Aurélie Didillon, Simon Duverney, Elodie Lecomte, and I arrived below the mountains of Siguniang on September 16 and spent a couple of days trekking above the Shuangqiao Valley to take stock. Conclusion: the mountains are very beautiful, but after the 2008 earthquake many are crumbling. In addition, the cracks seem very grassy. One formation, Peak 5,120m, high in the Dagou Valley, grabbed our attention. It looked steep and more compact than the other peaks, but unfortunately it is also one of the most remote. [Peak 5,120m is situated on the western side of the upper Dagou cirque, south-southeast of 5,240m Dayantianwu. The lower south summit of Peak 5,120m was climbed via the east face in 2013, by Japanese climbers, who named it Shizi Peak (5,057m, AAJ 2014)]. Even with two porters the bags we carried to the foot of the peak were heavy, and the forest, which we thought “magical” on first acquaintance, became a real trial. The porters left us halfway—the sight of the enormous scree slope that followed did little to motivate them.

We split the team; some ferried loads, while others started on the route. We managed to fix the first 100m, finding an ice axe essential to remove vegetation. The weather was poor, and we returned to the valley lodge to dry out. When we emerged, locals were predicting the arrival of winter, but the forecast promised a three-day window. We returned to our high point and slept on the wall in our portaledges, but it snowed throughout the night and in the morning the face above was white. Fortunately, it stopped at 11 a.m. and we continued until midnight through grim conditions. When we woke next day it was snowing again, but once the sky appeared less “heavy” we set off aid climbing, leaving all of our bivy gear at the camp. The last pitches to the ridge were enjoyable, and the ridge itself very pleasant. We managed a smile on the summit. Life was beautiful, but the descent was long. The following day we were back at the lodge. We named the summit Four Pigs Peak, and the route of ascent up the east-northeast face and north-northwest ridge is called Le Réscapés de la Forêt Magique (600m, 7b A2). 

Sébastien Ratel, France