Langtang, Nepal
- Nicolas Hojac
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Nepal is probably the most famous country when it comes to mountaineering. A full eight of the fourteen 8,000-meter peaks are located here – it's the Mecca for high mountains. Until now, I'd never been drawn there, as I was always a bit intimidated by the tourist crowds and the 8,000-meter peaks didn't really interest me. But this year, I had a very experienced climbing partner, David Göttler, with me, who also knows Nepal extremely well. It was also his suggestion to visit the Landgang Valley, somewhat off the beaten track, to explore the mountaineering opportunities there.
Getting there is very easy. You drive from Kathmandu to Syabru Bensi in a day by jeep, and from there it's another day and a half to the remote village of Kyanjin Gumpa. The Langtang Valley gained some notoriety after the Netflix documentary "Nepal in Shock," which depicted the devastating earthquake that wiped out an entire village there in 2015. The effects are still visible in some places today. We're staying at the Superview Lodge, which will be our base camp for the next three weeks. Life here is very comfortable; it feels like being in a hotel. On a rest day, you can enjoy cappuccino and cinnamon rolls at one of the bakeries, and there's also reasonably good internet access.
We're not here to relax, but to explore the area and, of course, to go mountaineering. We've also brought our paragliders, because we're determined to fly down from a 6000-meter peak into the valley. We've barely arrived before we start acclimatizing. We climb to Tserko Ri (4985m) and fly back down to the valley. The day after next, we head straight to Yala Peak (5500m) and launch our paragliders again from just below the summit, flying back down to the valley. Now that's what I call fun acclimatizing!
After a few unproductive days visiting a friend's Italian expedition and a tragic rescue on Langtang Lirung, David and I set off again to acclimatize. We climbed to 5100m for a bivouac, and the following day we summited Yala Peak (5700m) and spent another night at the same spot. The next day we paraglided down to Kyanjin Gumpa – very easy on the knees!
The following three days were quite tragic. They involved the recovery of the body of a Czech mountaineer who had died descending Langtang Lirung. Ultimately, the Nepalese were able to locate and recover the body successfully. The situation wasn't easy for us, and we were relieved when it was all over.
We finally wanted to realize our dream of paragliding from a 6000-meter peak. We chose Shalbachum (6900m, according to the map). We climbed back up to our camp at 5100m and planned to make a quick and easy push to the summit the next day. We left our tent and bivouac gear behind, taking only the essentials and, of course, our paragliders. From this side, Shalbachum is a relatively easy mountain, making it ideal for our plan. We made our way through a labyrinth of glaciers, continued along the ridge, and climbed to the summit. The last few meters were the most exposed, and we balanced precariously on a knife's edge to reach the highest point. As happy as we were to reach the top, we were also somewhat disappointed, because our GPS altimeters indicated that the summit was "only" 6700m, and the exposed summit was far from an ideal launch site. We descend to 6300m, where we lay out our paragliders and enjoy what will probably be one of the most beautiful paragliding flights of our lives. Half an hour later we're back down in the valley – so amazing!
After a few days of rest and retrieving our gear (with paragliders, of course), we set off again. This time, our goal is to establish a new route on Ganchempo (6387m). After a full day's hike to the base of the wall, we get ready. We plan to start climbing early in the morning, at first light. We've brought plenty of technical equipment, as we anticipate considerable difficulties. At the start, however, we realize that the ice has detached and the rock is even more crumbly than expected. We spontaneously decide to take the classic route up the north face, which has apparently only seen three ascents. This route offers beautiful firn and ice climbing all the way to the summit. The final meters are a bit tricky, and the powdery snow doesn't make things any easier in places. At the summit, we're simply happy to have accomplished another small adventure. The descent via the normal route is long again, and it takes quite some time before we're back at our camp. We have brought the paragliders with us again, but a flight is denied us due to the downdraft and we have to return on foot.
Barely back in Kyanjin Gumpa, we began our journey back to Kathmandu. We had a fantastic time in Nepal and made many friends. The time was short, but packed with experiences and adventures.
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