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Showing posts from October, 2021

Baljuri 5922m, Kumaon Himalaya: An Alpine Style Attempt in Winter

During the 2nd and 3rd week of December 2020, a team of 4 climbers made an attempt to climb Mt Baljuri 5922m in Him-Alpine style by the Baljuri col-North ridge route. The expedition did not use the services of any HAP or local guide beyond the traditional base camp of Baljuri and adopted a fast and light ‘carry, camp and climb’ style. The team reached Dwali (2610m) on 12th December and used two alternate ferry days via Phurkia (3189m) to station themselves at the traditional Base Camp (3600m) site of Baljuri on 16th December. During the approach march, the team encountered fresh new snow from a kilometer below Dwali and half way up to the Zero Point (3750m) the team found the trail covered in 6 inches to 1 feet of snow.  On 17th December, 3 climbers (Aniket, Rivu and Anindya) started climbing the spur that leads one to the traditional Camp-1 site of Baljuri. The spur was a mixture of frozen grass, mud and boulders under a thick and deceptive blanket of soft new snow. The trio reac...

Mountaineering Expeditions in 2022

I am working on our expedition calendar for 2022. It is going to be an interesting calendar with a diverse choice of regions, seasons, grades and duration. I am pretty confident that we will have the full calendar ready by the middle of November. As an experiment, ( a very exciting one for me) I am going to offer Hiking and Climbing in Kenya and Tanzania in 2022 . I hiked Kilimanajro back in 2005, climbed in the Rwenzoris (Uganda) in 2015 and climbed Nelion, Mt Kenya in early 2020. It would be wonderful to go back to Africa and guide a team there. In the Indian Himalaya, our calendar will have a range of expeditions to choose from with a choice for every moutaineering enthusiast- from the beginner to the more experienced. The Indian Himalaya is open and travelling across the Himalayan states is back to normal . Whether you are interested in climbing some of the most iconic mountains of the Indian Himalaya or would rather engage in some exploratory mountaineering- I welcome you to the I...