Before Jost Kobusch begins his winter, solo attempt on Everest’s West Ridge, he is acclimatizing around Annapurna. He also hopes to notch a first ascent of a “not obvious” peak in the region.
Kobusch’s drone-assisted selfie as he approaches the Thorong La.
Kobusch rested a couple of days in Manang village, then headed for Thorong La Pass at 5,416m, the crux of the popular Annapurna Circuit trek.
“From [Thorong La] I hope to access an unclimbed mountain,” he wrote. “It’s not quite obvious, otherwise many other expeditions would have done the same. It’s now about exploring access and checking out the possibilities.”
Jost Kobusch’s latest track as of yesterday. Credit: Reality Maps
That was four days ago. Kobusch’s tracking device now locates him lower down the pass, at some 4,500m. The most popular trekking peak in the area is Thorong Ri or Throng Peak (6,144m). Some consider it an independent peak while others define it as a shoulder of the higher Khatung Kang (6,488m).
Kobusch will continue to acclimatize around here, then arrive in the Khumbu Valley on the first day of winter. This will be his second solo winter exploratory of Everest’s West Ridge. This time, he aims to reach at least as high as the Hornbein Couloir.
