home Resident card Machapuchare is an unconquered peak. The story of a single ascent

Machapuchare is an unconquered peak. The story of a single ascent

The world famous Himalayan peak Machapuchare (6997 m) has been closed to climbing by decision of the Nepalese government since 1957. This fabulously beautiful mountain must remain unconquered forever. Its double peak resembles the tail fin of a fish, hence the name: Machapuchare means “Fish Tail” in Nepali. The first ascent attempt was abandoned 45 m short of the summit. It was an extremely difficult and only climb of this mountain.

General information:

Mountain name: Machapuchare – 6997 m

Location: Karakoram Central Nepal, Annapurna group

The story of an attempt to climb to the top of Machapuchare. British expedition 1957.

Expedition leader: I.O.M. Roberta

First climbers: D. Cox (A. D. M. Cox), W. Noyce (Wilfrid Noyce)

On April 18, 1957, climbers with 50 porters left the town of Pokhara, which now has a small airfield. They marched for four days through Gandrung to Chomrong, the last village on their route, then laboriously made their way through the bamboo thickets up the Modi Gorge. On April 24, a base camp was established 20 m from the river at an altitude of 4000 m on the right (western) side of Modi Khol. The approach to the northern ridge of Machapuchare is closed from below by giant rock walls, only in one place they are cut through by a snow couloir. Having passed this couloir, the climbers established camp 1 on April 27 at an altitude of 4900 m.

To the chagrin of the Nepalese liaison officer, the British mountaineering team was now divided into two groups: Roberts and Vaile wanted to explore the 7256m peak west of Modi Khol. The name Ganesh, which seems to have been adopted for this peak, is not very apt, as it can easily be confused with the Ganesh region of the Himalaya, located north-northwest of Kathmandu. It would be more reasonable to call this peak Modi or Moditse. The previously accepted altitude of this peak of 23607 ft = 7195 m, after clarification by Roberts and Veile, apparently should be corrected to 23807 ft = 7256 m. Moditse and Machapuchare are the western and eastern watchtowers of the circus of the southern side of the Annapurna Himala, and, of course, all climbers flirt with these two beautiful peaks. During the first exploration of the Moditse peak, due to deep snow, only a height of 5940 m was reached. An unpleasant incident occurred in another group that remained in Machapuchara. Charlie contracted polio and was transported with great difficulty to a hospital in Pokhara. Despite this, work at the summit continued. Cook and Noyce from Camp 2 reached the North Col, but found that passing the entire length of the northern ridge was practically impossible. Consequently, it was necessary to reach the ridge further south, closer to the top. To do this, first of all, it was necessary to establish camp 3, at an altitude of about 6100 m on an ice ledge, approximately 2/3 of the height of the wall. Overcoming this ice-snow wall, cut by grooves, required a lot of work to cut down steps, and for insurance it was necessary to hang railings along a length of 270 m. The remaining 200 m of ascent to the ridge were also climbed with with great difficulty, it was necessary to extend another 60 m of railing, and only after that Noyce managed to break through the cornice on the ridge.
The sharp ice ridge leading to the rocky edge looked so intimidating that the climbers decided to make an attempt to bypass it along the eastern slope. They drove a wooden stake on the ridge, which could be used to organize descent on both sides. The two British climbers then rappelled 60m down a steep chute towards Seti Khola. This was followed by a 400-meter traverse to south direction- a risky section of the path, since it passed along a steep eastern slope, covered with a thick layer of unstable snow. Finally, they reached a safe place - a non-steep firn field, where they decided to set up camp 4 (6200 m). The return to Camp 3 was as difficult as the subsequent re-traversal of this dangerous section with three heavily laden Sherpas - Ang Nyima, Tashi and the young Ang Tsering. But everything went well, and camp 4 was established on May 17.
However, the hope to now reach the upper terrace under the summit takeoff to Machapuchara without any special difficulties, to the chagrin of the climbers, did not materialize. At first glance, there was no path further than the eastern edge, a clearly visible rock bastion. Here a sheer wall dropped towards Seti Khola; but still there was a way around: to the right along a sharp, literally like a knife, edge in the direction of the main ridge, then using a rope ladder down 7.5 m, then a 90-meter descent along the rope to a shelf seemingly glued to the wall and from there - through two huge bergschrunds - exit to the terrace of the upper glacier. There Cox and Noyce established Camp 5 on June 1.

The next day was to be decisive. At 4:15 am the climbers left the camp. It was a nice sunny morning, but here on the north side they had to literally push through knee-deep snow until they reached the bergschrund. A steep wall rose above the bergschrund, the ribs of which leading to the summit ridge resembled an ancient colonnade - to such an extent it was furrowed with gutters. And it all consisted of pure ice! Each step, each hold had to be cut down with great difficulty, and therefore the climbers moved forward very slowly. It was already close to the top, perhaps no more than 40-50 m (150 feet), but which of these towers on the ridge is the tallest, along which of the ridges should you reach the top? It's difficult to determine from below. And the weather deteriorates, and the surrounding highest peaks - Dhaulagiri, Annapurna I and Manaslu - disappear into the clouds, the snow falls more and more. This means we need to turn back. The climbers were very happy “when, having descended, they found the tent of Camp 5 half covered with snow. On June 3, they continued their descent to base camp. The descent was quite risky, but went well.

For a new assault, you can choose the rocky southwestern ridge, along which, apparently, direct access to southern peak, inferior in height to the north by only a few meters. And this route is undoubtedly also very difficult, but probably less dangerous than the long northern ridge. Many newspapers published reports that Machapuchare was conquered by the British expedition of 1957. But this is not true. According to a strictly truthful report, more modest than exaggerated, the Noyce-Cox team returned, not reaching about 40-50 m from the top. Of course, this is not much, and when climbing Kanchenjunga in 1955, no person set foot on the summit either. But there they had to take into account the religious feelings of the local population - the climbers stopped 1.5 m below the peak, although they could easily climb to the top. But when climbing Machapuchare it was not a voluntary refusal. The furrowed ice wall leading to the summit ridge was exceptionally difficult and required long, hard work from the climbers. The exact location of the summit was not known, and besides, the weather had changed. All this forced the climbers to retreat. This was, of course, one of the most difficult and dangerous mountaineering events in the Himalayas, but still it was not the first ascent of Machapuchara.

Photo gallery of Machapuchare:

We warn you: the article is full of beauty and aesthetics, which makes the next eight unconquered peaks even more desirable. Especially if you are an extreme sports enthusiast, love heights, and have been looking for thrills for a long time.

Gangkhar Puensum

Height: 7,570 meters
Location: China-Bhutan border
Why not conquered: stupid laws

Gangkhar Puensum lies on the disputed border between China and Bhutan. It is certainly not disputed that Gangkhar Puensum is the highest peak yet unclimbed. Four attempts were made in the 1980s, after which Bhutan passed a law prohibiting mountaineering at altitudes above 6 km.

Source: wikipedia.org

North Face of Masherbrum 4

Height: 7.821 m
Location: Pakistan
Why not conquered: extreme difficulty

Masherbrum was conquered back in 1960 along a fairly simple route. But there is a wall that no one has ever climbed. The reason is still the same - the route is “unrealistically extreme”.

Source: supercoolpics.co

Mount Siple

Height: 3,110 m
Location: Siple Island, Antarctica
Why not conquered: harsh climate

This peak is located in Antarctica, and the main difficulty in conquering it is not the route, but the low temperature and distance from the civilized world. It is suspected that Mount Siple is actually an extinct volcano covered by a glacier.

Source: wikipedia.org

Machapuchare

Height: 6,998 m
Location: north central Nepal;
Why it was not conquered: religion and law

The point is that in Hindu beliefs, it is at the top of Machapuchare that one of the supreme deities of the religion, Shiva, lives. Despite the fact that Roberts' team kept its promise, Nepal's top officials immediately closed Machapuchare to any visits.

Source: green-travel.biz

Kailash

Height: 6.638 m
Location: Southern Tibetan Plateau in Tibetan autonomous region People's Republic of China
Why not conquered: “sacred” status

The Tibetan six-thousander is considered sacred mountain among representatives of four major religions at once - Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and adherents of a faith called Bon. Despite the fact that Kailash is under the jurisdiction of the Chinese government, which occupied Tibet, it is the sacred status of the peak that has not yet allowed it to be conquered.

All known attempts to climb the mountain have failed for one reason or another. For example, the famous climber Reinhold Messner, who received permission from the Chinese authorities to conquer Kailash, subsequently abandoned the climb, and the Spanish expedition of 2000, which bought a pass for a significant sum, was stopped by thousands of pilgrims who blocked the route and protests from the UN.

Source: wikipedia.org

Tongshanjiabu

Height: 7,207 m
Location: Central Himalayas, 12 km northwest of Kangphu Kang
Why not conquered: laws

The peak, which reaches 7,207 meters into the sky, is also located on the constantly disputed Tibetan-Bhutanese border. Not a single attempt was made to climb Tongshanjiabu, even before the law “everything above six thousand is prohibited.” After him, of course, and even more so. At the same time, the Korean expedition took neighboring Shimokangri, which was lucky to find itself completely on the Chinese side.