Cho Oyu summit reached from Nepal side
French climber Alasdair McKenzie, alongside a team of veteran Nepalese Sherpas, have made history by achieving the summit of Cho Oyu via the formidable Nepal side.
On 7th June 2024,the team stood atop the world’s 6th-highest mountain at a height at 8:35pm (Nepal Time) via the S-SW Ridge (SST-Nepal Route), said Mingma Sherpa (Chairman of SST), who is handling the entire expedition from the basecamp of Cho Oyu.
“McKenzie, Tenging Gyaljen, Gelje and some others Sherpas reached the summit. The team started at 2am (approx.) from Camp IV, and after a continuous effort of over 17 hours, they made it to the top” – Mingma said. “This remarkable achievement was the result of a meticulously planned expedition that started in March and commenced in the first week of May from Lukla.”
The Cho Oyu summit was reached for the first time in 1954 by Dr. Herbert Tichy, Sepp Joechler, and Pasang Dawa Sherpa, with the standard climbing route lieing in Tibet. Cho Oyu’s Nepal side is known for its steep, vertical walls rising thousands of meters, making it one of the greatest present time challenges. The face of the mountain from the Nepal side had not witnessed a successful climb since 2009 (by Denis Urubko and Boris Dedeshko – Route: South Face), despite numerous attempts – highlighting the difficulty involved.
The expedition faced numerous challenges along the way. By May 30th, McKenzie and the Sherpa team, including Mingtemba Sherpa, had fixed ropes up to 7625m but were forced to return to the base camp due to a shortage of ropes. On June 4, with all preparations in place, the team set off on their final summit push from the base camp.
The successful summit team:
• Alasdair McKenzie (France) – Completed his 13th 8000er.
• Gelje Sherpa (Nepal) – Leading the Fixing Team
• Chhangba Sherpa (Nepal)
• Tenging Gyaljen Sherpa (Nepal) – Leading the Fixing Team
• Lakpa Temba Sherpa (Nepal)
• Lakpa Tenji Sherpa (Nepal)
• Ngima Ongda Sherpa (Nepal)
The Seven Summits Team are claiming this as the “New Era in Nepali Mountaineering.”
“This historic ascent not only marks a significant milestone in the mountaineering world but also opens up new opportunities for climbers from Nepal as well as around the globe aspiring to climb from the Nepalese side. With this success, Cho Oyu is now more accessible from Nepal, heralding a new era in the Nepali mountaineering, and inspiring future expeditions to tackle its challenging routes.
Seven Summit Treks takes immense pride in this achievement, and extends gratitude to all the climbers, past and present, who have contributed to this historic moment.”
