| The program What happened |
Himalayas - Nepal, April 1998 |
| On Tuesday, 24.3.98, a mountaineering expedition group of the Greek Climbing and Mountaineering Association has left for Nepal. The target of this expedition is to summit some peaks of the Himalayas, region Khumbu Himal, where the altitude is not so high, but the technical difficulty is extreme. |
| We would like to mention here that there is no communication with the group, so we can't have their news. The group does not carry a telephone device. Our latest connection has been held 15 days ago; they were already at the region's Base Camp, all very well, and ready to start their ascend. . |
| The peaks to be visited are Kwangde Lho, 6.167 m., Graded Alpine D, TD, most possibly Tengkang Poche, 6.499 m., Graded Alpine D+ (the peaks are very close to each other, in a distance less than 2,5 kilometres, so they will try the latter one as well) and Kusum Kanguru, 6.369 m., Graded Alpine ED2, which is also the main target of the group. Kusum Kanguru, which in Tibetan means "three snowy peaks", is an impressive peak of rock and ice, a complex of three main peaks, with at least five central cuts and five sides. The northern part of the main peak, an ice wall 1.800 m., is the most beautiful. Prior the the first successful ascend in 1979, 4 more unsuccessful ones were attempted, among which the one of renowned climbers, such as Doug Scott, George Bettepourge or Mike Corington. There were many attempts since 1987, some of them successful and those were the ones discussed in circles of mountaineers and climbers, since an ascend to Kusum Kanguru is a major mountaineering event. It is certain that a success of the Greek expedition would improve the image of greek mountaineering and climbing, provide useful experience and ameliorate the conditions and prerequisites for a future successful greek expedition to a difficult peak (Ê2, Makalu, Everest). The terms of participation were defines according to the difficulty of the expedition aim, and the selection of the team was carried out among climbers with a rich climbing portfolio, who had the technical background and the specialized experience required for climbing Kusum Kanguru. The team consists of: The expedition will last approx. 45 days and all expenses are covered by the General Secretariat for Atheltics. |