Baruntse View from Base CampBaruntse is located between in Everest and Makalu in the eastern part of Nepal. Baruntse - the peak of Barun, the god of rain, is a prominent looking peak above the Khumbu/Chukung valley (to the north-east), the Hinku Valley (to the south-west) and the Barun valley (to the east. It was first climbed in 1954 by Sir Edmund Hillary and Jim McFarlane. The second ascent took place only in 1980. Since then Baruntse has been climbed many times.
On our expedition we will approach this beautiful peak through the Hinku/Hongu valley. Two mountains passes, the Tsetrawa La at 4,600m and Mera La at 5,200m, are crossed before Base Camp is reached at 5,400m. Baruntse Base Camp is situated in a beautiful meadow close to a small lake. Our climbing route is along the south ridge of the mountain on which a high base camp is placed at 5,800m. Next, an advance base camp is set up near Baruntse’s West Col at 6,135m. This is a very steep section of the peak and we will fix ropes to aid our ascent and to prevent falls into crevasses. From this camp we will follow the south ridge to the summit, with two higher camps, at 6,420m (at the foot of the south-east ridge, and at 6,650m. Tackling the 40 to 50 degree ice slopes between base camp and Camp II and treading a knife-edged ridge higher up offer an interesting climb to the summit. The summit view includes the very impressive south faces of Lhotse, Makalu, Chamlang, Kanchenjunga, and Peak 41 and down to the Hinku valley.
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