Well the freezing level was predicted to rise to over 4000m by Tuesday so a last chance to enjoy the last of the silky powder up above 3000m in Gulmarg. I had a day’s guiding with Bangalore ex-pat Guillaume from the US and he was stoked to summit Mt.Apherwat at 4200m exclaiming ‘ This is the most beautiful view I’ve ever seen’ and it was one of the most clear days I’ve ever had on the top. Perfect views of 9th Highest Mountain in the world – Nanga Parbat ‘the naked mountain’ standing at 8,126m. It was first climbed by Austrian legend Herman Buhl in 1953.
The first ascent was a bit of an epic by all accounts, and after 31 people had already died trying to climb it you can understand why. After his companions had bailed out on him, Buhl pressed on alone topping out very late around 7pm. It was a lot more of a mission than he expected and was further hampered when he lost a crampon on his descent downwards! When darkness arrived he was forced to bivouac standing upright on a narrow ledge, holding onto a tiny handhold with just one hand. Probably not his best sleep he’s ever had! He managed to hang in there balancing while dozing and was lucky to have a calm windless night. He returned to base camp some 40 hours after summiting, with no oxygen, Buhl is the only climber to make a first attempt, solo of an 8000meter. Incredible effort.
Another beautiful mountain we could see from the summit was the twin peaks of Nun Kun massif which is comprised of Nun (7,135m) and Kun (7,077m). The peaks lie 250km east of Srinagar in the Sulu Valley and are pretty outstanding as a huge white pyramidal massif. First ascent was in 1953 by Pierre Vittoz, Claude Kogan a French-Swiss-Indian-Sherpa team also in 1953.
A breakdown of the 10th Highest Mountains in the World (source Wikipedia).
Everest Sagarmatha (Nepali), "Head of the World",[7]
Chomolangma (Tibetan), "Goddess mother of the snows"[7] 8,848 29,035.44 1953 Highest mountain on Earth, on the border between Nepal and Tibet Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China.
K2 Chogo Gangri 8,611 28,251 1954 2nd highest mountain on Earth. Located on the border between the Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County of Xinjiang, People's Republic of China and the Northern Areas of Pakistan. Kangchenjunga Kangchen Dzö-nga, "Five Treasures of the Great Snow" 8,586 28,169 1955 3rd highest mountain on Earth. Located on the border between Nepal and Sikkim, India.
Lhotse "South Peak" 8,516 27,940 1956 4th highest mountain on Earth. Situated between Tibet Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China, and Nepal, in the shadow of Mount Everest.
Makalu "The Great Black" 8,462 27,765 1955 5th highest mountain on Earth. Situated on the border between, Tibet Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China and Nepal.
Cho Oyu Qowowuyag, "Turquoise Goddess" 8,201 26,905 1954 6th highest mountain on Earth. Situated on the border between Tibet Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China, and Nepal.
Dhaulagiri "White Mountain" 8,167 26,764 1960 7th highest mountain on Earth. Situated in Nepal.
Manaslu Kutang, "Mountain of the Spirit" 8,156 26,758 1956 8th highest mountain on Earth. Located in the Gurkha Himal, Nepal.
Nanga Parbat Diamir, "Naked Mountain" 8,126 26,660 1953 9th highest mountain on Earth. Located in the Northern Areas of Pakistan.
Annapurna "Goddess of the Harvests" 8,091 26,545 1950 10th highest mountain on Earth. Situated in Nepal.
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