Autumn 2018 Himalayan Climbing: Summits, Missing Climber, Skiing Lhotse
This last week has been the pinnacle for the 2018 autumn climbing season across the Himalayas in Tibet and Nepal. Sadly a Czech climber is missing after summiting Manaslu and the long-coveted ski descent of the Lhotse Couloir is apparently completed but not confirmed. Big Picture – Weekend Update This week will wrap up the […]
Autumn 2018 Himalayan Climbing: Summits All Over
One of the best moments in climbing on the Himalayan is when you reach the summit of an 8000-meter, or lesser peak only hear a Sherpa screaming into his radio “Summmmmiiiitttt” with the energy of a World Cup Football announcer. You almost can’t help but smile. This scene is being repeated on Manaslu and Cho […]
Autumn 2018 Himalayan Climbing: Summit Pushes Begin
Pretty much on schedule, multiple teams will be starting their summit push this week, if they haven’t already. The weather continues to be decent but fresh snow on Dhaulagiri and Annapurna will require a couple days to settle. Cho Oyu Climbing the Seven Summits team reported they left for the summit today, Monday Sept 24 2018: “Their […]
Autumn 2018 Himalayan Climbing: Sherpas Dies on Dhaulagiri
Team after team are wrapping up their acclimatization rotations so look for summit pushed to begin as early as this weekend or early next week. The weather is looking poor for next couple of days but then returning to nice autumn conditions, albeit with rain around Manaslu and snow on Dhaulagiri – which seems to […]
Autumn 2018 Himalayan Climbing Begins
If it is early September, it must mean a migration to the big mountains of Tibet and Nepal. After being closed to climbing last year, Tibet is open and the usual suspects will be busy. Reports have it that more than 350 foreign climbers supported by over 300 Sherpas will be on the five Nepal and […]
Autumn Himalayan Climbing: First Summits and Heavy Snow Ahead
The rope fixers reached the summit of Manaslu while other teams across the Himalayan continue to establish high camps enjoying good weather with one exception, those on Dhaulagiri saw their summit bid stopped cold. Dhaulagiri – summit stopped 78-year-old Spanish climber Carlos Soria Fontan on Dhaulagiri saw his first summit attempt stalled after they went up […]
Autumn Himalayan Climbing: Manaslu, Dhaulagiri, Lhotse
The autumn Himalayan climbing season is well underway with Manaslu, located entirely in Nepal, dominating the numbers but not the challenge. Let’s look at the more interesting climbs first. Lhotse – South Korea back for 5th time South Korean, Sung Taek Hong at age 51 is back for the 5th time to attempt Lhotse’s South […]
Autumn Himalayan Climbing Begins
If it is early September, it must mean a migration to the big mountains of Tibet and Nepal, however for 2017, the Tibetan high peaks will be quiet. The Chinese have closed climbing throughout Tibet due to a “meeting” being held in the area. As usual the real reason remains elusive adding to the uncertainty […]
autumn Himalayan Climbing Update 4 – Bad Weather, Summits Soon
My last update spoke of the legendary excellent autumn weather but predictably, teams are now experiencing heavy snow that has any thoughts of summit pushes on hold … for a few days. Most teams have spent multiple nights high above their base camps and feel ready to make their summit pushes when the conditions allow. Also a new […]
autumn Himalayan Climbing Update 3 – Great Weather
Finally the legendary excellent autumn weather has arrived on the world’s highest peaks. Team and climbers alike are reporting “bluebird” days with clear skies and no wind. This makes even the hardest acclimatization day a joy. Most commercial teams focus on Everest in the spring because it is usually a two month event and takes […]