As she prepares to leave for the summit of Cho Oyu, Viridiana Alvarez is living a rare experience, as the only client on a formerly crowded 8,000m peak.
“Nights are incredible, we are surrounded by glaciers and mountains,” Alvarez noted.
Cho Oyu glaciers in the moonlight. Photo: Viridiana Alvarez/Facebook
The mountain to themselves
“There are 11 of us in Base Camp,” she wrote yesterday. “Four Sherpa climbers, two Tibetan mountaineers, a cook, three cook helpers, and I.”
Base Camp on Cho Oyu. Photo: VIridiana Alvarez/Facebook
The Mexican woman reached Cho Oyu Base Camp with Kristin Harila, Matias Myklebust, and a strong support team of Nepalis. Harila, aiming to summit all 14 8,000’ers in six months, pushed for the summit almost immediately. They had only been on the mountain for two days and set the route up to Camp 1, at 6,400m.
Alvarez had a badly twisted ankle from her previous climb on Shishapangma. She knew knew that she would not be able to keep up with the summit team so she retreated from Camp 1 to rest her ankle in Base Camp (5,700m) for a later try. Meanwhile, Harila and Myklebust left for Kathmandu.
Viridiana Alvarez’s ankle is not exactly looking great to climb a 8,108m peak. Photo: Viridiana Alvarez/Facebook
In the last four days, she has treated her ankle, checked the forecast, and cooked Mexican tacos for the Nepali-Tibetan staff. In exchange, they prepared momos for dinner.
One of the Tibetan team, enjoying tacos at 5,700m. Photo: Viridiana Alvarez/Facebook
Ready for the final push
Finally, the same good weather window currently in the Himalaya has prompted them into action. Although Cho Oyu is 28km away from Everest, both mountains share the same weather patterns.
Alvarez and her guides will set off toward the higher camps at any moment. The summit window is expected to open between Thursday and Saturday. You can follow Alvarez’s location live on her tracker.
The team will be able to use the ropes fixed by Harila’s group. Traditionally, Cho Oyu is a straightforward peak, and the main fixed ropes are on a 150m ice wall above Camp 1, some steep sections right below Camp 2, and depending on the variation, on the so-called Yellow Band between Camp 3 and the huge summit plateau.
Cho Oyu route map, by Seven Summit Treks
Harila’s Cho Oyu climb
Harila, currently in Kathmandu before flying to the next mountain on her list, posted some pictures and details from Cho Oyu. She noted on Instagram that it was the longest and hardest route she has ever done.
“We had a plan to go to C2 from BC but saw that it would be too long, so we rested in C1 for 5 hours before starting the 1,800m-long summit push at 1 am,” she explained.
Luckily, the good conditions allowed Tenjen Sherpa “Lama” to climb at a remarkable speed, fixing ropes along the way, Harila wrote. She also reported that Myklebust eventually turned around and that she started using oxygen at 6,900m.
Kristin Harila’s summit picture. Photo: Instagram
Tenjen Sherpa Lama, Ngima Rita Sherpa, and Harila summited in 14 hours.
“It’s a very very big plateau on Cho Oyu,” Harila said. “There were high winds up there and we also saw the Nepal mountains.”
In fact, the plateau of Cho Oyu makes the summit a tricky one. Climbers usually say you have to see Everest clearly to ensure you’ve reached the true summit.
