원정 개요

The expedition reached their mountain in Langtang by bus to Syabru Besi, then trekked eastward along the Langtang Khola to Kyanjin Gompa and Kharka. From Kyanjin Kharka they acclimatized by going north and climbing the nearby peak, Kyanjin Ri (4700m). All members summited on 13 November. From Kyanjin Kharka, they followed the Langtang Khola west to the only bridge in the area across the khola, then west-southwest to Pangmelung Kharka (yak grazing ground).

On the 14th they established BC at 4000m at Pangmelung Kharka. The next day the entire party of 12 members trekked southward to the moraine at the north end of a large unnamed glacier, and here their high camp was pitched at 4900m.

Struthers gave seven inexperienced members training in all climbing procedures, and that midnight (of 16th/17th December) eight climbing members and three Sherpas followed the glacier south and then on its curve up the beginning of the East Face of their mountain. The glacier was gently sloping frozen snow interrupted by two steep steps of solid ice. The first step was 300m high and its angle was about 60 degrees; the second step was 200m high and 50 degrees steep. On these steps they fixed 600m of rope, and reused 100m of the same rope.

Two climbers, Clarke and Trudgett, got to only 5200m at about 3:00 am, were now exhausted and returned to high camp while the other six continued to the 5890m summit. It was a fine day: no wind, clear sky. Struthers arrived at the top at 9:20 am.

The other members, Allen, Arnold, Falconer, Jack and Sainty, plus Sherpas Nima Kancha, Kami Rita and Pemba Gyalzen, joined him at 9:45 am. The summiters were back in high camp at 3:30 pm.

Sherpas:
Kami Rita, 17/1/70, Thami, Everest X15, Cho Oyu X4
Nima Kancha, 15/5/80, Pare, Namche-6, Everest X3
Pemba Gyalzen, 22/7/69, Thamiteng, Everest X6, Cho Oyu X3, Manaslu X1