| Baruntse | |
|---|---|
 Baruntse from Hongu Valley | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 7,162 m (23,497 ft)[1] |
| Prominence | 979 m (3,212 ft)[1] |
| Coordinates | 27°52′18″N86°58′48″E / 27.87167°N 86.98000°E /27.87167; 86.98000 |
| Geography | |
  Baruntse Nepal Show map of Koshi Province Baruntse Baruntse (Nepal) Show map of Nepal | |
| Location | Khumbu,Nepal |
| Parent range | Himalayas |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1954 by New Zealand expedition |
| Easiest route | glacier/snow/ice climb |
Baruntse is amountain in theKhumbu region of easternNepal, crowned by four peaks and bounded on the south by theHunku Glacier, on the east by the Barun Glacier, and on the northwest by theImja Glacier. It is considered as one of the best preparation peaks inthe Himalayas for climbers readying themselves foreight-thousanders, however the mountain has a low success rate due to its technical difficulties, steep slopes and unpredictable weather conditions.[2] It is open for beginners, but requires the use of fixed ropes to climb.[3]
The mountain is usually accessed from the South, where climbers can ascendMera Peak to acclimatize before moving up the valley to the Baruntse base camp. From the village ofLukla, it is an eight-day hike to the base camp.[4]
The mountain was first climbed May 30, 1954 via the south ridge by Colin Todd andGeoff Harrow of aNew Zealand expedition led by SirEdmund Hillary.[5]
The first ascent of the East Ridge was made on April 27, 1980 by Lorenzo Ortas, Javier Escartín, Jeronimo Lopez (all Spain) andCarlos Buhler (United States of America) of a Spanish expedition led by Juan José Díaz Ibañez.[6]
In 1994, the first ascent of the North West face of Baruntse North by Vladimir Leitermann, Martin Otta and Tomas Pekarek was nominated for aPiolets d'Or.[7]
The first ascent of the west face was made in 1995 by a Russian team consisting of climbers Valeri Pershin (climbing leader), Evgeni Vinogradski, Salavat Habibulin, Nikolai Zhilin, and Yuri Ermachek. The ascent was made in seven days and the summit was made on October 12.[4]
In 2004, the first ascent of Ciao Patrick (V+/VI M6+ 90°) on the northwest face and northwest ridge of Baruntse North (7,057m) was made bySimone Moro, Bruno Tassi andDenis Urubko. The alpine-style ascent was identified as one of the most notable ascents of the year.[7]
In 2010, Becky Bellworthy from the United Kingdom became the youngest woman to summit Baruntse at 18 years old.[8]
In 1998, prominent American alpinist and ski racer Raoul Wille died ofaltitude sickness while climbing Baruntse.[9][10]
Nineteen-times Everest summiteerChhewang Nima died in 2010 on Baruntse[11] after falling through a cornice while fixing a rope beneath the summit.[12]
In 2013, Petr Machold and Jakub Vaněk from theCzech Republic were lost after attempting to climb up the mountain's west side, which had only been done once previously. They made it to 6,600m. Heavy snow caught them in camp, and when a rescue operation was mounted, the climbers could not be found.[13]
In 2018, Mera, a strayTibetan mastiff-Himalayan sheepdog cross climbed Baruntse after following a trekking expedition up the mountain. Team leader Don Wargowsky shared his tent and a sleeping mat with the dog, who is thought to be the first canine to ascend a 7,000m peak.[14][3]
In 2021, Czech climbersMarek Holeček and Radek “Ráďa” Groh attempted the North-West face climb that had caught Machold and Vaněk eight years earlier.[15] The perilous climb, which they later named "Heavenly Trap", lasted ten days due to increasingly worsening weather conditions. After summitting, the descent took nearly 80 hours.[16] The climbersgraded the route VI+ M6+ 80°.[17]
