Géographie du Cachemire
CLIMBING IN BIAFO AREA
- page 3/3 -
Imprimer cette page
Document PDF

 



Latok group -c6,456/c7,151m-
Latok I -c7,145m-, North face (Karakoram Walker)
Latok I -c7,145m-, North ridge
Latok II -c7,151m-
Latok II -c7,108m-, North West ridge
Latok II -c7,108m-, South ridge
Latok II -c7,108m-, "Tsering Mosong" line
Latok II -c7,108m-, "Nomadu" line
Latok III -c6,949m-
Latok III, borrow summit (Indian Face Spur) -c5,200m-
Latok III -c6,949m-, West face
Latok IV -c6,456m-
Latok V -c6,190m-
Latok VI
Redakh Brakk -c6,000m-
Spaldang Peak -c5,550m-
Shel Chakpa -c5,800m-
Sokha Brakk (Sekha Brakk) -c5,956m-
Sokha Brakk (Sekha Brakk/Dragonfly Crest), -c5,450m-
Sosbun Brakk -c6,413m-
Tsuntse Brakk -~c6,000m-
Uzum Brakk -~c6,000m-
Workman Peak -c5,882m-

Top Bottom

 

Here joints maps of the area :


Latok group -c6,456/c7,151m- :

In the upper Biafo area, the glance is attract by the Uzun Brakk valley from where the imposing Ogre' group and the marvellous Gothic tower of the Latoks group is rising up. Just as the Ogres, Latoks are difficult and complex granite mountains, with the high towers and frozen barriers. Moreover, Latok would like to say "difficult mountains" in the language local Balti langage. The granite rock of the Latok-Baintha Brakk group is as splendid as Trangos. The group includes 4 principal summits which are Latok I, II, III and IV. These four summits were climbed by their Southern slope starting from the Biafo glacier side. The first climb was made by an Italians teams in 1977, the three others by Japanese, two years later.

Top Bottom

Latok I -c7,145m-, North face (Karakoram Walker) :

Brendan Murphy and Dave Wills. Both had attempted the unclimbed 2,400m North Ridge before and Wills was returning for his third attempt on this stupendous line, often referred to as the Walker Spur of the Karakoram. After thorough acclimatization, the two crossed the rimaye at c4,700m and climbed the initial couloir to a tent site at 5,250m. In three days they climbed 1,500m of the ridge in the superb spell of weather that blessed the Karakoram at the end of July. At the end of the third day they were excavating a bivouac ledge on a sizable snow mushroom when the whole thing collapsed. This resulted in Wills, unfortunately, joining the elite ranks of a group of well-known climbers who have lost their rucksack in a committing situation high on a big mountain. Included in the 'sack were the tent, stove and his sleeping bag. Wills spent a thoroughly miserable night and the pair made an 18 hour descent the following day to their spare tent and a second stove left at 5,250m. Borrowing replacement gear from the Ogre team, the pair made a second attempt in August but only reached 5,880m before having to sit out three days of bad weather. With the storm unabated they retreated once more.
In 1997, climbers from New England, John Bouchard and Mark Richey, joined the growing ranks of climbers who have unsuccessfully attempted the Walker Spur of the Karakoram the 2400m North Ridge of Latok I. This pair made several lightweight and Alpine style forays on to the route, reaching a high point of c6,000m before retreating due to the very dangerous conditions brought on by the lengthy fine period of warm weather. Parties who have climbed higher on the line know that above this point is a very loose rock barrier which would undoubtedly be the source of considerable objective danger in dry conditions. On their last attempt the two climbers were joined by Tom Nonis and Barry Rugo, the other half of their expedition, who had previously been attempting the Ogre.


Top Bottom

Latok I -c7,145m-, North ridge :

Tom Nonis and Barry Rugo, the other half of their expedition, had previously been attempting the Ogre. Bouchard and Richey already have the 7,145m peak booked again for '98. On the neighbouring Latok I (7,145m) (see Latok I) New Hampshire climbers, Tom Callaghan and Tom Nonis, abandoned their attempt on the unclimbed North Ridge after Callaghan injured a knee early in the expedition. Before the incident the pair had made several trips up to 5,500m over a 19-day period of consistently poor weather.

Top Bottom

Latok II -c7,151m- :

First climb by italians team (leader Bergamaschi in 1977), second by japanese in 1979. The west ridge has severals attempts, high point ever climbed was c,6,850m by this route. In 1995, A german attempt lead by the famous climber Alexander Huber) by a new route on the impressive Southwest face (800m high) in 1994.

Top Bottom

Latok II -c7,108m-, North West ridge :

Latok II and especially the North West Ridge has a long history, primarily involving British expeditions. It was first attempted from the col below Ogre II by a Japanese team in 1975 but they abandoned their project due to rockfall and serious avalanche danger. In 1977 and '78 two British parties made further progress and reached c6,600m, although both attempts were marred by the death of climbers; Don Morrison on the first due to a crevasse fall and Pat Fearneough in '78, hit by stonefall in the dangerous Braldu Gorge. In 1987 Joe Brown and Dee de Mengel from a strong eight-man team retreated from above 6,800m in a serious storm. What now remains is an integral ascent of the entire ridge above the col.

Top Bottom

Latok II -c7,108m-, South ridge :

The mountain itself has been climbed only twice, first in 1977 by Arturo Bergamaschi's Italian expedition, succeeded in forcing a route up mixed ground on the tapering South Ridge, with Alimonta, Mase and Valentini reaching the top well into the night after a long push from their top camp (Camp 5) in bad weather. Above Camp 4 the route was over rock and mixed ground (pitches of IV) to a lower South Summit, in turn connected to the highest point by a narrow snow arête which took three hours to cross. Some days later four more Italians were able to reach the South Summit but turned back from this point. The route does not appear to have been attempted since.

Top Bottom

Latok II -c7,108m-, "Tsering Mosong" line :

One of the most outstanding achievements of the season 97 was the first ascent of the Southwest Face of Latok II by the well-known German brothers Alexander and Thomas Huber, plus the equally well-known American, Conrad Anker and a fourth German climber, Toni Gutsch. These four reached the 7,108m summit on the 19th July after having climbed a hard big wall route up the 1,000m+ sheer face above the huge central couloir.
In August 1995 Alexander Huber, on a seven member German team led by Jan Mersch, had hoped to attempt the face, which rises a total of 2,300m, but unstable weather and very poor conditions in the couloir had proved too dangerous and instead the team attempted the North West Ridge from the col below Ogre II, reaching a height of c6,600m.
In 1997, hoping to find the couloir in a safer and more snowy condition by arriving earlier in the year, the team assembled at a Base Camp (4,400m) close to the Uzum Brakk Glacier on the 14th June with around 2,000m of rope and the obligatory film crew from Mountain Air Productions. The climbers then sited a camp in the lower part of the 50 couloir at c5,600m and around the 24th June began fixing rope up the snow and ice above. Unfortunately, rockfall was every bit as bad as on their previous attempt and although the team only climbed this section during the night, the ground was still considered extremely hazardous. A second camp was established at 6,000m tucked in below the upper rock wall. From there the four slanted up the left branch of the couloir for 100m before taking off up the wall and fixing eight pitches to a portaledge bivouac on the prominent break at about one third height. The first pitch proved to be the hardest free climbing attempted (VII or 5.10c), while the fourth gave some taxing aid on loose terrain at hard A3. The rack consisted of 50 karabiners, 20 Friends, 30 nuts, 15-20 pegs and five Birdbeaks, six assorted skyhooks and some 6mm rivets. From the portaledge bivouac ropes were then pushed out to around 6,900m, at which point the climbers were able to see monsoon clouds building to the west. Fortunately, they were able to climb the last section to reach the final snowy ridge and the highest point (via a pitch of V) on the 19th July. Eleven climbing days were required to complete the wall, the Huber brothers spending six nights at the portaledge bivouac and Anker and Gutsch seven. The descent was reported to be decidedly dangerous due to worsening conditions and at one point the 5,600m camp was hit by rockfall, resulting in the loss of two sacks of gear.
The 25-pitch route (seven of which were A3) was given an overall American grading of VII and christened Tsering Mosong, the Balti expression for Long Life. Twenty of these pitches were either vertical or overhanging, making the line relatively sheltered from any debris falling from above. However, the hard aid pitches were generally loose and the leader was often looking at a huge fall should things go wrong. In terms of altitude the four climbers had completed probably the highest big wall climb in the world; up a face as huge and as steep as Yosemite's El Capitan but situated at an altitude almost 5,000m higher.


Top Bottom

Latok II -c7,108m-, "Nomadu" line :

Franz Fendt and Christian Schlesener, reached the Latok II summit via the North West Ridge to make the third overall ascent of the mountain. On their second attempt this pair left the camp below the headwall at 6,000m and climbed up the left branch of the couloir to reach the crest of the ridge at c6,600m. The eight pitches of this section gave difficult technical climbing with two hard cruxes and the ridge above provided more technical ground with short, hard rock steps. The pair reached the summit after 36 hours of continuous climbing with difficulties up to VI+ and A2 plus 80-90 ice. They then spent 14 hours rappelling the route to their 6,000m camp and a well-earned sleep before continuing down the stoneswept couloir to Base Camp. The new 1,100m line above the last camp in the couloir was named Nomadu.

Top Bottom

Latok III -c6,949m- :

The impressive rock pyramid of Latok III was first climbed in July 1979 by Sakae Mori, Kazushige Takami and Yoji Teranishi, members of a Japanese team that fixed 1,600m of rope on the difficult Southwest Ridge (VI+ and A2).
In largely stable weather Alex Franklin, Will Garrett, Fiona Hatchell, Colin Spark and Guy Willett, all from the UK, attempted several peaks from the Choktoi Glacier during the latter part of June plus July 1997, without succes. The group report much abandoned rubbish at some old Base Camps of German origin. They were able to porter out c25kg of trash from one of these camps which is now all but clear, leaving just one or two other sites, which it is hoped might be tackled by future parties visiting this relatively accessible area.

Top Bottom

Latok III, borrow summit (Indian Face Spur) -c5,200m-:

In 1990, the Indian Face Spur, the fine granite pillar was climb by Sandy Allan and Doug Scott in 1990. The UK group climbed approximately one third of the way up the pillar at British HVS and A1/A2 but retreated with the realization that the route was far longer than it looked. However, they were able to reach the summit of Pt 5,400m via a loose ridge at AD standard. The group report much abandoned rubbish at some old Base Camps of German origin. They were able to porter out c25kg of trash from one of these camps which is now all but clear, leaving just one or two other sites, which it is hoped might be tackled by future parties visiting this relatively accessible area.
In 1999, Chinnery, Coull and Morton were making their final push on the West Face of Indian Face Spur. The crest of this prominent rock spur below a subsidiary summit of Latok III was first climbed in 1990 by Sandy Allan and Doug Scott at British 5c and A2. However, this pair stopped at a pinnacle some distance below the actual summit and made a rappel descent of the steep North Face to the left. The new Scottish line climbs the obvious groove that runs up the vertical West Face of the Arete, starting 80m up the central snow couloir. This gave continuous aid climbing for 400m with difficulties up to A3 before joining the crest of the arete at around half-height. The climbers spent five days fixing rope on the groove, returning to Base Camp each night. On the 27th they jumared the ropes to the crest, removing all the fixed gear as they went, then continued up the original route for a further 400m (passing in situ gear from the Italian attempt: see below) to reach the summit - the highest point on the crest of the ridge - on the 28th. The second half of the climb gave British VS climbing with one pitch of A2. This was the first route to reach the summit of the 'Indian Face', allowing a more straightforward descent to be made by rappelling the South East Flank.
Prior to these ascents the area had already been visited in June by the Italian team of Luca Maspes, Emanuele Pellizzari Massimo Sala and Gianni Zappa. These four remained for 18 days at or above their Base Camp close to the start of the glacier. Twelve of these days were considered unsuitable for climbing, having very poor weather or snowfall. Sala and Zappa climbed a 700m high pillar on a small unnamed rocky summit of 4,750m, situated on the south side of the glacier about one hour above Base Camp. Traditional protection was used throughout and difficulties up to F6a+ and A1 were experienced. The route was completed in a long day from Base Camp, the trio descending from the summit via three rappels in a couloir to the east and returning the same day.
Maspes, Pellizzari and Zappa then repeated the Indian Face Spur, thinking they were on new ground. They climbed the first three pitches one afternoon and fixed ropes. It then snowed for three days after which they began again, adding eight more pitches and passing a jammed Friend left by Allan in 1990. The following day they climbed another six pitches and on the final day one more pitch to the pinnacle, which marks more or less the same high point as Allan and Scott in 1990 (which they estimate to be roughly five pitches of easier ground from the c5,200m summit). Making one rappel from their high point, the Italians found traces of the top bivouac (including a rappel sling) used by the British pair in 1990. They too bivouacked at much the same spot. Whether they followed the same line as that taken by Allan and Scott is unclear but apart from the first 70m and two pitches in the middle of the route, each rope length had a minimum grade of VI and A1, with the fifth pitch the crux (VIII- and A1). The three Italians placed four bolts: two on belays, one for protection on a pitch of very rotten rock (graded A2+ and VI) and a fourth (subsequently removed) when the leader was caught out by nightfall. They rappelled the line (setting up either two-peg or one-bolt anchors), all very impressed with the level of difficulty and commitment. Shortly after, Maspes made a solo ascent of a small rocky summit of 4,650m, which he christened Simo Peak, close to Base Camp. He climbed the South East Face, which gave 400m of climbing up to V, then descended via an easy rock gully. The team were disappointed with the amount of rubbish they discovered (and subsequently partially brought back) at the Base Camp sites below the Latok Group, particularly abandoned tents, batteries etc, which appeared to be of French origin.

Top Bottom

Latok III -c6,949m-, West face :

The West Face of Latok III is c2,000m high with the first section a snow/ice slope followed by an impressively steep rock wall, well-seen in the book Himalayan Alpine-Style.
The West Face was the target of Enrico Rosso and two Italian companions in 1988. However, on finding the face too plastered with snow, they decided to repeat the safer Japanese Route and in demanding conditions completed the climb in a eight-day, Alpine style push. The West Face was thought to have been attempted in the '90s by an American team that included Phil Powers from the National Outdoor Leadership School. Until last summer Latok III does not appear to have been attempted since.
The face is 2,000m high with the first section a snow/ice slope and the upper 1,300m an impressively steep rock wall at relatively high altitude. This face was the target of Enrico Rosso's team in 1988 but finding it too plastered, the Italians turned to the original Japanese Route on the Southwest Ridge and completed it Alpine style in eight days (VI+ and A2). The next and what appears to be the best attempt to date came in 1992 when Americans, Greg Collum and Phil Powers, reached a point three pitches above a snow-covered spur in the centre of the face at an altitude of approximately 6,350m. Latterly, in July 1998, a high point of around 6,050m was reached by another strong American team comprising Kitty Calhoun, Steve Quinlan, Ken Sauls and Jay Smith, who report overcoming difficulties of 5.10a and A2 on less than perfect rock.
Latok III was to be the fourth summit of the on-going project entitled 'Russian Way - Big Walls of the World'. Base Camp was established on the moraine two hours from the base of the wall and after an acclimatization climb an advanced camp was set up closer still to the wall. Koshelenko had hoped the team would attempt the face in Alpine style but he was out-voted on his choice of line and the four went for a directissima towards the left side of the face that would require a capsule style approach and much aid. They started their ascent on the 19th July. hauling an initial load of 100kg up the broad couloir on the left side of the face. The four took two days and climbed around 25 pitches to get established at the start of the rock wall (5700m). A heavy snow covering on the 45-60° ice slope had made the ascent to this point hard work. Above, the team progressed slowly, climbing only two-and-a-half pitches over the next two days (6 and A3+) to reach an altitude of c5,835m. The corner they were trying to ascend was composed of poor rock and Koshelenko's suggestion to descend and outflank the obstacle by climbing the buttress on the left appears to have been ignored. If further proof were needed, while lying on their portaledge at the end of a day in which Koshelenko had already received a cut to the head from a falling stone, a large rock burst through the tent fly and completely shattered Koshelenko's helmet.
It snowed heavily for two days, confining the Russians to their ledge. However, on the 25th the weather seemed to be on the mend and the team set off up the wall, only to get caught in more stonefall. This time Koshelenko, who was jumaring back up the fixed ropes, was hit on the hands. The result was two broken thumbs and a decision to retreat.
On the 26th they started down. The sky was cloudless and the ice slopes now heavily laden with snow. Koshelenko was lowered, Ruchkin came next setting up the rappel anchors, then Efimov and finally Odintsov. At around 3.30pm the team were on the lower section of the face and only five rope lengths above the glacier, when they were pummelled by an avalanche that left a two-metre groove in the slope above. At that point Efimov and Ruchkin were together. They set up a belay on ice screws out of the fall line, then proceeded to lower Koshelenko while Odintsov waited one pitch above. Suddenly, another big avalanche hit. When Ruchkin finally emerged from the debris, badly battered with three broken ribs and a damaged neck, he found himself alone apart from two ice-axes. Efimov, the rucksacks and remaining ice tools and been swept away.
Odintsov came down and the three descended painfully to the foot of the face, where to their surprise they found Efimov sitting to one side of the base of the avalanche cone and all their equipment scattered close by. While his companions thought he had been killed in the avalanche, Efimov was convinced he was the only survivor after his 350m fall and at around 4pm had radioed Michail Bakin, a Russian doctor in Base Camp, to that effect.
Bakin, Odintsov, plus the injured Klenov and Koshelenko managed to transport Efimov, who had broken a leg and ribs, down to a safe point on the glacier but not before they had another lucky escape when a huge rockfall from the face above stopped in the avalanche cone just 20m away. The path out from Base Camp was too narrow and precariously positioned to carry an invalid, so the Russian's Liaison Officer made a rapid descent to Skardu to order a helicopter. There appears to have been a lengthy administrative delay before one could be released but on the 30th July and after the intervention of the Russian Embassy, Bakin and Efimov were successfully flown to Skardu hospital and the rest were able to walk out, arriving on the 3rd August.
In 2001, Odintsov organized a second team for a return match. Out of the original party it seems that only Ruchkin was interested but the pair enlisted Igor Barikhin, Mikhail Davy, Sergey Khadzhinov and Alexander Klenov. Base Camp was established at the former site late on the 22nd June and subsequently, while waiting for some delayed baggage, all members made an acclimatization ascent of a small subsidiary summit of the Latok group, which they refer to as Latok VI. The party slept the night on the top. The capsule attempt on Latok III began on the 7th July, the team spending two days climbing and hauling equipment to the top of the ice slope below the start of the big corner system. Realizing, even from far away, that stonefall in the corner was no less dangerous than the previous year, the team decided to pursue a more sheltered line up the flank of the pillar to the left. By the night of the 10th they had established a portaledge camp halfway up this wall. Unfortunately, the rock was far from good, making solid protection difficult to arrange and there was still a problem from stonefall. On the 10th, Odintsov was hit hard in the back by a rock and although there were no breaks, he was badly bruised, making further climbing difficult. On the 15th, now some distance above their 2000 high point, the weather deteriorated and at the end of the day an exhausted Khadzhinov and Ruchkin fell asleep in their sealed portaledge while making tea and ended up with bad carbon monoxide poisoning. It snowed for the next one and a half days but in the evening of the 18th the Russians had reached the prominent elongated snow patch, christened The Tomahawk and situated below the upper pillar. According to Odintsov, the climbing to this point had not been excessively difficult but almost constantly dangerous due to poor rock and stonefall. The following day they moved up to c6,200m, a point estimated to be two days' climbing from the summit. Barikhin was last man, jumaring the ropes and removing protection and belay anchors. The weather was nice and sunny during the evening and as Barikhin ascended the last rope and the rest of the team were preparing a site for the night, a large rockfall Suddenly cut loose from the summit ridge. Blocks flew past in all directions but cowering close to the rock the five climbers at the proposed camp site avoided being hit. However, when calm returned, they realized the rope below had been cut and Barikhin had disappeared. Odintsov rappelled for 50m but could see no sign of him. The following morning the team abandoned the climb and descended, finding Barikhin's body just 20m above the rimaye at the bottom of the face.

Top Bottom

Latok IV -c6,456m- :

Ohmiya is no newcomer to this region. In 1980 he made the first and, until last summer, only ascent of Latok IV (6,456m) via the Southwest Face, just to the right of Latok V. While excavating a snow cave on the descent both Ohmiya and his partner, Koji Okano, fell 50m into a crevasse, breaking a number of bones. They waited for four days but when no help came Ohmiya managed to tunnel through the outside wall of the crevasse and crawl down the glacier with a broken leg. In close proximity at the time were Victor Saunders and Will Tapsfield, who had been attempting nearby Uzun Brakk. This pair were informed of the accident and subsequently climbed up to the crevasse on Latok IV, where Okano, who had been stranded down the hole for eight days, was successfully pulled to safety.
In 2001, a very strong German team comprising Toni Gutsch, Alex and Thomas Huber, and Jan Mersch attempted the South Pillar of the Ogre, one of the Karakoram's most famous mountains and despite more than 15 attempts still unclimbed since its legendary first ascent in 1977 by Chris Bonington and Doug Scott (see Ogre, South face).
When Gutsch and Mersch went home, the Huber brothers were left with five days before porters arrived to evacuate Base Camp. They decided to attempt a very lightweight dash up the Southwest Face of Latok IV (6,456m), climbed only once before by the Japanese, Ohmiya and Okano (see above). The two brothers made the 12kms approach from Base Camp during the night, then climbed mostly unroped up the steep snow and ice slopes of the face and into the final couloir leading to the gap between the twin summits. They opted for the closer and slightly lower South Summit, reached it a little after midday and returned to Base Camp in a 22 hours round trip.

Top Bottom

Latok V -c6,190m-:

Latok V is the name ascribed to the small 6,190m pyramid that stands at the end of the South East Ridge of Latok III (6,949m) on the watershed running between Latok III and IV. It is probably, though by no means certainly, unclimbed and was attempted last summer by Motomo Ohmiya and partner.
In 1999, the Japanese climber Moromu Omiya returned for his third attempt on the unclimbed 6,190m summit of Latok V. Omiya, who made the first ascent of Latok IV in 1980, attempted this small peak in both 1999 and 2000 via the South Face. Last summer with two other companions he again tried the mountain but on the summit day was forced to give up just 70m below the top when it simply became too late to continue safely. The peak lies at the end of the South East Ridge of Latok III.

Top Bottom

Latok VI :

In 2001, Odintsov organized a second team for a return match. Out of the original party it seems that only Ruchkin was interested but the pair enlisted Igor Barikhin, Mikhail Davy, Sergey Khadzhinov and Alexander Klenov. Base Camp was established at the former site late on the 22nd June and subsequently, while waiting for some delayed baggage, all members made an acclimatization ascent of a small subsidiary summit of the Latok group, which they refer to as Latok VI.

Top Bottom

Redakh Brakk -c6,000m- :

In a good example of exploratory mountaineering during July/August the experienced four man British team of Bill Church, Tony Park, Colin Wells and Dave Wilkinson climbed three previously virgin peaks from a Base Camp off the Kero Lungma Glacier (immediately south of the Hispar and approached from Skardu via Arandu). The team's original intention had been to attempt a c6,000m peak seen the previous year and dubbed Mystery Mountain. They were able to locate its position on existing maps but once in the field found that an intervening glacier basin, not marked on any maps, meant that the peak was unreachable from the Kero Lungma. In changeable weather and with masses of old spring snow (but little problem with fresh snow) they turned their attentions to a 5,000m peak on the south side of the glacier, later christened Tsuntse Brakk, which gave 1,000m of PD climbing with a pitch of Scottish 3. After this they tackled a 5,200m peak (Goma Brakk) directly opposite on the north side of the glacier (1,000m: F) and finally, on the 13th August, made the first ascent of Redakh Brakk (c6,000m), which lies on the watershed with the Hispar Glacier. The route from the south was via a complex but easy glacier to a col on the main divide and AD+ snow and ice up the West Ridge to finish. Errors on existing maps were corrected in a fine piece of traditional exploration and Wilkinson plans to return this year for a crack at Mystery Mountain.

Top Bottom

Spaldang Peak -c5,550m- :

Preparing the Biantha Brakk expedition, Huber then teamed up with Volker Benz and Karl Spitzhof to make the first ascent of a nearby 5,550m tower which they christened Spaldang. The 900m high route on the East Pillar (1,400m of climbing) was partially sieged. The lower section, which was not so steep, gave fairly reasonable climbing (IV to VI) to a shoulder below the steep upper pillar. The upper section proved to be generally V and VI, except for the 120m headwall which was split by a perfect hand jam crack and fell to Huber at IX- (around F7b/7b+). This was a very impressive performance at the altitude, although by this stage in the expedition Huber was well-acclimatized and presumably still retained some of the old magic that allowed him to free climb the Salathé earlier in the year.

Top Bottom

Shel Chakpa -c5,800m- :

Dave Wilkinson returned to old haunts in 1999 with a visit to the Arandu (Basha River) Valley in the company of fellow British mountaineers, Bill Church, Gus Morton and Stewart Muir. The objective this time was a fine, pointed snow peak of c5,800m towards the head of the valley that rises east from the village of Zil towards the flanks of the Ganchen Massif.
After an initial reconnaissance to confirm the existence of a feasible ascent line, the four established Base Camp on the 18th July at c4,050m. According to the local population the British climbers were the first foreign party to visit this valley and their proposed summit already had the name Shel Chakpa. This Balti name means 'white broken peak', quite appropriate for a mountain with such considerable serac structure on its flanks. From Base Camp the West North West Ridge appeared to offer the safest and most feasible line of ascent. However, two weeks of warm and unsettled weather prevented a serious attempt until the 5th August, after which the team made a successful ascent and descent of the mountain over the next five days. The climbing on the first day proved straightforward but the second involved TD ice/mixed terrain to by-pass a set of shattered rocky towers on the lower part of the ridge. From Camp 2 at 5,000m the four continued up the ill-defined ridge, almost immediately finding a well-built cairn, which they surmise had probably been constructed by an enterprising ibex hunter coming up broken rocky ground to the south. Above, the difficulties increased and a meandering line up icy ramps and gullies at TD standard led to the summit. Descent was made largely by rappel, and in dry conditions, caused by the high temperatures at these modest altitudes during the Karakoram summer, stonefall lent an urgency to the situation. A rest day at Camp 2 was taken on the 9th and all four descended safely to Base Camp on the following day.

Top Bottom

Sokha Brakk -c5,956m-:

Two British climbers, Ian Arnold and Dave Millman, were visiting the adjacent Sokha Glacier to the south, where they managed to climb one small peak. Arnold had visited the glacier twice before and, in 1992, climbed the South Face of Pt 5,495m (IV+) and made a spirited attempt on the difficult and serious North Face of Pt 5,956m, an unclimbed peak on the main ridge southwest of Sosbun Brakk, subsequently christened Sokha Brakk. Little climbing has ever been attempted on the Sokha's dramatic peaks, though the glacier was visited as early as the first part of last century by the indefatigable Bullock-Workmans and then again in the late '30s by first Tilman then Scott Russell.
Attempts on other peaks in the region were thwarted by bad weather and although the team note considerable potential for future parties, there is little that would give easy climbing and approaches would be far from straightforward.
(See the common topics for more informations for the area : Redakh Brakk, Hispar& Sokha pass, Solu & Sokha glaciers).

Top Bottom

Sokha Brakk (Sekha Brakk/Dragonfly Crest), -c5,450m- :

Dave Wilkinson returned to old haunts in 1999 with a visit to the Arandu (Basha River) Valley in the company of fellow British mountaineers, Bill Church, Gus Morton and Stewart Muir. The objective this time was a fine, pointed snow peak of c5,800m towards the head of the valley that rises east from the village of Zil towards the flanks of the Ganchen Massif.
The British team chose to reconnoitre the unnamed side glacier rising north from their Base Camp but found the abnormally dry winter and spring had made approaches to many of the peaks both difficult and dangerous. The team was also bugged by the generally very unsettled weather but managed to climb one c5,450m peak on the Hispar watershed ridge. They named this Sekha Brakk (Dragonfly Peak).

Top Bottom

Sosbun Brakk -c6,413m- :

H.W.Tilman, before the war, had drawn attention to the slim tops of the valley of Hoh Lungma. It described it, in " Blank one the map " (E.Shipton) as "an uncompromising rock wall crowned with jagged towers". But the beauty of these peaks is misleading: the rock is dangerous with enormous rotted scales and cracks with sandy edges : Sosbun mean " heap's stone " in baltis and is well named. The climbing is very hard, as on the very beautiful face, 1100m high, vertical and often overhanging.
First and unique climb of the Sosbun summit in 1981 by the Japaneses H.Hashimoto and N.Matsumoto: they followed the difficult, elegant and very pure Southwestern edge (5 camps, a bivouac). Frenchies B. Domenech, Y.Duverney and J.P. Monet approached it in 1989; they stopped in a storm, under the slopes of the top which is the end of the difficult section (700m, 6b/A4). Undoubtedly disappointed, but adventure is always worth on this splendid mountain.

Top Bottom

Tsuntse Brakk-:

In a good example of exploratory mountaineering during July/August the experienced four man British team of Bill Church, Tony Park, Colin Wells and Dave Wilkinson climbed three previously virgin peaks from a Base Camp off the Kero Lungma Glacier (immediately south of the Hispar and approached from Skardu via Arandu). The team's original intention had been to attempt a c6,000m peak seen the previous year and dubbed Mystery Mountain. They were able to locate its position on existing maps but once in the field found that an intervening glacier basin, not marked on any maps, meant that the peak was unreachable from the Kero Lungma. In changeable weather and with masses of old spring snow (but little problem with fresh snow) they turned their attentions to a 5,000m peak on the south side of the glacier, later christened Tsuntse Brakk.

Top Bottom

Uzum Brakk -~6500m- :

After their failure on Latok II, in 1994, Alexander Huber accompanied by seven German tried the Southern face while passing by the higher Uzum Brakk glacier in 1995. The route borrows the fine Southern ridge with obvious technical problems in the higher section (first time tried by a Japanese group in 1975 and later by a certain number of British forwardings but remains always virgin). Some members of the team arrived above 6500m.

Top Bottom

Workman peak -c5,882m- :

The five-member italians team was on the Biafo Glacier in 1999 for almost a month from mid-July to mid-August but poor weather prevented them from achieving more than two ascents. On the 23rd July 1999, Giangi Angeloni, Angelo Carminati, Giorgio Carran, Gigi Rota and Ennio Spiranelli climbed the Central Spur on the West Face of Workman Peak (5,882m), finding snow and mixed terrain up to 60°. On the 28th, Angeloni, Rota and Spiranelli climbed a nearby c5,800m summit, for which they propose the name Tarci Peak after the great Bregaglia/Masino activist, Tarcisio Fazzini, killed during the winter of 1990 in an avalanche. The three Italians climbed the 600m South Ridge and West Face, which gave 12 rock pitches up to VI.

Top Bottom

Sources :

All informations mainly coming from,


Ø The American Alpine Journal, 1996 to 2004 editions
Ø Himalaya in Alpin Style by Andy Fanshawe & Stephen Venables, (Arthaud - France), 192 pages, 1996 edition
Ø The Karakorum, Mountains of Pakistan de Shiro Shirahata édition Ferezsons (pvt.) ltd
Ø Les plus belles montagnes du monde (Glénat - Grenoble-France), 296 pages, 1993 edition
Ø Himalaya-Karakoram, Mountains of Pakistan by Shiro Shirahata, (Denoël - France), edition 1990
Ø Ils ont conquis l'Himalaya by Bernard Pierre (Plon - France), 1979 edition
Ø Deux siècles d'alpinisme by Chris Bonnington (Delachaux & Niestlé), 1992 edition

... and some others. All informations compiled by Blankonthemap.


To the same topics:
Himalaya du Cachemire Hindu Raj : Description géographique Hindu Kush : Description géographique
Cartes géographiques du Cachemire
Images satellites du Cachemire Statistiques géographiques Index géographique

Révision A - 23/12/06 (http://blankonthemap.free.fr)


Home - History - Geography - local life - Travelling - Forums - Gallery - Links - Index
var pagename='Page_batura_ang'; For more details, contact the Webmaster