Biale, Baltoro Karakoram. Our expedition consisted of Fumiyoshi Shigematsu, Tokiyoshi Kimura, Chitose Okada, Mikio Hamada, Tadanori Ochiai and me as leader. Base Camp was on the right bank of the Baltoro Glacier near the junction of the Mustagh Glacier and opposite Rdokas. The south and southwest faces of Biale were so steep and dangerous that we avoided them and advanced our camps up the Mustagh Glacier toward the snow-covered north face. Fortunately our route was rather easy because we could find a route on ice and snow without the steep rock characteristic of the nearby Trango and Payu groups. (Biale lies about two miles south of Karphogang.) On July 21 Shigematsu, Kimura, Hamada and Ochiai set up Camp III west of the peak on the col between the Mustagh and Kruksum Glaciers and on the 22nd climbed the 2500-foot snow and ice west face to the sum mit (22,077 feet). The only woman in the party, Okada, and I climbed to the top on July 24.

Masaki Aoki, Japanese Alpine Club