Phari Lapcha (6,017m), northeast face, attempt; Dawa Peak (5,920m), Snotty’s Gully, third ascent. Andy Turner and I attempted a new line up the left side of the northeast face of Phari Lapcha. However, we were repelled by difficult mixed ground, compact granite, and unconsolidated snow at the start of the obvious rock band halfway up the face. Forced to switch objectives, we opted for Snotty’s Gully (700m, ED1 WI 5 M5+, Bracey-Bullock, 2006) on the northeast face of Phari Lapcha’s western outlier, Dawa Peak. Leaving Gokyo at 5 a.m. on November 17, we climbedto two-thirds height, meeting difficulties of WI5 and M5+. After we made an open bivouac, the final water-ice pitches led to the top and a subsequent descent to the Upper Machermo Glacier. We reached the comfort of Machermo Village the same evening. We congratulate Jon Bracey and Nick Bullock on their excellent line, which may become a Khumbu classic. We acknowledge the generous support of the Mark Clifford Award, the British Mountaineering Council, the Mount Everest Foundation, and the Alpine Club.

James Thacker, Alpine Club