Chomo Lonzo
Encyclopedia
Chomo Lonzo is a mountain in Tibet
, 5 km northeast of Makalu
in the Mahalungur
(Mohalingor) or Khumbu
Himalayas
. Alternate spellings of the same name include Chomolonzo, Chomolönzo, Chomo Lönzo, Jomolönzo, and Lhamalangcho.
Chomo-Lonzo has three distinct summits. The Southern, main peak (7804m) is joined via a ~ 7250m saddle to the Central peak (7565m), which is joined via a ~7050m saddle to a ~7200m North (or North West) peak.
While from Nepal the mountain is overpowered by nearby Makalu, the fifth-highest peak in the world, the three peaks are a very impressive and dominating sight from the Kangshung valley in Tibet. The 3000 m high northeast face is an obvious challenge that is as yet unsolved. Chomo-Lonzo translates to “bird goddess” and from the East the mountain indeed brings to mind a 3 km high eagle with spread wings.
The French climbers Jean Couzy
and Lionel Terray
reached the main summit via the gently sloping SW ridge from the 7200m Sakietang La that separates Chomo Lonzo from Makalu. They did this as an afterthought during a reconnaissance expedition to the Makalu, which they first-ascended the next year. The second ascent was only in 1993 by a Japanese expedition which found a route through the NW face that joined the SW ridge half-way. A third and currently last ascent of the main peak in 1994 followed the original SW ridge route.
The Central and North peaks remained unclimbed until 2005. In 1999, an attempt to climb the central peak via its daunting NE pillar was thwarted. In April 2005, a French expedition first explored the NE face but, finding it too challenging, approached the mountain from the West and Northwest instead. One team (Yannick Graziani, Christian Trommsdorff and Patrick Wagnon) climbed the North summit over the NW ridge on May 7, while another (Stéphane Benoist and Patrice Glairon-Rappaz) reached it over the West face on May 16. The first team reascended the North peak and continued to reach the central peak on May 21. The initial plan to traverse all three peaks and descend via the Sakietang La proved impossible.
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, 5 km northeast of Makalu
Makalu
Makalu is the fifth highest mountain in the world at and is located southeast of Mount Everest, on the border between Nepal and China...
in the Mahalungur
Mahalangur Himal
Mahālangūr Himāl is a section of the Himalaya in northeast Nepal and south-central Tibet extending from the pass Nangpa La between Rolwaling Himal and Cho Oyu east to the Arun River. It includes Mount Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, and Cho Oyu) -- four of Earth's six highest peaks...
(Mohalingor) or Khumbu
Khumbu
Khumbu is located in northeastern Nepal on the Nepalese side of Mount Everest. It is part of the Solukhumbu District, which in turn is part of the Sagarmatha Zone. Khumbu is one of three subregions of the main Khambu and Sherpa settlement of the Himalaya, the other two being Solu and Pharak...
Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
. Alternate spellings of the same name include Chomolonzo, Chomolönzo, Chomo Lönzo, Jomolönzo, and Lhamalangcho.
Chomo-Lonzo has three distinct summits. The Southern, main peak (7804m) is joined via a ~ 7250m saddle to the Central peak (7565m), which is joined via a ~7050m saddle to a ~7200m North (or North West) peak.
While from Nepal the mountain is overpowered by nearby Makalu, the fifth-highest peak in the world, the three peaks are a very impressive and dominating sight from the Kangshung valley in Tibet. The 3000 m high northeast face is an obvious challenge that is as yet unsolved. Chomo-Lonzo translates to “bird goddess” and from the East the mountain indeed brings to mind a 3 km high eagle with spread wings.
The French climbers Jean Couzy
Jean Couzy
Jean Couzy was a French mountaineer. He studied aeronautical engineering at the École Polytechnique. At age 27, he was a member of Maurice Herzog's 1950 expedition to Annapurna. Prior to this, his usual climbing partner was Marcel Schatz, another member of the expedition...
and Lionel Terray
Lionel Terray
Lionel Terray was a French climber who made many first ascents, including Makalu in the Himalaya and Cerro Fitzroy in the Patagonian Andes ....
reached the main summit via the gently sloping SW ridge from the 7200m Sakietang La that separates Chomo Lonzo from Makalu. They did this as an afterthought during a reconnaissance expedition to the Makalu, which they first-ascended the next year. The second ascent was only in 1993 by a Japanese expedition which found a route through the NW face that joined the SW ridge half-way. A third and currently last ascent of the main peak in 1994 followed the original SW ridge route.
The Central and North peaks remained unclimbed until 2005. In 1999, an attempt to climb the central peak via its daunting NE pillar was thwarted. In April 2005, a French expedition first explored the NE face but, finding it too challenging, approached the mountain from the West and Northwest instead. One team (Yannick Graziani, Christian Trommsdorff and Patrick Wagnon) climbed the North summit over the NW ridge on May 7, while another (Stéphane Benoist and Patrice Glairon-Rappaz) reached it over the West face on May 16. The first team reascended the North peak and continued to reach the central peak on May 21. The initial plan to traverse all three peaks and descend via the Sakietang La proved impossible.
