Massive search effort underway to find former Minnesota man, missing for over a week in Andes

NEW YORK -- Family and friends of a mountain climber who hasn't been heard from in over a week are trying to maintain hope he's still alive.

He's missing in the Andes of Peru: one of Earth's most unforgiving environments.

A massive search effort is underway on one of South America's highest peaks to find 36-year-old Edson Vandeira.

He's been missing in Peru for more than a week along with two other climbers.

"The reason he's there is because of his love for the mountains," Vandeira's ex-wife Natalia Koch said.

Koch says he's always been passionate about reaching the highest heights.

His latest adventure is to climb Artesonraju mountain. At nearly 20,000 feet, it's known for its near-perfect pyramid shape: a place to push the limits.

"The steepness of it can be very challenging. The descent can be very challenging because of the steepness, and the constant ice and snow that you have to deal with," friend Saif Alnabi said.

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Vandeira, a climber for 17 years, documents his climbs on social media. His photography has also appeared in National Geographic.

He used to live in Minnesota, and that's where Koch and others are monitoring the search and raising money for the effort.

"I was very hopeful. Now, I don't want to lose my hopes, but also, it's just hard. It's been a very rough couple of days," Koch said.

His friends say Vandeira is a technical climber, meticulous and organized. But searchers have also seen signs of an avalanche on the mountain.

"When things go well, it's just super fun. But things can turn in the blink of an eye," friend Nick Martinez said.

Crews are using drones and a government helicopter in the search.

Koch says he was making the climb as training to be certified as a high-mountain guide.