On October 7 and 8 Chinese climbers Gong Xiaorui, He Chuan, and Wu Peng attempted the south face of Peak 5,086m, a granite shark’s fin nearly climbed from the opposite side a month earlier by Americans Dickey, Johnson, and Kellogg via the northwest ridge [see previous report]. The Chinese approached from the Shuangqiao, climbed seven and a half pitches the first day, bivouacked, and climbed a further two and a half pitches on the second. Although they believed they had completed the major difficulties, they were still some distance from the summit; concerned about timev, they retreated. To their high point at 4,910m, they had climbed 520m (310m vertical gain) at V 5.10b A0. They estimate another 250m of climbing (180m of vertical gain) to the summit.

Yan Dongdong, China