원정 개요

BC 27/10 5300m
Bv1 28/10 6500m
Bv2 29/10 6400m
Smt 28/10 by Mingma Gyalje Sherpa at 5:15 pm.

Took 2 60m ropes, 2 Cobra ice axes and no bivouac gear.

On 28 Oct, started 4 am, climbed up a 200m long rocky ridge, then down-climbed 60m to reach the snow. Proper beginning of the face at 5:30 am, with first 100m little step (45 degrees), then straight up (continous 75 to 80 degrees all the way up). At 2 places created some small platforms to stay and relax, otherwise no place to put a tent. Ice covered by snow two layers, so had to climb "on a lateral way", never straight to avoid to destablilize this particular snow layers.

Reached summit of the West Face at 5 pm, then main summit at 5:15 pm through a flat ridge (not corniced). First tried to descend by the South Ridge, but after a while trapped in complete white-out. So waited a little, but nothing happened. Tried to move down on the SE side, then tried shelter under a little ice serac at around 6500m reached around 6:30 pm. Spent one night there with no tent, food, gas, water nothing! Cold night waiting for the day.

On 29 Oct weather still cloudy! Around 11:30 am, with little visibility could see 2 small mountains in front of him, but couldn't recognize it despite being his homeland. So at some ice serac just followed an azimuth and thus went 100m down. At the end of it, didn't see he was reaching soem snow ice overhanging border: his legs breaking it, he fell down some 10 feet. Quite shocked after that, he just traversed from there some 10 horizontal meters to avoid the overhang above him. 2nd night without equipment curled up to economize his energy, that night becoming windy compared with the previous one. During the night, in newly clear sky conditions could see everything (was looking his watch all night long), but about 4 am weather went covered again! Around 6 am, went a little visible, made phone calls to his friends for helicopter rescue, but no hope helicopter could pick him up in these cloudy conditions. Stayed there anyway feeling like "If I go down I just have to die." Luckily helicopter came around 7:30 am, [and took him] back to Na 5 minutes later. The day after on 31 Oct he flew back to Kathmandu by helicopter for some minor cares in CIWEC hospital (one blister on a finger foot)

First ever technical solo ascent by a Nepali Sherpa. In his website, Mingma considers it however as his most dangerous climb and also his biggest mistake! Thought he could climb the face up and down within the same day.

This project was otherwise part of a wider project built with 3 other Sherpas friends of Rolwaling, aiming to climb 3 mountains in 3 days (actually done: Langdak, Raungsiyar and Thakargo East), plus this solo ascent of Chobutse. Goal was to make hobby more popular amongst younger Nepalis and also make Rolwaling better known. Mingma thinks mountaineering so far was just being a professional activity for older Nepalis. Youngsters now begin to enjoy it more as a hobby, doing ice and rock climbing by themselves.

Next: Nanga Parbat in summer 2016 for Mingma, as his mother forbids him to try it in winter.