first sale of Venezuelan oil

Denmark says fundamental disagreements remain with the US over the future of Greenland. President Donald Trump has said he wants to take over the territory 'one way or another', arguing anything short of full American control is unacceptable.

Greenland, Denmark say Trump set on ‘conquering’ territory after meet

Republicans in the Senate killed a resolution on Wednesday that would have put limits on President Trump's ability to take action in Venezuela. Vice President JD Vance had to step in to break the 50-50 tie.

Senate Republicans kill war powers effort to limit Trump on Venezuela

U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted foreign ministers from Greenland and Denmark as President Donald Trump continues to insist on a U.S. takeover of Greenland.

Vance and Rubio meet with officials from Greenland and Denmark

At least 30 people were killed when a construction crane collapsed onto a moving train in northeastern Thailand, at the site of a planned high-speed rail project intended to eventually link China with much of Southeast Asia.

Sikhio District

At least 30 people killed in Thailand train derailment

Tehran has warned neighbors hosting U.S. troops that it would hit American bases if Washington strikes, a senior Iranian official told Reuters, as Iran seeks to deter Donald Trump's threats to intervene on behalf of protesters.

Iran warns neighbors it could hit U.S. bases if Washington strikes

As Prime Minister Mark Carney heads to China to ease trade tensions, President Donald Trump reiterated that the U.S. doesn’t need Canadian goods or the CUSMA. Carney was also urged by Ontario’s premier to not back down on tariffs for Chinese EVs.

Ottawa

Trump says he doesn’t need Canadian goods or the CUSMA

United States President Donald Trump says he has cancelled all meetings with Iranian officials and has told protesters to “take over your institutions” amid Tehran’s crackdown.

Trump cancels Iran meetings, urges protesters to take on institutions

Around 2,000 people including security personnel have been killed in protests in Iran, an Iranian official said, the first time authorities have acknowledged the high death toll from an intense crackdown on two weeks of nationwide unrest.

Iran official says 2,000 killed in nationwide unrest

Former President Bill Clinton is refusing to appear before the House Oversight Committee to testify as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. CBS News congressional correspondent Nikole Killion has more.

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