A Japanese party is heading to Nepal to attempt the first ascent of 6,473m Jarkya.
The team consists of Daijo Saito, Tatsuro Sugimoto, Masayuki Takenaka, and Ryota Nomura.
The unclimbed Jarkya lies in the Manaslu/Mansiri Himal on the Tibetan border. It first opened for climbing in 2014. Takenaka attempted it in 2020, reaching 5,400m.
Jarkya, marked with a red dot. Photo: Daijo Saito
Partners Sugimoto and Saito did the first ascent of Pankar Himal (6,264m) on May 8, 2018, with other four Japanese partners, including the well-known Yasuhiro Hanatani.
Nomura is a young mountaineer who recently attracted a lot of attention after completing a winter traverse of the watershed of Hokkaido Island.
Last year, Daijo Saito and Akihiro Shigenobu made the first ascent of 6,235m Saula on the Nepal-Tibet border, east-northeast of Samagaon.
On April 4, the party will start trekking to their base camp at Jarkya. They expect to reach it in just over a week and to begin their ascent around April 15.
Jarkya, with potential routes. Photo: Daijo Saito and Hume-san
According to Saito, crossing an icefall from Camp 2 to Camp 3 will be one of the key challenges. Avalanche slopes poised above the icefall are a concern, especially this season. A lot of snow has fallen in the Himalaya, including around the Manaslu area.
Daijo Saito told ExplorersWeb that he dreams of climbing virgin peaks beyond 7,000m in the future, but the 6,000’ers attract him a lot.
“Experiencing a view that no one else knows about is the ultimate pleasure, and you can’t find out about it on an iPhone,” he said.
Going over the possible route before leaving for Nepal. Photo: Daijo Saito
The icefall on Jarkya that the team will have to solve. Photo submitted by Daijo Saito
Saito modestly added that he doesn’t consider himself among the strongest climbers. But for him, the most important is to enjoy unexplored mountains.
The team. Photo: Daijo Saito and Hume-san
