Dhaulagiri VI. The Kansai Mountaineering Club sent an expedition to the western Dhaulagiri range in the pre-monsoon season. Our original plan was to aim from the southwest at Dhaulagiri IV (25,133 feet) via Dhaulagiri VI (24,002 feet). Unexpected difficulties — a longer distance from the top of Dhaulagiri VI and a steep ice cliff near the col — compelled us to give up going beyond Dhaulagiri VI. But we did get to the summit of the latter, attempted in 1965 by a Royal Air Force party when they mistook it for Dhaulagiri IV. (A.A.J., 1966, 15:1, pp. 193-4.) Our approach route was the same as that of the RAF party. We left Pokhara on March 19 and after a 14-days’ march via Beni, Darbang, Muni and Gurjakani, we placed Base Camp at the end of the Kaphe Glacier at 13,500 feet. On April 2 we began our mountaineering. Camp I was established on the 3rd near the first icefall at 15,575 feet. We then made a route on the side wall of Ghustung’s north peak. On the 8th we made Camp III at 18,875 feet in the ice basin of the upper Kaphe Glacier. From here we made a route on the side ridge which descends from the south shoulder of Dhaulagiri VI. It was a difficult route and included a steep rock cliff in the lower part and an ice wall in the upper part. It took seven days of struggle and we fixed 2600 feet of rope. On April 16 we established Camp VI at 22,900 feet on the plateau on the main south ridge. On April 17 Hisazumi Nakamura, Shoichi Kimura, Seijiro Yamamura and Shiro Kawazu got to the top of Dhaulagiri VI. The other members were as follows: Takaaki Yamane, Mamoru Mizutani, Motoharu Iwasa and I as leader. Sherpas were Linsin, sirdar, Jamboo and Nurbu.

TETSUYA NOMURA, Kansai Mountaineering Club