FEATURES
BRITISH ARMED FORCES MOUNTAINEERING TEAM ATTEMPTS WORLD-FIRST IN THE HIMALAYA
London, UK – A British Armed Forces team is attempting both a British and a world-first ascent of Makalu via the notoriously difficult South-East Ridge this Autumn.
M
akalu stands at 8463m (27,766ft) above sea level and sits astride the border of Nepal and
China. It is one of 14 peaks in the world with an elevation in excess of 8000m and is the fifth highest behind Everest, K2, Kangchenjunga, and Lhotse.
Makalu, an isolated mountain, is rarely climbed due to its remoteness and technical difficulty. It has many steep pitches and narrow ridges with a highly exposed summit pyramid. To date, there have been less than 300 recorded ascents of the mountain by any route since the first successful ascent in 1955. In contrast, the summit of Everest has been reached over 4000 times since the first successful ascent in 1953
The South-East Ridge of Makalu is immensely challenging: only five individuals have reached the summit of the mountain via this
knife-edged route, the last of which was in 1976. More people have walked on the moon than have successfully climbed the South-East Ridge of this mountain – and no one has ever climbed Makalu via the complete South-East Ridge or “route integral” in climbing terminology.
The Makalu 2014 tri-service expedition team is led by RAF Wing Commander Colin Scott, MBE, and includes six individuals from across the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the Army, and Royal Air Force – both regular and reserves. Royal Engineer Captain Dick Gale is the team's climbing leader. Six high-altitude Sherpa – with whom Colin Scott and Dick Gale have climbed extensively before – and one ex- serviceman Base Camp Manager/ Fitness Coach complete the group.
The team will fly to Kathmandu from London on 10 September 2014. On arrival in Kathmandu, expedition members will fly to the
remote airstrip of Tumlingstar (510m) to begin the eight-day trek to Makalu Base Camp at 4800m. From there, the climbers will begin a lengthy process of acclimatisation and establish a series of camps. The highest will be Camp 3 at 7200m and beyond this the team will climb "alpine style", with bivouacs at 7500m and 7900m, before making initial summit bids from mid-October 2014.
Makalu 2014 has three official patrons: legendary mountaineer Sir Chris Bonington, CVO, CBE, DL; The Rt Hon Lord Michael Forsyth of Drumlean, PC; and The Rt Hon Lord Selkirk of Douglas, PC, QC.
Expedition leader Colin Scott said: “Our primary objective is to put at least two team members on the summit of Makalu – and for them to return safely to Base Camp. All of our climbers, including Sherpa, will have the opportunity to summit. I have led three previous British Services expeditions to attempt an ascent of Makalu via the
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Envoy Autumn 2014
www.raf-ff.org.uk
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