One of my biggest dreams is to draw big lines on the walls of the Himalayan giants. Lines that glow like a red ribbon on paper, but in reality are invisible paths to mountain tops. At least after the wind has washed away the last footprint with its power.
Back in 2015, I found an inspiring wall while running Google Earth. The unclimbed north face of Chamlang (7319m) seemed perfect as the first Himalayan wall. Technical and gigantic, but not impossible. In the same year, I had climbed the North Face Trilogy of the Alps, but I knew that it would be several more years before there was anything to do in Nepal.
In Patagonia 2017, I accidentally drifted to climb a Canadian Quentin Robertswith in In those places, I knew that here was a guy with whom trying a new route to the north face of a mountain over 7000m high in Nepal is possible. I asked Quentin the following spring if he would be interested in a trip to the Himalayas - and he was!
Fast forward a year, and we read in the climbing media that a Czech double sled has climbed the first pitch of Chamlang's north face. Even in the spring season, when the wall didn't even have to be in climbing condition. Fortunately, in India, in the region of Kashmir, a valley that had been closed for 30 years was found full of towering granite pillars and mixtapes to console the biggest disappointment.
The flights had been changed, the visas had been obtained and the booking fee for the Indian operator was about to leave, when the latest phase of the Kashmir crisis hit. Kashmir was in complete darkness under the iron grip of India. There would be no business for the area.
I was about to give up on the whole trip, but Quentin suggested the Khumbu region in Nepal at the last minute. Easy logistics, peaks below 6500m do not need permits that require bureaucracy, which we wouldn't even have time to apply for, and the place is full of options. In particular, the unclimbable northern pillar of Tengkangpoche (6487m) caught the eye, which was decided to be the main destination. Cholatse (6440m) and its basic route were selected as the acclimatization peak. A couple of weeks of hectic work and we were in Nepal!
Sickness in Namche
The monsoon was clearly still on when we arrived in Kathmandu in mid-September. The air was thick with humidity and the streets of Thamel were empty of tourists. Still, at every bend you had to be careful not to get run over by a rickshaw or a scooter. Shops munching on tilpehöör adorned the sides of the street, and blokes selling various narcotics had to be pushed away many, many times. Kathmandu was not the place where you would like to hang out for several days before getting to the mountains. Fortunately, due to the rainy weather, the air quality somehow remained good.
Small villages were observed from Lukla's plane.
After the obligatory purchases and adjustments, we were able to fly with a small plane to Lukla, in the middle of the mountains. Suddenly, it is in a completely different world in the middle of green valleys and snow-capped mountains.
Top Gun 2 has also been heard in Nepal.
In addition to Quentin and me, our team included a photographer Tim Banfield, and the guide Phurba hired for us by the local operator. On peaks below 6500m there is no need for a state-required liason officer, so we never understood why we had a guide. In any case, it made our operations easier, because Phurba organized the porters/jacks, acted as an interpreter and otherwise helped with practical matters. On the next trip, you will probably be able to handle the same things on your own, but now it was nice to see how things work in Nepal.
The goods went conveniently like this.
We trekked to Namche Bazar (3440m) in a couple of days along the green river valley. You didn't have to be alone along the world-famous Everest Base Camp trek. There was enough of a crowd, as well as inns. I used to think that the villages are uninhabited and quiet, but when it starts to rain, there is always a dome or a lodge where you can spend the night.
Quentin and Tim's tea time.
In Nepal, religiosity can be seen everywhere.
Thamserku was the first decent snow peak along the Trek.
A fever broke out in Namche Bazar, which lasted for the next six days, which seemed like an eternity. The small room at Sakura Lodge was becoming more cramped and cramped day by day. A steady headache turned into a grimacing, dagger-like pain. I can't remember when I've been so sore. Not even a year earlier in Norway with pneumonia. The local doctor stated the same thing that I had noticed myself. Antibiotics do not help with a suspected viral disease.
Everest BC Trek's most famous suspension bridge.
In Nepal, too, autumn is tatty time.
I was already in my mind throwing gloves on the counter regarding the trip, when I felt that my bronchus was starting to feel a bit nauseous. Antibiotics would help with that. The disease had changed! I went to the same doctor's office and got a mild course of antibiotics, which cleared up in a couple of days. It was time to catch up with Quentin and Tim who had climbed up to Macchermo (4450m).
Of course, I knew that it's better not to rush right after the disease, but I had to gain more altitude so that the acclimatization could start properly. Macchermoon was a couple of days' walk, which was quite tough with little strength, but fortunately the monsoon continued to continue. Quentin and Tim had already spent five days at Macchermon Lodge listening to the patter of the rain and staring at the mists. The sloppiness was noticeable!
In Macchermo, the neighbor's guardian died of old age at the age of 86. Every house in the village burned juniper that day.
Memorial rituals at the edge of the gorge.
Cholate
On September 30, the monsoon ended. Its remnants were still visible in the form of afternoon clouds, but the continuous rain that had continued for days turned cold. We packed our backpacks and hiked from Macchermo to Cholatse base camp (4700m) in 2.5 hours. Originally, we had planned a base camp with fair tents under Cholatse, but luckily we were smart enough to stay in Macchermo Lodge in the warmth and the bitter smell of burning yak poop. We saved a lot of money, but we also slept better. Of course, it would have been atmospheric to spend time under the mountain, but now the goal was just to acclimatize on the basic route. Cholatse's base camp is, of course, an ideal flat grassy field, next to running water.
Towards the base camp.
The killer whale caught the peuscamp in its embrace.
The basic route to Cholatse is relatively short at 1700 meters in height, but interesting anyway. The grass slopes change to a glacier at 5000 meters, which is climbed up to 5600 meters. The huge tent site in the pass is directly under the southwest ridge. The ridge starts with rock gaps and continues as a fine snow ridge up to 6100 meters, where you can climb over or around the serak. For the last few hundred meters, the terrain is a gentler but airy ridge. Commercial operators have started using Cholatse as a replacement for Ama Dablam, as the latter is known for congestion and a very rough-looking tangle of ropes, the result of years of commercial activity. Cholatse can mainly be left alone in the spring season and in the fall before the end of October. Old fix ropes can already be found on the ridge, but luckily there is no harden from Ama Dablam's taxes.
Cholate. The southwest ridge is the rightmost skyline.
At the beginning of the route there is a short glacier section and a steeper snow wall in the pass to the camp at 5600m.
The next stage from the base camp was to the pass below the southwest ridge, but after the freezing rain of the previous night, it took so much time to dry things that the half-meter layer of snow on top of the glacier had softened into such a slush that there was no point going up. We stayed at the beginning of the glacier at 5150 meters for the night, which was not the funniest option from the point of view of agility. The only unpleasant thing was the west wall near Cholatse, which spat ice down with such a mound that it was difficult to sleep at night. The tent was in the only safe place that could be found before the glacier, but still every rustle made me wince.
This tent was comfortable to fit into a backpack. Half tent, half ice.
The next morning the glacier was frozen and somehow carrying. I opened the trail with a lighter backpack on my back, while Quentin and Tim followed with heavier loads on their shoulders. The route under the pass was relatively easy to find, navigating through the jumble of ruts and avalanche tracks. The last steep 150m wall was simul soloed along a fun ice bank to a pass found at an altitude of 5600m.
Tim arriving at the 5600m camp.
The air was warm and the sun was merciless. Acclimatization mainly includes hydration, lying down and tolerating feeling bad. Definitely the most boring part of climbing high mountains is the adaptation phase, which you have to endure every time. It might get a little easier with experience, but just the same, this time the headache was throbbing in the frontal lobe. I never use diamox, but burana must be eaten.
Adaptation is a leisurely affair.
Mild route finding was expected in the upper part of the basic route this year.
We were supposed to try for the summit the very next morning, but when the alarm clocks rang in the middle of the night, the snow dumped so thickly that we decided to skip the start.
Cho Oyu.
Time to head down, but the boys were still struggling.
The morning was not the best. The gas storage was also threateningly depleted, which sealed the decision to quickly return to Macchermo. I had reached my minimum movement goal, which was a night at 5600 meters. Even the recent illness hardly gave additional strength to open the trail above 6000 meters. The gas would probably be enough for two people for a couple of extra days, and to be honest, I didn't want to waste my energy on the often-climbed basic route, even if the summit would be great.
I landed in Machhermo in 3.5 hours, from where I watched Quentin and Tim's progress from a gap in the clouds for the next few days. The men made it up to 6100 meters, where the deep snow finally took the win.
Cheers Tim!
After the aklirund of Cholatse, we returned to Namche Bazar, where we gathered strength for the main destination of the trip. It would be time to measure the north pillar of Tengkangpoche! There will be a story about that in the next blog.
Cantega!