Monday, October 19, 2009
Himalaya Fall 2009: Koreans Call It Quits On Annapurna
Posted By:
2Machupicchu on: 10/19/2009 In: Ama Dablam, Annapurna, Himalaya, Mountaineering, Nepal, Pumori, Tibet
More news from the HImalaya, where it appears that we will continue to wait for the first woman to join the ranks of men who have topped out on all of the 8000 meter peaks, as the Korean team on Annapurna, which includes Oh Eun-Sun, have called off their summit bid, and are now preparing to go home.
ExWeb is reporting that the team got as high as Camp 3 over the weekend, but high winds prevented them from going any higher. They have now returned to Base Camp, and are preparing to depart for the season. They will have another go at the mountain in the Spring of 2010, when Miss Oh will try once again to become the first woman to nab all 14 eight-thousanders. Due to it's high level of danger due to avalanches, Annapurna is not a mountain to attempt during the winter.
Now, the expeditions to the big peaks seem to be over for the season, and the action will heat up on some of the other challenging, but lesser mountains. The Field Touring Alpine Team reached Namche Bazaar over the weekend where they took the usual break and spent some time acclimatizing. They'll now continue on to Ama Dablam this week.
Meanwhile, the Climb With Us team is now in Pumori Base Camp, and according to their latest updates, they will begin shuttling gear up to ABC tomorrow, where they'll begin carving their tent platforms and start the early stages of acclimatization. The team had its Puja Ceremony earlier today and now have the blessings of Lama Tashi Stundu to begin their climb.
Watch for more updates later this week as more teams arrive on Pumori and Ama Dablam and begin their climbs as well.