Wednesday, May 25, 1983

1983 – Makalu II

As a result of my meeting Jim Frush on the the previous year’s Peru climb, I was invited to join a climb of Makalu II (aka Kangchungtse), a satellite peak to Makalu (the fifth highest peak in the world).  I was joining Jim, John Mueller and Mike Hill.  John was a guide for Mountain Travel and the only one who had traveled in Nepal before.

The 3-month pre-monsoon trip from mid-February until mid-May was a wonderful experience.  The approach to base camp had everything you’d expect from a Himalayan expedition, bus rides across the lowlands bordering India, mult-day hikes through the terraced fields laid across the Nepalese foot hills, descending a steep trail to cross a flimsy bridge over a raging river only to have to climb equally steep trail on the opposite side, walks through rhododendron forests, hauling loads over loose rocky glacial moraines, and darn near every other thing I had read in the accounts of “real” expeditions. 

We had our bit of drama when a porter lost his footing crossing a bridge and spilled his load of our ice tools into the river.  John Mueller made a quick (one week) trip back to Kathmandu to buy some replacement ice tools.  Our base camp life was enhanced when a ram was marched in and butchered to add some fresh meat to the menu.

As a climbing trip it was a total failure.  I can’t say for sure whether we actually did any roped climbing on technical terrain.  I recollect that we reached somewhat over 19,000 feet but getting to there only required crampons and an ice axe to route find through the glacier and its moraine.  The weather wasn’t great and we had numerous snow storms at base camp.  Whether it was worse than normal, I don’t know. 

As a trip, however, it was a blast and I still remember it with pleasure.