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Page Type:
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Trip Report |
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Lat/Lon:
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31.00010°N / 78.33150°E |
Date Climbed/Hiked:
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May 10, 2004 |
I had been planning a trip for some time and had a committed partner with plans to climb in mid April. Due to job and living arrangement changes he couldn't come. So here I was with no partner. In spite of my best efforts on the web I could not replace him so I decided to go ahead and try to pick up a partner in India or go it alone as far as possible. It was not a problem since I knew many people in the area.
I flew to Delhi, India on April 30th 2004 landing at 5:30 pm. I went by train straight to Haridwar, the gateway to the Himalayas, arriving by 12:30 am on May 1st. That afternoon I arrived at the trailhead, a small village called Sangam Chatti (4,500’)just beyond Uttarkashi (3,000'). The trail begins in the valley forest but soon emerges into grassland and open fields of Agora village. The women were out in the fields planting potatoes. Though it was warm the 3 hours on the trail passed quickly and I soon arrived at Bevera village (7,500’) where I made myself comfortable in a rustic trekking lodge of stone and natural wood.
The next morning (May 2nd) I set out for Dodital Lake (10,000’). I did decide to take a porter because I was not acclimatized. The 80 year old path climbed through a forest canopy of Oaks and Rhododendron trees. It emerges onto grassy cliffs and then disappears into a lush spruce forest. On the other side of the valley I could see snow capped peaks rising to 13,000’. Several times we flushed out the iridescent Monal pheasant and came across two troops of Langur monkeys. The six and a half hours flew by and soon arrived at the picturesque lake of Dodital. I stayed with the caretaker at the lake for 2 nights while acclimatizing. One of the local guides whom I know had caught 8 or 10 brown trout which we feasted on. The lake is river and spring fed and has been probed to a depth of 600’ without finding the bottom. It is surrounded by a lush oak and spruce forest. May 5th I set out with my porter up the steep path to Darwa pass (13,000’). We left the lush forest at about 11,500’ and on by the rhododendron bushes and steep grassy slopes to the pass in about 3 hours where we had spectacular 360 degree views of the high Himalayas.
There was significant snow on the North side. On the 30th and 1st at least 18 " of snow fell there and about 6" at Dodital Lake, the latest significant snowfall that the caretaker could remember. I left my porter there and descended the north side through deep snow till about 12,000’. The spruce forest is even more lush than the south side. I crossed the Hanuman Ganga river (11,000’) over a log bridge made up of a single large tree which requires great care.and camped near the first stream and the first large meadow (11,500’) where the goat herders make their camp later in the summer.
The next campsite was at Beaan (12,500’) at the head of the alpine meadow close to the grassy hills on the west bank of the river. There was 2-3 inches of snow but I did find a flat bare spot next to a small stream. On May 7th I went up to the source of the Hanuman Ganga river(13,500’) and camped in the riverbed in the midst of house sized rocks.. The grassy hills had been fairly easy going but the last part is a riverbed route and without significant snow to cover the rocks was a challenge indeed. The next day brought me to the base of the south west ridge an area called Deodamini (14,000’). I thought I would have to melt snow for water but I heard the stream under the snow pack and broke through.
On May 9th I started up the face. I got a 5 am start to take advantage of the crusts. I went up the gully on the right side to avoid the deeper snow in the middle. I made it to about 15,500' carrying about 30 kg.(66 lbs.) and camped on a rock outcrop with just enough room for my tent.. Time was short so I set my goal to reach the ridge (18,000’) the next day. I left at dawn, 5 am, with just lunch, camera and warm clothes. The snow was firm on the underlying ice and of varying thickness. Crampons made it possible. Careful route selection was a help. I reached the ridge on May 10th at 1:30 pm.- approximate altitude 18,000'. I named it Hauman Pass after the mythological god who scaled Bandarpoonch in primordial time and for whom Bandarpoonch is named.. To my knowledge it is a first ascent. The angle got steep near the top, maybe 70 degrees so I had to be careful.
On the way down I did have one slip on a 55 deg slope but an immediate reflexive left handed ice axe arrest stopped my slide at 6 feet. I also did have one glissade on the way down in a gully where too much snow got moving and momentum of the snowpack made it a little hard to stop. Arrest did not work cause snow was too deep. Jamming axe straight in did not either because of momentum. Finally lessening of snow thickness and applying crampons to the underlying ice brought me to a prompt halt. I got back to my tent for a 7 pm sunset.
There is a moderate route to Bandar summit along the ridge although pictures from the top of Sirkanda appeared otherwise. There is what looks like a steep slope of 300 feet of snow with some rock on the ridge looking northeast from the Pass. Intermediate leads or top roping or solo expert can succeed in good conditions.
On the way down the alpine meadow from Beeaan I saw five Great Himalayan Brown Bears. I came up a rise and saw some movement almost a kilometer down the meadow. I realized it was a mother and 2 cubs. Fortunately the wind was blowing from down valley and they were far enough away. I watched them meander down looking for grubs and insects under rocks. I followed slowly, warrily. They went into a ravine so as I got close to the ravine I started shouting. They emerged lower in the gully running down the meadow and dissapeared into the largest gully on the route and then up the mountainside. They paused to watch me but then kept going up and dissapeared into the brush. I breathed a sigh of relief. I got pictures!! On down a km or so I saw 2 more bears up on the mountainside. They were the color of dried grass with dark brown/black forepaws and face and must have weighed about 500 lbs. On the way back up to Darwa pass the snow had melted and there were springs everywhere. I was walking on a carpet of flowers. I got some nice pictures which you can see here.
Though I could not reach the summit of Bandarpoonch on this trip it was very much a success. I was somewhat supprised by how quickly I acclimatized --from the plains to 18,000' in 9 days. I did pioneer a new route, solo, to the ridge of the Bandarpoonch massif from the SW and have seen that it is possible to climb this peak from the SW ( which has never been done before) with a good rope team.
I flew to Delhi, India on April 30th 2004 landing at 5:30 pm. I went by train straight to Haridwar, the gateway to the Himalayas, arriving by 12:30 am on May 1st. That afternoon I arrived at the trailhead, a small village called Sangam Chatti (4,500’)just beyond Uttarkashi (3,000'). The trail begins in the valley forest but soon emerges into grassland and open fields of Agora village. The women were out in the fields planting potatoes. Though it was warm the 3 hours on the trail passed quickly and I soon arrived at Bevera village (7,500’) where I made myself comfortable in a rustic trekking lodge of stone and natural wood.
The next morning (May 2nd) I set out for Dodital Lake (10,000’). I did decide to take a porter because I was not acclimatized. The 80 year old path climbed through a forest canopy of Oaks and Rhododendron trees. It emerges onto grassy cliffs and then disappears into a lush spruce forest. On the other side of the valley I could see snow capped peaks rising to 13,000’. Several times we flushed out the iridescent Monal pheasant and came across two troops of Langur monkeys. The six and a half hours flew by and soon arrived at the picturesque lake of Dodital. I stayed with the caretaker at the lake for 2 nights while acclimatizing. One of the local guides whom I know had caught 8 or 10 brown trout which we feasted on. The lake is river and spring fed and has been probed to a depth of 600’ without finding the bottom. It is surrounded by a lush oak and spruce forest. May 5th I set out with my porter up the steep path to Darwa pass (13,000’). We left the lush forest at about 11,500’ and on by the rhododendron bushes and steep grassy slopes to the pass in about 3 hours where we had spectacular 360 degree views of the high Himalayas.
There was significant snow on the North side. On the 30th and 1st at least 18 " of snow fell there and about 6" at Dodital Lake, the latest significant snowfall that the caretaker could remember. I left my porter there and descended the north side through deep snow till about 12,000’. The spruce forest is even more lush than the south side. I crossed the Hanuman Ganga river (11,000’) over a log bridge made up of a single large tree which requires great care.and camped near the first stream and the first large meadow (11,500’) where the goat herders make their camp later in the summer.
The next campsite was at Beaan (12,500’) at the head of the alpine meadow close to the grassy hills on the west bank of the river. There was 2-3 inches of snow but I did find a flat bare spot next to a small stream. On May 7th I went up to the source of the Hanuman Ganga river(13,500’) and camped in the riverbed in the midst of house sized rocks.. The grassy hills had been fairly easy going but the last part is a riverbed route and without significant snow to cover the rocks was a challenge indeed. The next day brought me to the base of the south west ridge an area called Deodamini (14,000’). I thought I would have to melt snow for water but I heard the stream under the snow pack and broke through.
On May 9th I started up the face. I got a 5 am start to take advantage of the crusts. I went up the gully on the right side to avoid the deeper snow in the middle. I made it to about 15,500' carrying about 30 kg.(66 lbs.) and camped on a rock outcrop with just enough room for my tent.. Time was short so I set my goal to reach the ridge (18,000’) the next day. I left at dawn, 5 am, with just lunch, camera and warm clothes. The snow was firm on the underlying ice and of varying thickness. Crampons made it possible. Careful route selection was a help. I reached the ridge on May 10th at 1:30 pm.- approximate altitude 18,000'. I named it Hauman Pass after the mythological god who scaled Bandarpoonch in primordial time and for whom Bandarpoonch is named.. To my knowledge it is a first ascent. The angle got steep near the top, maybe 70 degrees so I had to be careful.
On the way down I did have one slip on a 55 deg slope but an immediate reflexive left handed ice axe arrest stopped my slide at 6 feet. I also did have one glissade on the way down in a gully where too much snow got moving and momentum of the snowpack made it a little hard to stop. Arrest did not work cause snow was too deep. Jamming axe straight in did not either because of momentum. Finally lessening of snow thickness and applying crampons to the underlying ice brought me to a prompt halt. I got back to my tent for a 7 pm sunset.
There is a moderate route to Bandar summit along the ridge although pictures from the top of Sirkanda appeared otherwise. There is what looks like a steep slope of 300 feet of snow with some rock on the ridge looking northeast from the Pass. Intermediate leads or top roping or solo expert can succeed in good conditions.
On the way down the alpine meadow from Beeaan I saw five Great Himalayan Brown Bears. I came up a rise and saw some movement almost a kilometer down the meadow. I realized it was a mother and 2 cubs. Fortunately the wind was blowing from down valley and they were far enough away. I watched them meander down looking for grubs and insects under rocks. I followed slowly, warrily. They went into a ravine so as I got close to the ravine I started shouting. They emerged lower in the gully running down the meadow and dissapeared into the largest gully on the route and then up the mountainside. They paused to watch me but then kept going up and dissapeared into the brush. I breathed a sigh of relief. I got pictures!! On down a km or so I saw 2 more bears up on the mountainside. They were the color of dried grass with dark brown/black forepaws and face and must have weighed about 500 lbs. On the way back up to Darwa pass the snow had melted and there were springs everywhere. I was walking on a carpet of flowers. I got some nice pictures which you can see here.
Though I could not reach the summit of Bandarpoonch on this trip it was very much a success. I was somewhat supprised by how quickly I acclimatized --from the plains to 18,000' in 9 days. I did pioneer a new route, solo, to the ridge of the Bandarpoonch massif from the SW and have seen that it is possible to climb this peak from the SW ( which has never been done before) with a good rope team.