In May, Zhou Peng and I saw Chomolhari Kang (7,034m, 7,054m GPS, 28°09.869’N, 90°10.951’E) for the first time. We were traveling from Pumajiangtang village to Kangma with the aim of getting a closer view of peaks on the Bhutan-Tibet border. We had no idea if there was a road leading south to Kangma, as none of the maps we found in shops or on the Internet showed one. But a local cattle herder assured us there was a passable road, though in some places barely visible, as it had not been used much in recent years. After 52km of bumpy travel, we reached the mountains.

In May the land becomes very soft during the warm day; the risk of getting a vehicle stuck is high. We decided to return in the autumn, and on September 26, after an acclimatization ascent in the Nyanchen Tanglha range, Yang Bo, Zhang Hao, Zhou Peng, and I reached the base of Chomolhari Kang, hoping to climb the mountain on skis.

We were lucky, as it proved possible to drive to 5,800m, where we set up base camp close to the snow line. The forecast predicted heavy snow for the 28th, so we decided to attempt the mountain in one day from camp. At 5:50 a.m. on September 27, Yang Bo, Zhou Peng, and I left the tents and took just 30 minutes to reach the snow line. We roped up in case of crevasses, though once the sun rose we could see the slope showed no sign of any.

After an exhausting climb we reached the top at 5:15 p.m. The total distance from base camp was 11.5km, and our GPS showed 7,054m. Although our ascent had been gentle in angle, we could tell that on the Bhutan side the mountain was precipitous. Despite constant sunshine, the temperature remained low all day. The descent was far more pleasant: We skied down to base camp in just two hours.

Li Shuang, China