After Losing Six Toes to Frostbite, Anna Pfaff Is Back in the Game

Thousands of years ago, Icarus flew too close to the sun—and in April 2022, Anna Pfaff strayed too far from it. After two decades of climbing rock, ice, and mixed routes in frigid conditions, it took just one nasty case of frostbite on an Alaska expedition to threaten both of Pfaff’s stable, carefully cultivated careers: professional climbing and nursing. Now, in the documentary short Anna, which will premiere at Telluride’s Mountainfilm festival in late May, Pfaff shares an intimate look at how...