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Friday, September 25, 2009

Himalaya Fall 2009: Summits on Cho Oyu, More To Come Soon!


It looks like it is going to be a busy weekend in the Himalaya with good weather holding steading over the region, clearing the way for summit bids on a variety of peaks heading into next week.

The big news from yesterday is the successful summits on Cho Oyu, where IMG is reporting that they had 12 members of their team top out, including Sherpas, under excellent weather conditions that deteriorated some after their descent. Jagged Globe has also reported a successful day on the mountain, with 10 climbers, two guides, and their Sherpa team reaching the summit. All are now safely back down the mountain and celebrating in BC. Expect more climbers to make their bids over the weekend.

Meanwhile, over on Everest, the Basque Team has begun their assault on the North Side, making an alpine style ascent of the Hornbein Couloir with an eye on reaching the top of the tallest mountain on the planet by Sunday or Monday. Reportedly the face had been swept clean of snow by an avalanche last week, so hopefully conditions are good for their very tricky and demanding climb.

Additionally, ExWeb says we should expect summit bids on Manaslu and Shisha Pangma in the next few days as well, as everything is progressing on schedule on those mountains, and the routes are now fixed to the summit.

Finally, the Field Touring Alpine Team may have reached the top of Satopanth several days back, but the story of their climb is still emerging, with details still falling into place. It seems on their descent from the summit an earthquake hit the mountain, with the entire summit ridge trembling. Seracs were shaken loose and went tumbling down the mountain, and it was a scary scene for climbers who thought they had put the worst of the mountain behind them. Turns out, it was a 6.1 magnitude quake with the epicenter just 25 miles away. Everyone is safe of course, and they are now making their way back to Delhi for the return home, but that had to be one scary moment.

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