Mountaineering and related activities in the

INDIAN HIMALAYA

India 1989
HARISH KAPADIA

The climbing scene in the Indian Himalaya was active, as always. The East
Karakoram area received three expeditions during the year; they different
in style and went to different regions within the area.

The only joint expedition with foreigners was an Indo-British team led by
Sonam Palzor. Rimo II (7373m) and Ramo IV (7169m) were climbed on 12 July
in separate attempts. They reached the North Terong glacier with 38
porters, intending to climb Rimo III (7233m). The teams consisted of
Stephen Sustad (USA), Nick Kekus and Doug Scott (UK), Robert Schauer
(Austria), Rob and Laurie Wood (Canada) and Sharavati Prabhu (India).
Amongst the Indian climbers were Tsewang Smanla, Kanhaiya Lal, Mohan Singh
and Sonam Palzor as the leader. Robert Schauer returned early while Rob
Wood left on 2 July because of health problems, An altercation developed
with student-porters taken from Leh. Deciding to attempt Rimo II First,
both teams took different routes to meet higher up. The British teams
ascended Rimo II via the W buttress to the N ridge. The Indian climbers
changed plans and crossed the col between Rimo II and III to climb Rimo IV
by W-SW snow-slopes. Rimo II was a first ascent by Nick Kekus and stephen
Sustad, while Rimo IV was a second ascent by T Smanla, Kanhaiya Lal and
Mohan Sing. Rimo IV was first climbed in 1984 by a team of Indian Army
sappers, approaching from the east. No attempt was made on Rimo III as the
leader called off the expedition suddenly after these ascents. There are
disquieting reports of poor relations, differences and troubles between the
two sides on this expedition. (See also the contributions by Nick Kekus and
Doug Scott on PP 11- 16 and 251 - 254 of this volume.)

Mamostong Kangri (7516m) was climbed by a huge Indian Army sappers’
expedition led by Major M P Yadav. They had ample time and resources, and
achieved the third ascent of this peak of ‘Thousand Devils’. Their route -
the same as that of the first ascent in 1984 by an Indo-Japanese expedition
-was via the Mamostong glacier, across the Mamostong col (5885m) to the
east to the Thangman glacier, and through an ice-fall to gain the E ridge
of the peak. Six climbers including the leader reached the summit on 10
August 1989. The second summit-team also climbed PK 6235m and PK 6190m in
the Thangman glacier region, to the south-east of memostong Kangri. (The
second ascent of Mamostong Kangri was made in 1988 by an army team led by
Major A M Sethi. They approached from the Thangman glacier direct.)

The Third team to the area was a small private group from Bombay led by
Harish Kapadia. They visited areas east of the Saser La where few
expeditions have been allowed. After many difficulties of terrain and
transportation they entered the Aq Tash glacier and recced Aq Tash peak
(7016m). This is one of the last three unclimbed 7000ers in the area. They
climbed two smaller peaks here. Three members of the team operated in the
Chong Kumdan glacier region further north. They recced the unknown Chong
Kumdan 1 peak (7071m) and recorded the historic ‘Glacier Dam’ at the
entrance. This is the famous dam site from where the Shyok floods
originated. The last flood was in 1928. The party climbed three peaks here
and brought back knowledge and photographs of this unknown area.

It may be noted that all the three teams (including the army team) and,
despite all the clearance from Delhi, delay was inevitable. Riots at Leh,
lack of porters and mules in Nubra and poor weather troubled all. All
future expeditions to this area should take the above hindrances into
account. It also appears that Westerns do not seem to enjoy the best of
relations with Indian Army leaders and teams with which they necessarily
have to join.

In Kashmir, Nun Kun continued to attract climbers and commercial
expeditions. But the best climbing was in Kishtwar. Hagshu (6330m) was the
finest first ascent; this peak had defied many attempts. A British team
comprising Robin Beadle, Tim Whitaker, Max Holliday, Phil Booth and Ken
Hopper made the first ascent of Hagshu Peak. Holliday, Booth and Hopper
reached the summit on 16 September 1989, after a three-day ascent of the E
face. Beadle, had returned to Base Camp with Whitaker who had contracted
pulmonary oedema after the pair had reached c 6000m on the NE ridge-E face.
Whitaker made a fast recovery once off the mountain, but was unable to make
another attempt. Both routes were approached in two days from a Base Camp
on the north (Zanskar) side of the mountain. The climbing was relatively
easy, but serious, and the ascent was made in alpine style. Earlier, John
Barry had been defeated on the N face at 5790m because of bad weather.

Brammah I (6416m) was unsuccessfully attempted by an Indian team. Base Camp
was established at Mirchin (Sattarchin) on the Nanth nala. The NE face was
followed and the summit attempt was made on 13 September. The climb along
the final ridge was stopped at 5790m due to lack of time and resources. No
porters or Sherpas were employed above Base Camp. An Australian team also
attempted the peak but the route is not known.

A four-member British team led by Michael Spencer climbed in the Haramukh
group. All four climbed Haramukh IV (4800m) via the SW ride on 7 August.
Haramukh I (5143m) was climbed on II August via the E face and the NE
ridge.

Further to the east, Himachal Pradesh had many expeditions. Japanese teams
were active on KR 3 (6151m), CB13 (6264m), Phabrang (6172m) and others. All
the peaks
were climbed, sometimes by two routes. One of the finest ascents was
achieved on Indrasan (6221m) by a team of eight French and two Indian
climbers (21 June). This was a two-day climb from base via the NE ridge.

In Lahul a three-member Indian team from Bombay climbed Menthosa (6443m).
This peak above the Miyar nala was climbed from a Base Camp at 4400m and
three more camps were established up to 5750m. No porters were employed
above Base Camp. Finally, in a 10 - hour push, Ajay Tasker (leader), Vinay
Hegde and V Shankar reached the summit on 21 August. This was a fine
achievement by the team via the route of the first ascent.

Small Indian teams were active in Spiti. Kanamo (5974m) above Kibar village
was climbed by an Indian team from Bombay on 7 and 9 August. The route
followed the NW approaches and only one camp was established above Base
Camp. The peak is on the way to the Parang La and was first climbed by
Indians in 1964. It was known as ‘kanikma’.

The First ascent of a remote peak, Gyagar (6400m) in the Lingti valley was
made on 1 July. (See the map in AJ93, 450, 1988/89.) From lingti village
the team (leader Dhiren, Pania) reached the Chaksachan La on 25 June after
a gruelling nine-day route over difficult terrain, with yaks. Advanced Base
Camp (4570m) and Camp I (5180m) were established on the ridge by which the
peak was climbed. The peak is situated near the junction of the Tibet,
Ladakh and Spiti borders. Amongst other activities, Manirang (6593m) was
attempted by an Indian team, whilst the Border Security Force climbed
Shigri Parbat (6526m).

Garhwal and Kumaon were centres of activity for many teams and there were
some brilliant attempts. The para Regiment failed on Mukut parbat (7240m).
This peak, first climbed in 1951 by a New Zealand team, was tried out for
the first time. An Indo-polish expedition was organized to attempt Nanda
Devi East (7434m), to celebrate the first ascent of the peak by the Poles
in 1939; but the expedition failed to reach the summit. Panwali Dwar
(6663m) was attempted by an Indo-American team and Australians by the SE
ridge. This peak, first climbed by the Japanese after repeated attempts,
has not been climbed since. Yogeshwar (6678m) was attempted by Indians;
this high peak in the open area remains an attractive objective, having
repulsed two expeditions. However, the most spirited failure was on Jaonli
(6632m). A ‘Senior Citizens’ team consisting of Joss Lynam (65), Mike Banks
(66), Patrick O’Leary (54) and Alan Blackshaw (55) intended to climb this
peak from the east. However, poor snow and bad weather foiled them.
Ultimately joss Lynam and C P Ravichandra climbed Pk 5450m on 10 June at
10.30 am. But it is their spirit that matters. (See the article by Mike
Banks on pp46-49 of this volume.)

A notable success was the first ascent of peak 6450m, near Shivling, by a
Spanish team via the SE face on 18 May. X Gonsalves and J sorious reached
the summit. The team named the peak ‘Parvati Parbat’; however, this is a
misnomer for this hitherto unnamed peak, as there is a more famous peak of
the same name in Kulu. The difficult SW buttress of Bhagirathi III (6454m)
was climbed by South Koreans, whilst a Spanish team climbed Shivling
(6543m). Nanda Ghunti (6390m) was climbed by the British, and Nanda Kot
(6861m) by the Indians. An Indian team from Calcutta climbed the difficult
W face of Chaudhara (6510m) near the Kalabaland glacier in Kumaon. They
established four camps above the base ,and on 8 June three climbers reached
the summit. This was the second ascent; the peak was first climbed by a
team form Bombay in 1973. An Italian team climbed the W ridge on Kharcha
Kund (6612m). Three members reached the summit on 15 August, and two other
members summited on the 17th . Some high peaks such as Satopanth (7075m),
Kamet (7756m). Gangotri I (6672m) and Sri Kailash (6932m) were climbed, as
in every year. Towards the far east Gorichen (6858m) and Pauhunri (7125m)
were Scheduled for attempts by the armed forces; details are awaited at the
time of writing.

The Indian Mountaineering Foundation elected Capt Mohan S Kohli as its new
president. Capt Kohli is a well-known mountaineer and has been associated
with the mountaineering fraternity the world over. A new set-up is expected
at the IMF soon. H.C. Sarin, who was president for the past 23 years, has
been made president-Emeritus for his services to the IMF. A new book,
Mountaineering in India, by Capt M S Kohli traces the history of the sport
in India from the earliest days. It covers all major climbs up to 1987.

The year ended on a sad note with the passing of two Himalayan Club
veterans. R E Hawkins, past Vice-President and Hon Asst Editor, died at the
age of 82. He had served the Club from 1944 and represented a long British
association with the Club in India. Soli Mehta, who also died in November,
was Editor of the Himalayan Journal for almost 18 years. He had a
passionate love for mountain literature and worked for it tirelessly. His
remarkable output of publications puts him in the ranks of the senior
editors of the mountaineering world. (See the obituary on pp312 - 314 of
this volume.) Both men will be sorely missed.

Jozef Nyka adds:
On 30 September 1989 the Yugoslavs France Knez and Andreja hrastnik climbed
the (previously attempted) SW face of Bhagirathi II (6512m) in the Garhwal
Himalaya, establishing a rock route of 20 pitches graded UIAA V, with four
pitches VII to VII+ and two pitches VIII to VIII+. The lower half of the
route had been partially fixed with rope the day before the climb. Although
the ascent will be disputed because it was made only to the edge of the
snow, probably one day’s walk from the summit, it was a great event in the
history of big-wall free climbing, in which Knez seems to be world’s
leading figure.

Doug Scott adds:
The Indo-British Expedition to the Rimo Group: A commentary
Joint expeditions to India are not always as enjoyable as may appear from
leading subsequent reports. Only later, through personal contact with some
of the participants, do the problems that beset the undertaking come to
light. Clearly there are difficulties for all participants in these joint
enterprises, although in 1974 on Changaband and again in 1981 in Gangotri
our expeditions under the overall leadership of Col Balwant Sandhu were
very enjoyable occasions without controversy. No doubt other mountaineers -
particularly Indo-Japanese have had similar good experiences of joint
expeditions.

Our recent Indo-British expedition (with Canadian, US, and Austrian
participation) to Rimo III in the E karakoram was beset with problems from
the start to its untimely end. The expedition took place in the war zone,
where army requirements naturally had priority and where the local Nubra
Porters are notoriously ‘difficult’, i.e. do not take to outsiders who
demand that they become beasts of burden. Expeditions here will always
prove more complex than in the Garhwal, for example.

Individual relations, man to man, were generally good on our expedition and
the financial arrangements were satisfactorily concluded. Difficulties
arose through lack of communication and the problem of facing up honestly
and realistically to the difference of experience - and therefore
mountaineering expectations - of the Indian and the foreigner.

I propose to make what follows as constructive as possible. Suggestions
offered here for consideration by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation and
others are highlighted as objectively as possible by situations which arose
on our expedition and after consultation with the other foreign members and
the IMF.

We are very grateful for all the help we received in India; especially to
Mr Sarin, the President of the IMF who, despite being unwell, did all that
was possible to speed up our permit. Thanks are due to Narinda Kumar, Hukam
Singh and Heera Lohia for valuable advice, and Harsh Vatdhan of World
Expeditions for acting as the expedition agent in Delhi. We also express
our gratitude for all the support given by many individuals in the UK and
Canada.

Avoid long delays. Most foreigners will have fixed holidays with air
tickets booked and jobs and families awaiting their return. Any delays will
means not only less time available for acclimatization and climbing, but
also less chance of climbing in good weather. With a delay of three weeks
such as we experienced in Leh, team members are bound to become impatient
and less tolerant of each other, of the Indian contingent and Indian
officials.

The IMF should check with government and with the army that foreign
climbers are really wanted in restricted areas. The $2000 royalty payment
is taken under false pretences if foreigners are kept waiting because of
intransigent politicians and army commanders. One of our members, Robert
Schauer, had to return home to Austria before even reaching the road-head.

If government and army do approve of foreign clibers visiting restricted
zones, then the following points would help matters:

Alternative peaks should be available if military activity puts the main
objectives out of bounds. In a large and bureaucratic country like India, a
change of peak inevitably means weeks of delay unless permission can be
arranged at the time of the original permit. If onward transport into
restricted zones has to be with army convoy, then the army commanders
should give this some priority. As far as we could see, at the moment
vehicles are made available at the discretion of the local commanders as a
favour to the Indian leader. Where porters are difficult to hire because of
army presence, the army should offer the expedition the opportunity of
paying for helicopter drops of equipment.

Foreigners would do well to allow at least three weeks to cope with
unexpected delays.

The individual teams must be compatible. The foreign team and the Indian
team must both want to be there. The foreign contingent usually consists of
friends who are from the same club or who have climbed together before. The
Indian team might not be so cohesive,and might consist of individuals
invited from all over India or individual army personnel invited or
co-opted from various army units. Where joint expeditions are concerned,
the Indian group should all have climbed with each other, previously and
compatibly. They should be in sympathy with their leaders.

The expedition must achieve compatibility between the Indian group and the
foreigners. Feeling of inferiority and worries about subsequent ‘loss of
face’ can best be avoided by facing up to each member’s previous experience
and present expertise in the mountains. It is important that all members
know in detail what mountains each has climbed, the technical severity of
the routes taken, and also in what style they were climbed. For example,
there is a vast difference between a siege ascent of an easy-angled snow
peak and, say and the technically difficult E pillar of Shivling climbed in
alpine style.

It should be recognized that the Indian members from army units operating
in the Himalaya will generally be much stronger and better acclimatized
than the foreigners. The co-leaders should be briefed by the IMF and made
aware (if this is the case) that the foreigners, on their part, have
greater technical climbing experience - most of them will have served their
apprenticeship in the Alps when they were teenagers. The Indians should be
tolerant of the grumpy Westerns, unable to carry the same loads and move as
fast as the stronger Indians and the foreigners should reciprocate with a
conscious effort at co-operations by passing their technical expertise on
to the Indian group. Our leader, Sonam Palzor, subsequently recognized our
expertise by inviting members of the team back to Indian to instruct
Indo-Tibet Border Police aspirant climbers. Explanations as to precisely
how this can be achieved on the mountain should be worked out by the whole
group. It is essential that the Indian overall leader is in on the
discussions. In our case the Indian leader was often in the rear, pushing
up supplies as quickly as possible. With very few porters at his disposal
he had to maximize on every carry, and at the critical time he was unable
to steer his men into a joint ascent of the safe - but technically more
difficult - W rib of Rimo II.

Agreement on what routes are climbed and in what style they are climbed.
The broad aims of the expedition can be discussed in Delhi, but the
specifics can only be decided in sight of the mountain. If members wish to
achieve the limit of their potential, and that potential varies, then there
will be problems unless more that one route can be climbed: One solution is
for all members to join together for an acclimatization climb (or climbs)
and, if possible, to climb the main peak together, using whatever style the
least experienced members wish to adopt. This would allow all members to
achieve the summit - often felt to be very important on first ascents.
Those then wishing to climb a route of greater technicality and in alpine
style (ie without fixed ropes, fixed camps, porter support) should have
permission to seek out and climb it. The other members should be allowed to
climb elsewhere. The Indian overall leader ‘must known and remember the
aspirations of the foreign contingent; he should realize the extent of
their financial and domestic commitment and of the great effort over a long
period of time which goes into their getting to the climb.

Continuous support from non-climbers attached to the expedition is
essential until the end. The liaison officer, the doctor, radio operators
etc should be briefed that it is hard enough climbing in the Himalaya away
from home for such long periods, and the climbers need all the
encouragement they can get to continue with the climb. The non-climbers
should not put undue pressure on the leader or the team to give up because
they themselves are bored or homesick.

Recognition that army mountaineers may have a different attitude to
expeditions and mountaineering. Co-opted military personnel usually have no
particular time limit. They are also paid while they are on the expedition,
so that it becomes part of their job. They may not have the same urgency to
reach the mountain, and fail to understand the impatience of the foreigners
whose situation is the opposite. Some of our members resented the resigned
manner of the Indian team towards the constant delay in Leh. This was most
probably simply a difference of attitude; the one Eastern acceptance of
fate, the other Western impatience.

The soldier is most probably at risk throughout the year, carrying out his
military duties. On the mountain he may wish to avoid any more undue risk
and go for the easiest and safest route to the summit. The foreigner will
live most of his life in relative comfort and safety. He will, just for a
few days, look forward to the exhilaration of risk-taking.

Obviously, military personnel must have intense pride in their country if
they are to defend it. Foreign civilians may not understand this, and may
be taken aback by the soldier’s strong reactions should any derogatory
statements be made about his nation. Obviously the foreigner should at all
times respect this, not lose his cool in bad manners, and put himself in
the other’s position.

In conclusion, it is worth repeating Sonam’s last words: ‘We will never
know why things turned out as they have - maybe it is for the best.’