Nya Kangri, South-southwest Ridge, Attempt

India, East Karakoram
Author: Nikolas Kroupis. Climb Year: 2016. Publication Year: 2017.

Giorgos Margaritis, Petros Tolias, and I, from Greece, arrived in Leh during mid-August, and after acclimatizing with an ascent of Stok Kangri (6,123m), we traveled by jeep to Sumur in the Nubra Valley. Our aim was to make the first ascent of Nya Kangri (6,480m). Starting from the monastery at 3,240m on the 24th, we camped at 3,340m and 4,500m before reaching the lake (ca 5,100m) in the moraine of the glacier that flows initially west and then north from the mountain. We continued heading south, and that night camped at 5,335m, about 1.8km further up the moraine.

Next day we started up the snow-covered glacier and continued to 5,570m, where, at noon, it began to snow, so we camped. The weather cleared later in the afternoon, allowing us to make a reconnaissance up the glacier, beyond where it turns to the east-northeast and rises into the rocky west face of Nya Kangri. We reached 5,820m on the upper glacier and identified a possible route to the summit. To the east lay an ice slope of 50°–60° leading to the south-southwest ridge of Nya Kangri above 6,000m. The first part of the ridge is rocky, then it becomes snow and ice all the way to the summit.

On the 29th, although the weather was far from good, we moved our camp up to 5,810m. However, subsequent fresh snow falling to a depth of 40cm at this height made continuing too dangerous. We retreated and returned to Leh. Later we visited Korzok village and climbed all three Mentok peaks: I (6,282m), II (6,248m), and III (6,153m).

— Nikolas Kroupis, Hellenic Alpine Club of Komotini, Greece



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