THE JAPANESE MT. API EXPEDITION, 1971

KATSUYUKI FUKUZAWA

Our expedition left Kathmandu by a charter flight for Dhangarhi on 21 February. We stayed there for the next five days to employ porters and compose our team. Our caravan of about 100 persons left Dhangarhi on 26 February and arrived at Dandeldhura on 6 March.

Mt. Api appeared a day before this for the first time from the village in Ruwa Khola. On 3 March we reached Baitadi and entered Chamlia Khola and soon passed the village of Ghusa, the last village up the valley. Our Base Camp was established at 4,100 m. on 24 March.

Our first attempt was to climb the South wall of Api but we had to give that up because of the almost vertical climb of 3,300 m.—we therefore changed our plans and attempted the South-west wall and to gain the summit by the West ridge.

We established our first Advance Camp on 27 March at a height of 5,000 m. and discovered an ice gulley connecting the wall to the West ridge. We spent the next two weeks fixing about 1,200 m. of fixed rope and finally gained the West ridge which was extremely sharp, so much so that there was hardly any space to establish a camp. Further advance on the West ridge comprises steep face of rock and stone and we could not attain a height greater than 6,000 m. before being beaten back by the weather and technical problems.

We returned from the east side of Nampa and also entered the Saipal valley where we could have a better understanding of the Yokapahar Himal and the Bankya Lekh massif and some of the unnamed peaks in the area.

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