Peak 41, Hongu Valley

Peak 41 (6654m) has had several known ascents but all have been from the south. In the hope of making the first ascent of the more remote and complex North face, this pair made the longer trek to the Hongu Valley, where they shared a base camp and base camp staff with Nick Bullock’s Chamlang expedition (MEF Ref 12/06). After rejecting several other lines as ‘futuristic’ or ‘suicidal’, they opted to climb a couloir up the most western side of the face, this being the most obvious line and free from objective danger. After two days climbing up poor snow (Scottish grade V) they reached a col at the top of the couloir, and made their way towards a mixed ridge leading to the summit. Unfortunately they discovered that this held little snow, and the rock quality was extremely poor, and so they were forced to retreat from just under 6000m.