The British Zemu Gap Expedition, 2008

Adrian O'Connor

This expedition's objective was to link together two treks - the 'Guicha la' trek which leaves from Yuksom and terminates at the Guicha la, and the 'Green Lake' trek, which follows the Zemu chu from Lachen to the eponymous Green Lake, at the base of the eastern face of Kangchenjunga, and back. To make the connection it would be necessary to cross the Talung glacier, gain the Tongshyong glacier and cross the Zemu Gap (Zemu la) - a breche on the southeast ridge of Kangchenjunga, before descending down to the Zemu glacier and thus to the Green Lake.

The Zemu Gap (5891m) has a remarkable place in mountaineering history. The northern approach, via the Zemu glacier, is relatively straightforward, and documented visits include Dr. A.M. Kellas (12 May 1910), John Hunt (18 November 1937) and H.W. Tilman (9 July 1938). Tilman then crossed the gap, experiencing some interesting adventures on his descent from the Talung glacier.

The Gap only really sprung to prominence when H.W. Tilman became suspicious about a claimed ascent from the southern (Talung) side by Captain Boustead on 8 May 1926. Tilman went to investigate and failed to climb it from the southern side on 13 May 1936. His suspicions seemed justified as Captain Boustead's account did not fit with his experience. However, unbeknown to both, there was a prior claim to the first ascent from the south by N.A. Tombazi, in 1925. He had mounted a photographic expedition to the area. Regrettably he had not taken any photographs as the weather had been unfavourable. However none of these protagonists had gone on down to the Zemu Gap, so the first true south to north crossing of the la was still awaiting.

Since that time the only other documented visit to the la from the south was by a group from A.J.S. Grewal's Talung expedition in 1975. They, like Tilman, warned of the difficulties to be faced - they were prevented from crossing the Gap 'by two big open crevasses approx. 40ft in width just 200ft short of the col. .. .it is clear that the Gap can be reached if one goes prepared to bridge the two crevasses.'

The expedition members were Adrian O'Connor from Leicester, and Colin Knowles and Jerzy Wieczorek from Bristol, all of whom are members of the Red Rope Club.

We intended to travel as light as possible, and to attempt the crossing of the la with the minimum of support. However, we felt that normal trek support was sensible for both our starting and exit treks. However, documentary evidence suggested that ice climbing of a high standard might be needed to surmount the final ice wall, as well as ingenuity to cross the ultra-wide crevasses. Adrian devised a pole system, which would allow for the remote placement of ice screws across a wide gap, and we worked out a rope work routine for safely crossing such crevasses. Thus it came as no great shock to find that our food and equipment, even when substantially slimmed down, weighed 98kg. Given that we were going to get gas in India, it was an unpleasant jolt to realise that we might each have to carry 35kg loads at high altitude.

No trekking permit had ever been issued to go into the Talung basin since the founding of the Kangchenjunga National Park. We were pleased to hear that the permit had been issued in Gangtok by the Sikkimese State Government. However on 21 March, less than a week before departure, we were not delighted to hear that the Home Ministry had lost the permit, and that our chances were slim as both the Home Ministry and Military Intelligence would have to endorse it. In any event, we left the UK without a permit and landed in Kolkata with one.

In Gangtok we met two Sherpas, Karma and Chering, who were to accompany us throughout. Apparently it is not permissible to go into the National Park without company. This at least raised the prospect that we could share some of our load of equipment. Karma rather startled us by claiming that he had climbed the Zemu la twice, but it turned out that this was a 'Lost in Translation' issue - he had twice visited the Tongshyong glacier below the Zemu la. He said that the final ice wall was very high and very steep, even overhanging in places.

We left Yuksom on the 2 April on a pleasant day. We had been warned that the weather in the mountains had been persistently bad throughout March, and this was borne out by trekkers coming back down from their Guicha la treks - a lot of people had been unable to make it because of deep soft snow. At this stage we were optimistic; perhaps too optimistic as we decided to improve our fitness by carrying 15kg loads. At Bakhim we camped in thick mist, felt tired, and had a wrestling match with a young dzo that thought our yellow Bibler tent might be edible. The following day we climbed incessantly on the well- maintained trail to reach the muddy clearing of Phenang (c. 3700 m); this time it was both snowy and misty. We soon learnt that the best time for the stunning mountain views was early in the morning.

Following advice to avoid Dzongri as the extra height gain would cause acclimatisation problems, we then took a switchback subsidiary path high above the Parek chu. Here snow lay under rhododendrons and we began to realise that things may be hard higher up. Pausing for a break at Kukchurain after a long morning, where we had gained no height at all, we moved up the broad stony valley to the vast camping grounds at Thangsing. At this stage none of us could have claimed to be acclimatised or feeling particularly vivacious. Nevertheless at every camping ground we had gone for a walk to a higher point before turning in for the night.

The next morning brought marvellous vistas up the classic U- shaped valley, lined with 5500+ m peaks on either side, with Pandim dominating the northern skyline. We continued up the valley, gaining height steadily and slowly, before crossing a moraine ridge and dropping down to Samiti lake. Camping is no longer allowed here because the lake is becoming polluted. After a rest in the decaying rest-house, we pressed on, passing a solitary bharal drinking from the lake - unusual to see a bharal so close. We gained height over moraine and stopped at an exposed site called Chemitang at about 4600 m.

This is the highest that the trek support team go - on a normal Guicha la trek the trekkers would get up very early and walk to the Guicha la and back. Here we said good-bye to them, having agreed that they were to be at the Green Lake camp for three days, from 13 to 15 April. On leaving us, they had to undertake a three-day march back to Yuksom, drive the next day to Gangtok, which would take all day, restock food, drive to Lachen the next day and straight away start the four-day trek up to Green Lake, which they would do in three days.

This was to be an acclimatisation day when we walked unloaded to the Guicha la and back; we felt jaded and had to deal with dividing the packs up equitably. Then it snowed heavily with a strong wind, so we gave in to providence and went nowhere. However it was clear that on the next day we would have to either carry astonishing loads or make double carries. The new day started well; Adrian, Jerzy, Karma and Chering opted for double carries. For all concerned it was an arduous day, because of the loads, the deep soft snow and the debilitating sun. Eventually we established camp just below the Guicha la in a dip exposed to slab avalanche, whilst the Sherpas opted for a windy pitch on the la itself. All three of us felt the effects of altitude sickness.

The following day should have seen us cross the la and establish a camp above the Talung glacier. Physically this proved impossible so we only managed to cross and move down to Yongiotak (4600 m). This superb campsite has excellent views of the Talung basin, and looks head-on at the impressive southeast face of Kangchenjunga. At this point we should have been across the Talung glacier but cooker problems led to time running out. We were able to survey the Talung glacier and plot a route across.

To be consistent with our plan we should have crossed the Talung glacier fully loaded the following day and established a camp on the Tongshyong glacier. It was blatantly clear that we were not yet in a physical condition to do this. Our only hope lay in recceing the route ahead and then following through with loads the following day. We successfully crossed the Talung glacier, which is fully 70 m lower that in Tilman's day, and established a route up a prominent buttress, which got us to about 200 m vertically below the Tongshyong glacier.

At this point we had to return; this signalled the practical end of the expedition, as we knew that even if we successfully crossed the Zemu la, we would fail to link with the support team, would run out of fuel and food and would have to make a four day descent trek without provisions carrying in excess of 25 kg each. It just did not compute. It was a bitter moment as the expedition was a result of two years of planning and organising, not to mention the funding.

The return to the campsite turned out to be very tiring - the sun- softened snow made progress back across the Talung glacier and up the lateral moraines arduous and time-consuming. On our return we calculated that we could afford to stay in the Talung basin for one more day - we would have enough provisions to ensure that an orderly retreat to Yuksom could be carried out even if no food was available en route.

We decided to investigate the other Guicha la, mentioned by Tilman, which we referred to as the eastern Guicha la, the following morning. The western Guicha la is close to the flank of Guicha peak, the eastern is close to Pandim, and between the two is a minor ridge. Though it snowed overnight it also froze, and we were readily able to reach the dividing ridge up an accommodating 300 m couloir. Once on the dividing ridge, there were more stunning views of the Talung basin, including a head on view of the Zemu Gap. From here the eastern Guicha la was easily seen, though as we headed towards it the weather turned and the Sherpas suggested a return to the campsite was advisable. It started to snow heavily just as we regained our base.

As we planned our exit strategy for the following day we realised that our efforts had made some important gains. We had established that an excellent campsite existed above the Talung glacier, readily reachable from the Guicha la. We had taken a significant number of pictures, which would be of use to later mountaineering parties. Finally, our observations had led us to conclude that there was every reason to believe that N. A. Tombazi had successfully reached the Zemu Gap, whilst Captain Boustead's claim was, as Tilman suspected, unbelievable, akin to Maestri's 'ascent' of Cerro Torre.

The retreat from Yongiotak was not without drama. As we struggled up the powder-snow slopes towards the Guicha la, the weather turned into an icy blizzard. Concurrently Jerzy was starting to develop urethritis, and in getting the correct medication for him, Adrian's hands became dangerously cold. Having crossed the Guicha la at one point the weather was so severe we thought we might have to stop and camp immediately, but fortunately we were able to continue back to Chemithang, though not without signal support from the Sherpas. They had been outstanding throughout but this was their finest hour.

By now it was clear that we had acclimatised to both the altitude and the weights we were carrying, and the following day's march, past another bharal drinking in Samiti lake, down to Thangsing proved straightforward. That night it snowed dramatically, then cleared equally dramatically to freeze hard. The descent to Kukchurain was through a fairy-tale landscape of snow frozen on trees, rhododendrons and rocks. Every view was like looking at a Christmas card. At Kukchurain we were in high spirits, cooking breakfast in the sun and marvelling at the birds and the flowers. The long trek to Phedang dampened our spirits, but after lunch we pushed on to the welcome village of Choka, to drink tea, eat fresh vegetables, and drink chang in the delightful village houses. Here agricultural life seems much as it must have been for many centuries; it is also the first place for a mobile phone signal.

This 12-hour day showed how fit we had become. We were blase about the final day's march to Yuksom, and loitered in Bakhim feasting on scrambled eggs before descending through the magnolia forest now in full bloom - the rhododendrons were slightly higher. It was disconcerting to discover that the march to Yuksom took the full eight hours, and that we had been so casual about planning the final day that we ran out of drinking water.

We were able to rearrange our journey home, and so arrived in Delhi three days earlier than planned. Undoubtedly we had made some mistakes - not allowing enough time to acclimatise, carrying heavy loads too soon, and being too prescriptive about the support party's time at Green Lake were the obvious errors. The Sherpas had recommended early May as a better time for an attempt. We left India in a thoughtful mood.

References

1. A.M. Kellas, 'The Mountains of Northern India and Sikkim', Alpine Journal 26 (1912) Pp. 113-142. Kellas with three coolies camped at 18,200 ft in the Zemu Gap and then went to the col on the morning of 12 May 1910. 'The slope fell away steeply in front, and a few yards down there was a crevasse that stretched right across the gully.'

2. H.W. Tobin, 'Exploration and Climbing in the Sikkim Himalaya', Himalayan Journal II (1930) Pp 1-12. This historical review mentions en passant his experience with Harold Raeburn in 1920 [H.W. Tobin, (Alpine Journal 34 (1920), Pp. 33-50)] where he describes the approach to the Zemu Gap from the Tongshyong glacier as 'the narrow entrance and the mountain sides raked with such a continuous hail of rocks and debris that an approach by this route would have been little short of suicidal'. (Tilman disagreed)

3. N.A. Tombazi made a tour of the locality in 1925 (Alpine Journal 38 p. 150, Geographical Journal 67). He claimed to have made the first ascent to the Zemu Gap from the south. (Our experience supports his claim)

4. Captain Boustead alleged he reached the Zemu Gap from the south in 1926 (Geographical Journal 69 Pp. 344-350) (Tilman and Captain Sams disagreed so do we).

5. The Zemu Gap is also referred to as 'Cloud Gap' - see Himalayan Journal VIII (1936) Pp. 132-135.

6. John Hunt, 'A winter visit to the Zemu Glacier', Himalayan Journal X (1938) Pp. 50-70. During a winter expedition lasting nearly two months, John Hunt and Pasang Kikuli reached the Zemu Gap from the north on 18 November. Evidence showed (?) that the German party had already been there earlier. 'A short descent was made to where the slope ends in a vertical ice-cliff, some 200 or 300 feet high, falling into a snow basin. Below the basin an icefall was visible that promised further difficulties...'.

7. H.W. Tilman, When Men andMountainsMeet, Cambridge (1946) Pp. 48-75. His first attempt, from the south in 1936 accompanied by Pasang Kikuli, was thwarted 'where we had a good view of the final wall .It was fully as high as we had feared, all iced, and appeared to overhang in places.' The second attempt, from the north in July 1938, was successful on 9 July, though the descent down the steep southern side was fraught with difficulties.

8. A. J. S. Grewal, 'Talung 1975', Himalayan Journal XXXIV (1974-75) Pp. 39-47. The main emphasis was on an April ascent of Talung peak; having abandoned the attempt on 25 April due to avalanche danger, a subsidiary team of three investigated the Zemu Gap from the Tongshyong glacier. They were prevented from crossing the Gap 'by two big open crevasses approx. 40 ft in width' just 200 ft short of the col. '...it is clear that the Gap can be reached if one goes prepared to bridge the two crevasses.'

Summary :

An attempt by a British team to link together two treks - the 'Guicha la' trek and the 'Green Lake' trek, across Zemu Gap. (The pass is traditionally known as Guicha la. Some recent sketch maps refer it to as 'Goecha la')