Meru North, Women’s Expedition Attempt. Our women’s expedition, accompanied by a female Indian liaison officer, consisted of Nadia Billia, An- nalisa Cogo, Laura Ferrero, Alessandra Gafurri, Mariola Masciadri, Oriana Pecchio, Annelise Rochat and me. We had no leader. We attempted to climb Meru North by the north ridge, climbed by Japanese in 1980 and Austrians in 1981. We fixed 1000 feet of rope and reached 19,025 feet, but avalanche danger and falling ice forced us to give up. When we reached Base Camp at Tapovan at 14,100 feet at the beginning of June, there was still much snow. Camp I was at 16,400 feet on the Meru Glacier. We spent ample time to acclimatize ourselves. Our two doctor-climbers made nourishment and acclimatization studies. Above Base Camp we had no porters and so were a true women’s expedition. As the pre-monsoon weather was unstable, we should have asked the Indian Mountaineering Foundation for an alternate objective. Despite the lack of success, it was a positive experience for us all.

Silvia Metzeltin Buscaini, Club Alpine Italiano