원정 개요

Not much information on the file. It has been noted that there were 4 deaths of Sherpas [Dickey and Curtis refute this - see below]

Alpine-style ascent of N Face expedition sat out bad weather at base camp most of the month of October. Tom Dickey had to leave the expedition because of guiding commitments to other trekking peaks. The team returned in Nov and T. Pilling and Japanese teamed up to attempt a route on the N Face of the lower peak without success. John Ball and Tom Curtis climbed the face in 4 days and 2 days down the dangerous serac barrier between the peaks.


Tom Dickey (via email to Salisbury) - 19 Jan 2004

We only had the 4 of us. We had a few porters bring some stuff to base, but they all left. No one was hurt.

I don't recall when we got to base - probably early Sept. The weather was bad for a long time, and we were storm bound for a couple of weeks, so we left for a while. I had guiding commitments and had to meet my clients. The three of them went up to the Gokyo region to do some "trekking." I don't know what they did. They then returned and John Ball and Tom Curtis did an alpine ascent of the North Face (the first) over several days. I seem to recall it was 3 days, up 2 down - going down the NE Ridge with much difficulty. Trevor tried a different route with a Japanese guy left of the NE Ridge but didn't get very high. Trevor disappeared in the Annapurna Sanctuary with his girlfriend a few years later.

I tried the face the spring (May) before that alpine style with Steve Ruoss, after his attempt on the NE Ridge with Jim Traverso, Geoff Tabin and Dave Dossiter. We got a little way up the face (1/3?) before getting stormed off; we were almost swept off and down the runnel we were in, but managed to get down. The storm continued for another 4 days and we ran out of supplies.