This extract from a Climbers' Club Journal has been made available by kind permission of the Author and or Photographer and the Climbers' Club. Copyright remains with the author/photographer. It is provided in electronic form for your personal use and cannot be used for commercial profit without seeking permission from both the author/photographer and the Climbers' Club. Journal: 1991 Author: Mark Vallance Copyright 2008
Xixabangma from Base Camp. Photo: Mark Vallance 108
Big Mountains^ the Easy W a y Mark Vallance Himalayan climbing had always seemed to me to be esoteric; not for mere mortals or even accompushed climbers but for 'experts'. The literature of Himalayan expeditions tends to compound this with descriptions of overcoming horrendous obstacles, undergoing hideous hardship, requiring vast fortitude, coping with mjtiad medical conditions and suffering wallowing bureaucracy. The couple of months holiday required for a Himalayan trip tends to militate against the average bloke and favour the leisured or the climbing bum. Then, two years ago, I saw an advertisement in Mountain magazine for a real expedition organised by Himalayan Kingdoms. All I had to do was pay my money and take my chance. No organisation, just turn up at the airport. The mountain was Changtse in Tibet, (the Northern peak of the Everest group). The team was international; four Brits, two New Zealanders, two Australians, two Norwegians and a Chinaman. At Kathmandu Airport we found that Tibet was closed because of Tiananmen Square', but we were able to switch to the South Peak of Himalchuli in Nepal which had had only one ascent, by a different route and was about the same height as Changtse. The only problem was that there was virtually no information available about it. A bus ride, a truck ride and seven days of the most beautiful hiking in the world got us to base camp at about 4,250 metres. Another 1,500 metres of scree got us up to a smau summit at the end of a three kilometre-long gendarmed ridge which separated us from the mountain itseu we seemed to have come the wrong way but were now totauy committed to this route. Twelve days of very hard work got us onto the mountain. These twelve days were just like the expedition books; climb up hundreds of mefres with a heavy load, dump it, go down, do the same the next day, and the next day, and the next day, sit out bad weather and do the same again but with deep snow too! I was losing weight and getting fit. Finally we put a tent up at about 6,400 metres; or to use the local vernacular 'established Camp III'. We had been through an ice fall which is scary but mandatory for real Himalayan climbing. Next we had to climb a 180 metre ice cliff before making the 'Final Assault'. We got up at two o'clock in the morning and hiked up to the cliff. We then spent two hours waiting for it to get light because we had got up too early. We 'Fixed Ropes' up the ice cliff. This was heavy duty stuff with hard, steep ice climbing. Above the ice barrier one was forced to do that real high altitude mountaineering thing take a step then breathe hard for a minute^ then take another step, breathe hard again. The technique is not mandatory because Russell Bryce, our heroic leader, did not seem to find it necessary but I did. Having got up the ice cliff it was a doddle to the summit. Unfortunately we did not make it because it was a very long doddle and by mid afternoon, in 'deteriorating' weather we had only reached 7,000 metres. This is where I learned the hardest lesson which is, 'never be on the First Assault'; you do all the hard work but don't get any of the glory. 109
Big Mountains Well anyw^ay, we got four people to the summit so it was a successful visiting a great part of the world, dispelling my esoteric image of Himalayan climbing and leaving me with the desire to go higher. Next year I was back, but this time it was to be Tibet. Xixabangma is the highest mountain in Tibet and the easiest 8,000 metre peak. My old friend Russell Bryce had done all the organisation. This was to be a small Ughtweight trip, two New Zealanders, two Norwegians, an Australian and myself. Tibet is a very high, very dusty dump which improves above the snow line away from the Chinese who are unreasonable and the Tibetans, who, whilst being great characters, will rob you blind given half a chance. It is also totally different from Nepal which is mainly lush and green with great villages and beautiful hiking. We drove all the way to base camp at just under 5,000 metres and sat about for a week getting our breath back. Then we hiked up to Advanced Base Camp 36 kms and another 900 metres. Having 'established' A.B.C. (to use the jargon again) we hired six yaks and took everything we could up there for our Summer Holiday. It was cold most of the time, but 5,800 metres is usually cold. The great thing is you acclimatise fast. After a day or two we started hiking up the mountain, but this year it was easier: a couple of trips up to Camp I, a hike up to Camp II, a coupl of days of storm so down to A.B.C. then back up to Camp II. Carrying a big rucksack to 7,000 metres seemed much easier than carrying nothing at the same height the previous year. Things were going well and the weather... settled. A wonderful night at Camp III at 7,400 metres and a hard but nice day out going up to the top; eight hours up, one hour down. The sense of achievement was fantastic. I'd done it, I'd climbed a big one but never again! Because I was now a real Himalayan climber I went to the big Everest Extravaganza at the R.G.S. This was a serious mistake because Steve Bell of Himalayan Kingdoms bent my arm about Broad Peak. Well, I'd been to Nepal and I'd been to Tibet but I'd never been to the Karakoram and as all we experienced expedition types know, the Baltoro is where it's at, and Concordia is the centre of the Universe, (after Stoney Cafe). The Karakoram is a cross between Nepal and Tibet. Very dry but with some great trekking and just full of mountains unlike the Himalaya which is mainly a thin ridge of high peaks with jungle on one side and Tibet on the other. The trek to Broad Peak from Askole is one of the ultimate mountaineering hikes. Some hard trekking involving difficult and dangerous footpaths, a rope river crossing, grand views up the Biafo Glacier and of the Trango and Cathedral Spires. Further on the Baltoro and Godwin Austen Glaciers are truly the Throne Room of the Mountain Gods, with Masherbrum, the Gasherbrums and above all, K2, dominating everything. Broad Peak is a big ugly brute with only one logical route up it. This route is straightforward but surprisingly steep with few natural camp sites, but it's possible to get off the mountain and back to base camp very quickly. Once again I got very fit and went up and down, up and down, lots of times and was really going well but the weather was not as kind as last year and we were lucky to get three people to the top including Ramon, a 58 year old who made the first Venezuelan ascent of an 8,000 metre peak, and Alan Hinkes who's cumbed lots of them. But we were unlucky not to get a dozen up the mountain because if 110
Big Mountains the weather had been just a little better we were all ready,fitand able. My memories of Broad Peak are dominated, like the mountain itself, by K2, the Mountain of Mountains; of views across the counfless peaks of the Karakoram from high camps on fine evenings; of struggling with storms going up, and coming down, and particularly when living in our tents on the exposed camp above 6,000 metres. The hike back, up the Vine Glaciers over the 5,800 metre Gondagorro Pass and down into the Hushe Valley rounded the holiday out nicely but I'm definitely not going back next year... At 20,000ft on Broad Peak. Photo: Mark Vallance 111