EVEREST'88 Kangshung Face Expedition - The Story and Images.
Robert Mads Anderson, leader of the EVEREST'88 Kangshung Face Expedition. In 1985, climbing with his partner Jay Smith on Mt Everest "West Buttress Route" they came to within 260 meters of the summit, but was forced to make a decision that most will sometime in their climbing career, "Is it worth the risk?" Their oxygen mask were iced up, Jay and Robert removed them, could breath well enough to continue and felt strong enough to reach the summit, then descent safely to camp. With an approaching storm, however, there would not be time to descend before "white-out" conditions would force them to make a bivouac in the open. Without food, stove or shelter, only a minimum amount of water to hydrate their bodies they made the decision to descent. "It wasn't worth the risk, we would make another try when the storm blew over." Another chance never came in 1985, but lessons were learned from the very close successful try to reach the summit.
Knowing he wanted to return to Everest for another attempt to summit, knowing that it would be a six year wait for a climbing permit in Nepal, knowing he did not want to be a part of a large expedition comprised of support climbers and high-altitude porters or the use of oxygen, knowing he wanted to climb the mountain on a difficult or new route, Robert chose the Kangshung Face, the "Great Eastern Face of Everest" in Tibet. Robert knew that in 1978, Reinhold Messner stood with Peter Habeler on the summit. Two years later, on 20 August 1980, Messner again stood atop the highest mountain in the world, an ascent was made without supplementary oxygen. Inspired by those great climber before him; George Mallory, Ed Hillary and his partner Tenzing, and the accomplishments of Messner, Robert choose to gather a team to make a try on the Great Eastern Face of Everest, the Kangshung.
Knowing he wanted to return to Everest for another attempt to summit, knowing that it would be a six year wait for a climbing permit in Nepal, knowing he did not want to be a part of a large expedition comprised of support climbers and high-altitude porters or the use of oxygen, knowing he wanted to climb the mountain on a difficult or new route, Robert chose the Kangshung Face, the "Great Eastern Face of Everest" in Tibet. Robert knew that in 1978, Reinhold Messner stood with Peter Habeler on the summit. Two years later, on 20 August 1980, Messner again stood atop the highest mountain in the world, an ascent was made without supplementary oxygen. Inspired by those great climber before him; George Mallory, Ed Hillary and his partner Tenzing, and the accomplishments of Messner, Robert choose to gather a team to make a try on the Great Eastern Face of Everest, the Kangshung.
It Would Be A 35th Anniversary Ascent
Robert Anderson had been impressed by one of the support climber on the 1985 climb, Ed Webster from Colorado, a highly skilled rock climber and author of the Rock Climbs in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Ed was very strong at altitude and one of America's most talented rock climbers at the time. Robert knew that Ed's talents in fixing a new route on the Great Eastern-Kangshung Face would be of great value and asked him to join the climbing team. Ed Webster suggested a Canadian climber, Paul Teare, with a specialty in ice climbing and difficult rock route. Ed had climbed with Paul once on Ed's favorite Eldorado Canyon climb, "Yellow Spur." One fact made clear by Ed, "Paul was about the funniest person I'd ever met. With Paul on the team we could be assured of laughter even during our darkest moments." With three climbers now on the team, Robert in conversation with Lord John Hunt, leader of the 1953 British Everest Expedition. Lord Hunt generously agreed to do so-with one small stipulation. "Since what you are attempting is an anniversary ascent of Everest, which ours was the 35th Anniversary, after all, a British climb, wouldn't it be more fitting," he politely suggested, "If you had a British mountaineer on your team?" Lord Hunt was right, he had Stephen Venables in mind, a widely experienced Himalayan veteran with impeccable expedition and alpine climbing credentials. A difficult decision for Stephen, to embark on such a dangerous climb with climbers whom he didn't know. Luckily Ed had rock climbed previously with two of Stephen's regular climbing partners, Dick Renshaw and Choe Brooks, and with their assurance he joined EVEREST'88 in December 1987, only three months before our departure for Asia.
A Most Dangerous Side Of Mount Everest
The team would be small, each chosen with a specific tasks, bringing their individual talents to fulfill those tasks, thus comprising a team to work together for one common goal. To put in a new route on the mountain and make the ascent without use of bottled oxygen. Tibet had been closed to climbing until after the Chinese first ascent on the North Face in 1960 by Wang Fu-chou, Konbu, and Chu Ying-hua. After that climb, China opened the Tibet side of Everest to expeditions wishing to make an approach from the North or East Face. In 1979, Andrew Harvard and George Lowe took a look at the East Face and decided to make a go of it. In 1981, an American attempt was led by Richard Blum, included Edmund Hillary, George Lowe, John Roskelley and Kim Momb. They had success on scaling the buttress in 1981, even with its enormous difficulties and challenges, but the climb was aborted around 7000 meters due to high avalanche danger. It was named the "American Buttress", mid-face" of the Kangshung. The team returned in 1983: led by James Morrissay and after five and a half weeks of work Carlos Buhler, Kim Momb and Louis Reichardt summited on October 8, 1983. George Lowe, Dan Reid and Jay Cassell summited the next day. During this time they used rocket launchers to put ropes in place, and they has the assistance of motor winches to haul supplies up the face to stock camps in preparation to make a summit bid using supplementary bottled oxygen.
THIS PAGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION - MORE TO COME
All Content Contained Within This Website Copyright of Joseph Blackburn©1988-2024
Any Usage Must Have Prior Written Permission Of The Photographer
Contact: Please fill in the contact form on 2nd page of website and include your comments for a reply.
Any Usage Must Have Prior Written Permission Of The Photographer
Contact: Please fill in the contact form on 2nd page of website and include your comments for a reply.