The recent storm has forced down all the foreign climbers who hoped to acclimatize on Ama Dablam. Some have now moved on to their primary goals, Makalu and Dhaulagiri.
We recently reported on the first Ama Dablam summits of the season, done by the Sherpa rope fixers. Unfortunately, the clients hoping to follow were not as lucky. The storm hit the mountain right afterward, thwarting all further attempts.
“We received around 65cm of snow, which made it impossible to move to Camp 2,” Canadian guide Dominic Asselin told ExplorersWeb from Namche Bazaar today. “Two other team members who were in Camp 1 had to wait while the worst of the storm passed, and returned to Base Camp today in deep snow.”
As expected, the Khumbu Valley skies cleared today, allowing some summits on Mera Peak. But it will take some days for the snow to settle.
Time for Makalu
Unfortunately for Asselin and his group, that’s more than they can afford before focusing on their main goal, Makalu. Here, Sherpa teams are already working on the route. The Canadians have scheduled a helicopter flight from Pangboche next Tuesday, and they will land directly at the mountain’s Advanced Base Camp.
It’s worth noting that the route between Makalu’s lower Base Camp (roughly 5,000m) and its Advanced Base Camp (6,100-6,200m) is long and tricky, on unstable scree and ice. For that reason, trekkers usually stop at the lower Base Camp, while climbing teams try to acclimatize before reaching the mountain. Once they get to ABC, they try to stay there for the entire expedition. Heli-transfers have simplified the process for most commercial climbers, allowing them to avoid that first leg entirely.
Lower Base Camp of Makalu. Photo: Dream Guides Nepal
Makalu is one of the most popular 8,000m peaks this season (excluding Everest, of course), although it is still early in the spring to attempt it. So far, only the teams from Seven Summit Treks and AltiPro Adventures are heading that way. The 7ST team includes Sajid Sadpara of Pakistan, aiming for his 10th 8,000’er without oxygen.
Also en route is a Czech-Slovak group, hiring logistics with a local outfitter but planning to climb at their own pace. Some of its members also aim to reach 7,678m Makalu 2 (also known as Kangchungtse). This team is one of the few that summited Mera Peak this week. They reported “hellish conditions” and loads of snow. Nevertheless, they reached the top yesterday:
Dhaulagiri
After a slow start, many climbers will arrive at Dhaulagiri Base Camp in the next few days. Two more teams obtained permits in the last few days, bringing the total to 28 foreign climbers bound for the 8,167m summit. They will have to be patient, as the recent snowy spell also hit Dhaulagiri. Check this video shot yesterday by Irina Galay of Ukraine:
