Indonesian Digital News Archive

The fall Himalaya climbing season is slowly grinding to a halt as the jet stream seems to have already shifted across the region, bringing unpredictable weather conditions and high winds with it. That hasn't deterred a few climbers that remain on their mountains, hoping to get one last weather window that will allow them access to the summit. Two mountains that still have climbers in place are Everest and Lhotse, where teams are moving up although their chance at success remains very much up in the air.

One climber that has set some ambitious goals for himself this fall is Nobukazu Kuriki who is attempting a true solo summit of Everest without oxygen and along the West Ridge no less. According to updates on has Facebook and Twitter pages, Kuriki arrived in Camp 2 yesterday amidst high winds, which he is hoping will die down in the next day or two. The forecast indicates that low pressure could settle over Everest this weekend, giving him an opportunity to make a summit bid, but for now he sits and waits to see if he'll be able to move up. The Japanese climber has been sharing videos of his progress and you'll find his most recent video below.

Alan Arnette says that this is Kuriki's fourth attempt on Everest , with his most recent expedition taking place last fall. He also has solo climbs on  Denali, Aconcagua, Elbrus, Kilimanjaro and Carstensz Pyramid, while also knocking off 8000 meter climbs on Cho Oyu, Manaslu, and Dhaulagiri.

Meanwhile, Alan also reports that the Korean team that I mentioned last week is still attempting the South Col route on Everest, although there has been no updates on their progress. Similarly, the Polish team on Lhotse, which shares much of the same route as Everest, is reportedly still on the mountain and still hoping to summit as well. Last week we knew that they had reached as high as Camp 4 on the mountain, which means they should be well acclimatized and read to go, weather permitting.

Finally, over on Dhaulagiri teams have called it quits for the season as well. Carlos Soria has decided that the mountain is simply too unstable to attempt a summit bid, so the 74-year old Spaniard is heading home, saying that he has learned that you must climb the mountain in the spring, when conditions are more stable. The Summit Climb team, led by Dan Mazur, came to that same conclusion a few days back and that squad is headed home too.

That means it is all eyes on Everest and Lhotse to see how we'll finish out the season.

While teams continue to wrap up their summit bids on Manaslu and other wait for another chance on Makalu, it seems a summit push has begun on Dhaulagiri. If the weather holds and things stay on schedule, there should be several teams topping out on the mountain in the next few days.

Amongst those teams is the SummitClimb squad who spent yesterday resting in Camp 2 at 6560 meters (21,517 ft). They should be proceeding up to C3 today and if the schedule holds they may be able to top out as early as Thursday or Friday of this week.

Similarly, ExWeb is reporting that 73-year old Carlos Soria is on his summit push and could reach the top of the mountain later tonight. Carlos' home team shared that news earlier in the day and posted the video below. While the entire thing is in Spanish, it does feature some nice shots from Dhaulagiri and gives us all an idea of what conditions are like on the mountain.

Like Annapurna and Manaslu, Dhaulagiri is also very avalanche prone. Conditions are said to be stable on the upper slopes, but lets keep our fingers crossed for the climbers who are headed up in the next few days. With a  little luck and good judgement, they'll all get down safely.

It has been a long and difficult week in the Himalaya where climbers are still dealing with the devastating news from Manaslu this past weekend. But there is a sense of normalcy returning to the mountain and with it comes a renewed focus on climbing the mountain. Tomorrow some of the climbers will begin their summit bid, while others have decided to call it quits and head home.

The Altitude Junkies had three team members depart Base Camp yesterday and today they report that two more will now join them. They'll all descend to the village of Sama Goan where they'll catch a lift by helicopter back to Kathmandu. While sad to see their friends leave, the rest of the team has plenty of work to do. They'll start their summit bid tomorrow by climbing up to Camp 1 with an eye on topping out on Sunday or Monday of next week.

Also heading up is Edita Nichols, who reports that Sherpa teams have already visited Camp 1 and 2 to evaluate stability on the mountain. Her team won't move forward until the Sherpas say it is safe to do, but they anticipate starting the climb in the next day or two as well.

One of the squads that has decided to leave Base Camp and return home is the IMG team. Following a meeting with the entire crew, the experienced leaders of the expedition elected to pull the plug in no small part due to the continued instability on the slopes. They sent their Sherpas up the mountain this morning to collect their gear in Camp 1 and 2 with a plan to depart BC this afternoon. They should be resting comfortably in Sama Goan now and will fly back to Kathmandu tomorrow.



Skier Greg Hill has posted his account of the tragic events from earlier in the week, which you can read here. He was one of the climbers who was in Camp 3 when the avalanche hit, preparing to move up to Camp 4 before proceeding on to the summit. He was hoping to make a no-oxygen ski descent of Manaslu and now feels that it is simply pure luck that he is alive. Greg doesn't indicate if he'll continue his attempt or if he will now head home. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Elsewhere in the Himalaya, far away from the tragedy on Manaslu, other teams are continuing with their expedition. There hasn't been any word from Billi Bierling in a week, although reports are that teams have moved up to Camp 3 on Makalu and may be preparing for their first summit bids. Similarly, ExWeb reported yesterday that 73-year old Carlos Soria was making progress on Dhaulagiri, having established Camp 2 and working on building C3 as well. We should hopefully have good news from those mountains soon as well.

Good luck to all the climbers planning summit attempts across the region in the days ahead. Be safe out there.

Last week when I posted about the emerging 2012 fall season in the Himalaya it was to report that most of the teams were arriving in Kathmandu and making their way out their respective Base Camps across the region. Now, a week later, several of those teams have not only established their BC but have started the process of acclimatization and building their high camps as well.

The Mountain Professional squad has spent the past few days acclimatizing in Sama Gaon, a small village in the shadow of Manaslu. They plan on heading up to BC today where they'll spend the next few days getting settled before going higher. Modern base camps are much more comfortable than in the in past, with many climbers bringing a number of tech toys with them to keep them connected and in communication back home. As a result, one of the first things that they'll do is set up the solar panels to help power all of their electronic gear as well as establish their lights and communications equipment too.

Meanwhile, the IMG team has been on the mountain since last week and even had their Puja ceremony on Thursday. That traditional blessing allows them to begin their climb up the mountain, which they did yesterday by making the first trek up to Camp 1, located at 5700 meters (19,695 ft). After spending last night at that altitude, they'll now continue up to Camp 2 today (6400m/20,992 ft) before returning to BC for a rest. The logistics team reports that the Sherpas have stocked both camps with gear and that more than 600 meters of rope have been fixed leading up to Camp 1 and an additional 600 meters to Camp 2. They also report that the route is in good condition early on in the season.

Over on Makalu, Billi Bierling reports that her squad has arrived in Advanced Base Camp at 5400 meters (17,716 ft) yesterday. On the entire trek to the mountain Billi has noted that there is a distinct lack of trekkers and climbers in the region this so far this year and ABC is no exception. As of yesterday they were the only squad on the mountain.

Finally, 73-year old Carlos Soria doesn't appear to be slowing down one bit. He had intended to climb Kangchenjunga this fall, which is the third highest mountain on the planet at 8586 meters (28,168 ft). Due to the continued closure of the Tibetan border however, he has instead turned his attention on Dhaulagiri (8167m/26,795 ft). Carlos is expected to arrive in Base Camp today and will begin climbing the mountain later this week. The Spaniard hopes to become the oldest person to summit all 14 of the 8000 meter peaks. Good luck Carlos!