Asia, Pakistan, Sosburn Tower Attempt

Publication Year: 1990.

Sosbun Tower Attempt. Tilman described the peaks of the Hoh Valley as “an uncompromising rock wall crowned with jagged towers,” but the attraction of these towers is deceptive; the rock everywhere is dangerous: enormous, rotten loose rocks and cracks with sandy edges. The climbing is very hard because of it. It seems useless to continue further exploration there. However, innocently J-Ph. Dolby Monet, Y. Duvemey and I attempted the very beautiful east face of Sosbun Tower (c. 6000 meters, 19,685 feet). The face is 1100-meters high, very steep and in part overhanging, but its rock is nonetheless treacherous. We prepared the route on July 10 and 11 and climbed the first 700 meters from July 27 to 30. We felt we were within a rope-length of easier ground and at the end of the difficulties, but we quit there. The objective danger from rockfall was enormous even though the route we chose was relatively sheltered. The weather was also mediocre. From July 4 to August 6, we had only 11 fine days. Italians Daniele Bosisio, Adriano Camati, Tita Gianola and Paolo Vitali climbed one of the Sosbun Needles (5400 meters, 17,717 feet), which lies southwest of Sosbun Tower. On August 19 and 20 they fixed 350 meters of rope on the southeast ridge. They then bivouacked halfway up the wall and climbed to the summit on August 22. They climbed some 800 meters up compact, wet rock with rotten cracks.

Bernard Domenech, Club Alpin Français