Asia, India, Garhwal, Manda

Publication Year: 1982.

Manda. We were a team of five: Nandan Singh, a high-altitude porter, Rustom Antia, Muslim Contractor, Danesh Kalyaniwalla and I, leader. We established Base Camp on the bank for the Kedarganga at 14,000 feet. We followed the stream and established Camp I on the east lateral moraine of the Manda Glacier. Camp II was placed at 18.0 feet on the top of the icefall, which was not difficult but dangerous due to rockfall. On June 2 Antia, Kalyaniwalla and I started for the summit, planning a bivouac on the way. We climbed a gully of hard snow on the west of the peak until at four P.M. we had reached 20.0 feet. We cut a ledge under an overhang, anchored ourselves and our equipment and bivouacked for the night. The next day we felt so drained that we returned to Camp II. Kalyaniwalla and Contractor had to leave for home. I was struck by severe diarrhea but Nandan Singh and Antia were going well. They started at five A.M. on June 7, climbed the gully, passed our previous bivouac site and proceeded over a patch of steep ice and onto the northern summit ridge. Antia double-axed up the patch and Nandan Singh followed. Antia had to lead most of the way as Nandan Singh was new to technical climbing. He more than made up for this by his tremendous stamina and endurance. They reached the summit (6510 meters, 21,360 feet) at three P.M. and returned to Camp II by evening.

Minoo Mehta, Himalayan Club