Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Peak 5,805, First Ascent Nepal, Rolwaling Himal

About five kilometers south of Chhopa Bamare, along the frontier ridge, is an unnamed snow summit of 5,805m (28°0’42.43”N, 86°5’7.24”E). On December 29, 2023, eight days after reaching their base camp, a Nepalese team comprising Lila Bahadur Basne...

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| Published 2023 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Chhopa Bamare, Northeast Ridge Nepal, Rolwaling Himal

Chhopa Bamare (6,109m), showing (green) the original route up the southeast face and south ridge (2019) and (red) the 2024 route along the northeast ridge. Photo by Hiroyoshi Manome.  Chhopa Bamare (6,109m, 28°3’32.05”N, 86°5’28.50”E) is the ...

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| Published 2024 | Author Hiroyoshi Manome


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Phurbi Chhyachu, West-Southwest Ridge, Attempt Nepal, Jugal Himal

Base camp with the west and northwest sides of Phurbi Chhyachu behind. Photo by Marek Disman. Drawn to Phurbi Chhyachu (6,637m) by its aesthetic appearance and sparse mountaineering history, Rosa Morotti and I aimed to repeat the original rou...

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| Published 2024 | Author Tito Arosio


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Jugal I, First Ascent, via East-Southeast Face Nepal, Jugal Himal

The 2024 Korean-Nepalese Route followed a slender couloir on the east-southeast face of Jugal I (6,591m). The rocky summit toward the left edge of the picture is Jugal III (6,184m). In the spring, a joint expedition from Korea and Nepal, led ...

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| Published 2024 | Author Oh Young-hoon


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Ganchempo, Northwest Face, Direct Route and Traverse Nepal, Jugal Himal

The northwest face of Ganchempo and the route followed in November 2024. The climbers descended the standard route to the south-southwest. In 2023, Oswaldo Freire and Joshua Jarrín climbed a parallel line to the left. Various unauthorized ascent...

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| Published 2024 | Author David Goettler


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Kimshung Sar, South-Southeast Ridge Nepal, Langtang Himal

The south-southeast ridge of Kimshung—(A) Main, (B) Central, and (C) Sar—with the Lirung Glacier to the left and Kimshing Glacier to the right. Photo by Damiano Levati. Located immediately opposite the east face of Langtang Lirung, Kimshung (...

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| Published 2024 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Phungi, First Ascent, via West Spur and South-Southwest Ridge Nepal, Peri Himal

View from the 6,200-meter camp on Phungi. The summit is the tiny, rounded snow top to the right and behind the rocky top. Photo by Fumiya Yokomichi. In post-monsoon 2022, three young Japanese climbers—Goto Kisuke, Adachi Masaki, and Kagami Ta...

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| Published 2024 | Author Fumiya Yokomichi


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Kajin Sara, Exploration Nepal, Annapurna Himal

Seen from the east, from left to right: the southern top of Samaya Himal, Chame East, Lamjung Himal, unnamed peak, and Annapurna II. Photo by Paulo Grobel. The Kajin Sara is a small group of peaks to the south of Kajin Sara Lake, forming a ri...

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| Published 2024 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Nilgiri North, West Face and West Ridge, Attempt Nepal, Annapurna Himal

The west side of the Nilgiri massif, showing the attempted route on the west ridge. Behind, the highest point of the skyline ridge is Annapurna I. Photo by Takuya Mitoro. In the fall of 2018, Tatsuya Aoki and I attempted the north face of Nil...

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| Published 2024 | Author Takuya Mitoro


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Patrasi I, First Ascent, via Northwest Ridge of Patrasi II Nepal, Kanjiroba Himal

The west side of Patrasi showing the route of the first ascent of Patrasi I, traversing over the summit of Patrasi II. Photo by Pasang Rinzee Sherpa.  In the premonsoon season, Nepali guides Vinayak Jaya Malla, Pasang Kami Sherpa, and Pasang ...

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| Published 2024 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Climbs And Expeditions AAJ
Nepal: New Peaks Opened in 2024

In October, as part of a tourist development plan, the Nepal government announced it was opening 57 additional mountains for climbing expeditions. These range in altitude from just below 5,900m to a little over 6,800m. The list includes many litt...

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| Published 2024 | Author Lindsay Griffin


Accident Reports ANAM
Leader Fall on Rock — Placed Inadequate Protection Montana, Beartooth Mountains, Granite Peak

The red line shows the route on the upper east ridge of Granite Peak. A) The large ledge below the start of the 5th-class climbing. This is where the group waited for the helicopter. B) This is the location of the belay/rappel anchor at the top ...

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| Published 2023 | Author Adam M. Clark


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Ice Montana, Hyalite Canyon

David Baumann prior to falling off The Fat One (WI3) in Hyalite Canyon. “I am really shocked that my lower tool came out. This picture shows my position before I fell while placing a screw.” In general, it is good to place both tools at almost f...

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| Published 2023 | Author David Baumann


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Ice — Collapsed Ice Pillar Montana, Hyalite Canyon

Code Red (WI5) before and after a dramatic collapse in January 2023. The lower column was clearly leaning to the right, but appeared too big and solid to collapse. The two climbers involved in this accident were fortunately unharmed. Photo: Laur...

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| Published 2023 | Author Climbing Magazine and The Editors


Accident Reports ANAM
Swept Into Lake by Wave Michigan, Upper Peninsula, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

On February 7, James Bake (31) was ice climbing with a partner near Miners Castle Rock when he was struck by a heavy wave that swept him into Lake Superior. After Bake’s partner reported the incident at 5:15 p.m., a search and rescue effort follo...

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| Published 2023 | Author National Park Services and ExplorersWeb.com


Accident Reports ANAM
Lead Fall on Rock — Weight Differential Kentucky, Red River Gorge, Bald Rock Recreational Preserve

I was getting back into outdoor climbing after a long break. I have been doing a lot of gym climbing over the last six years, including leading 5.11 in the gym. I started getting back outdoors. To optimize my time, I hired an AMGA-certified guide....

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| Published 2023 | Author Robert Bernstein


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Rock — Probably Cross-Loaded Carabiner Kentucky, Red River Gorge, Bald Rock Recreational Preserve

The bolt-end carabiner of this quickdraw broke in a leader fall, most likely when the gate improbably “nose-hooked” a glue-in, rod-stock-style bolt. Photo: Climber 1 On October 8, I (Climber 1) was leading Grandpa Joe (5.9) in the Red River G...

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| Published 2023 | Author Climber 1


Accident Reports ANAM
Failure to Clip Into Auto-Belay Illinois, Rockford, YMCA

In the early evening of November 29, Robert Moresco (38) fell to the ground from a climbing wall equipped with auto-belays. Moresco wrote to ANAC: “I was new to climbing. The climbing wall was 22 feet high, and I fell about 15 feet. My foot land...

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| Published 2023 | Author Robert Moresco


Accident Reports ANAM
Lowering Error — Rope Too Short, No Stopper Knot Idaho, City of Rocks National Reserve, Super Hits Wall

The Super Hits Wall at City of Rocks. A climber was lowering from Twist and Crawl (5.8) and fell when the end of his rope slipped through the belay device. His feet struck a large flake (marked with the yellow x) near the route’s base. That impa...

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| Published 2023 | Author Brock Anderson


Accident Reports ANAM
Fall on Rock — Quickdraw Unclipped from Bolt Hanger Colorado, Clear Creek Canyon, Catslab

The quickdraw that failed at Catslab. The carabiner’s wire gate is not bent, but rather displaced to one side. When the carabiner was loaded, it must have momentarily opened, because the gate notch shows no damage.  Photo: Climber 2 Climber 1...

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| Published 2023 | Author Climber 2 and The Editors