justahiker - Nov 11, 2022 11:18 pm Date Climbed: Oct 14, 2022
Amazing experience!
Beautiful region and summit itself.
The first time above the elevation of 6,000m. It was not easy because of the altitude, but technically it was not too demanding.
We had amazing weather and views of surrounding summits.
yadahzoemtn - Mar 15, 2020 10:11 am Date Climbed: Oct 9, 2019
After the trek to Everest Base Camp
With incredible mountaineering friends, Ling and Larry. This is the highest I have ever been. This mountain was magical and loaded with all kinds of features and fun.
Surjo10 - Sep 2, 2019 12:36 am Date Climbed: Feb 3, 2019
IMJA TSE
FANTASTIC.
Surjo10 - Sep 1, 2019 11:07 am Date Climbed: May 5, 2019
Island Peak
Wonderful experience.
Yulia Zi - Jul 5, 2019 4:08 pm Date Climbed: Oct 10, 2018
Great weather Summit from the lower BC
Was my first time climbing in Nepal. Went with the local mountaineering club and we teamed up with the guides in Nepal. 100% success and 7 people team got to the top and back. Definitely, a big day and many of us felt the altitude.
Part of the team went on to summiting Ama Dablam after Island Peak.
The weather was so perfect that at some point I had no gloves jumaring up the final headwall.
We did train a lot back in California and were very disciplined about acclimation hikes every day along our trek to Khumbu.
One of the most beautiful experiences of my life. Got to see Ama Dablam BC as well and it was fantastic.
rvj536 - Dec 9, 2018 4:04 am Date Climbed: May 9, 2017
Island Peak
Just after the dark cloud of Boards had passed, the two of us set off on our Expedition to summit Island Peak, a mountain that had last been summited by School nearly 20 years ago. What lay ahead of us was nearly a month in the Himalayas which involved 160 kilometres of trekking, an altitude gain of nearly 13,500 feet and experiencing temperatures that dipped well below -15 centigrade. It was, in every sense, an adventure of a lifetime.
We began our journey when our plane landed at the infamous Tenzing-Hillary Airport at Lukla. The airport is perched on the side of a hill and has a 500 meter runway which makes the landing quite a daunting experience! We began our trek from here and slowly made our way up through the scenic Dudh Kosi Valley. On the second day of our trek we started getting close to the famous Namche Bazaar. We crossed the famous Hillary Bridge after which it was a steep climb to Namche. It was here that we got our first view of Lhotse (8,500 meters), Nuptes (7,800 meters) and the fabled Mt. Everest (8,848 meters). We soon reached Namche afterwards, which is the capital of the Khumbu Region and the hub of Mountaineering Activity in the Everest Region. We stayed in Namche for 3 days as we needed a day for acclimatisation and we also taught at Shree Himalayan School, a school setup by Sir Edmund Hillary.
We left Namche and continued onwards and upwards. As we gained altitude, we left the tree line behind us and entered a landscape with scanty tundra vegetation. We soon reached the village of Dingboche where we got to see Island Peak. But before we could move towards Island Peak, we had planned to trek to Everest Base Camp and climb Kala Pathar (5,500 meters), a small peak right next to Everest. This would help us acclimatise and enable us to climb Island Peak with greater ease. So instead of going into the Imja Valley and towards Island Peak, we started making our way through the Khumbu Valley towards Everest Base Camp.
We first made our way to Gorak Shep from where we would climb Kala Pathar. The climb to Kala Pathar was quite strenuous, but we were rewarded with a great view of Everest and Lhotse. After climbing Kala Pathar, we resumed our trek towards EBC which was only a few hours away from Gorak Shep. The weather conditions had started to deteriorate and by the time we reached EBC it had started snowing heavily. We took a couple of pictures after which we took a closer look at the Khumbu Ice Fall. With the weather conditions getting worse, we decided that we should start moving down and made our way down back to Dingboche.
It was now, that we finally began our final push towards Island Peak. We trekked to Chukung where we met our climbing Sherpa’s and got all of our mountaineering equipment. We then moved forward to Island Peak Base Camp where we prepared for the climb.
We began our climb to the summit from Base Camp at 2:15 am. The sky was clear and it was a full moon, so visibility was great. The snow reflected the moonlight well and that was a boon for us and made our job of walking dead in the night much easier. For the first hour or so we trekked around to the back of the mountain from where we started climbing up. We trekked along a very steep trail all the way to the ‘Crampon Point’. It was here that the actual glacier began and that we had to wear our crampons, which are small metal spikes that give you grip on ice while climbing. We then started to traverse the glacier. We encountered a number of crevasses on the way which had been tackled by the use of ladders. We soon reached the final barrier between us and the summit. It was a near vertical face of the mountain of a height of about 150 meters. We attached ourselves to the fixed rope and began ascending slowly. This was quite a difficult task and it took us nearly an hour and a half to reach all the way to summit ridge. We than walked about 10 meters along the narrow ridge to the summit. We had finally made it. 6,189 meters. We then raised our School flag and tri-color on the summit. We sat there for about 10 minutes just admiring the view and thinking about our journey. The feeling that we had ‘conquered’ anything did not seep into us. Rather, a sense of deep satisfaction entered the both of us, a feeling not of success- the great mountaineer George Mallory rightly said, “Have we gained success? That word means nothing here.” Rather the feeling of solidarity took over. We then began our descent through heavy snow and eventually, reached Base Camp safely.
Our expedition to Island Peak was one of the fullest and best experiences of our lives and it is something we both will surely keep close to our hearts for the rest of our lives.
ye2bnik - Nov 21, 2017 8:44 am Date Climbed: Nov 7, 2017
Good climb in perfect conditions
Very nice and bit challenging climb. Started from BC at 1.30am, on the top after less than 6 hours. Fantastic view from the top!
Frank - Apr 12, 2017 2:51 pm Date Climbed: Oct 14, 2016
Island peak, what a view
Nice climb. Took us about 4 hrs. from BC to the summit. Clear sky, so awesome view on the surrounding mountains. Lhotse face is impressive!
rocky29oct - Nov 19, 2016 10:46 am Date Climbed: May 14, 2016
Got to 20000 feet (about 6100 meters) & made the decision to turn around as partner was showing early symptoms of altitude sickness.
Peak Freak - Jan 16, 2016 1:14 am Date Climbed: May 24, 2014
Spontaneous!
Was trekking in Nepal and trying to figure out what to do next... Met a fellow on the summit of Kala Pataar who was en route to Island Peak. We re-connected the next day in Dingboche, and I accompanied him to Chukung, where it turns out I could rent gear, get a permit, and join a team for the climb the following day. We were the only 7 on the mountain, and all 7 of us made it to the summit together!
kunlun - Nov 20, 2015 8:05 am Date Climbed: Nov 12, 2015
An interesting climb but not too hard
A little cold at BC but the weather was great at the summit. I had climbed Mera prior to Imja Tse so didn't have much trouble with the altitude. Took around 11 hours BC to BC at a leisure pace.
Cissa - Nov 1, 2014 4:41 am Date Climbed: Oct 18, 2014
Normal route alpine style
Climbed without fixed ropes or sherpa support from BC, amongst some hostility from some sherpas for doing so. Headwall was about 200m and then a short walk to the summit in a narrow ridge. I'd say that climbed free this is in the AD-/AD range. Perfect weather and not too cold.
Easy climb in perfect conditions (May 2013) with a local guide. Terrible fixed ropes (cheap plastic twisted ones that you use to tie things to a trailer) which barely caught in the jumar and horrible ancient anchors but Thankfully I didn't plunge to my death. In chukkung I set up a z pulley just for something to do and some local guides came over and stood around watching with no idea what I was doing. If safety is a big deal for you and you want to do guided climbing in Nepal go with a western agency......
bechtt - May 13, 2014 7:58 pm Date Climbed: Apr 26, 2014
Normal route
Took us about 6 hours to summit from base camp starting at 1:20a. The ice ramp which now goes practically to the summit was very busy on the way down, even with three ropes. Some big crevasses in the glacier makes things interesting. Pictures
jonboy - May 2, 2014 11:09 pm Date Climbed: Nov 15, 2012
normal route
What a great experience. It took us quite a while to get up the head wall. I was surprised at how much rock scrambling there was before getting to the glacier. If I were to do it again, I think I'd rather start the summit push from high camp even though you'd have to haul your water up.
matous - Jan 8, 2013 4:47 am Date Climbed: Nov 8, 2011
normal route
we used no ported no guides. we slept at high camp to escape the crowds, but be warned no water at high camp...
punchline - Nov 23, 2012 11:55 am Date Climbed: Nov 1, 2012
Normal Route
Beautiful but long day - left "base camp" at 1:30am to try to avoid the crowds. Unfortunately most everyone was en route around that time. About 50 people on summit this day and we had to sit and wait at the bottom of the headwall for awhile. Interesting in that we have relatives that climbed about 6 years ago and they barely recognized the route in the photos we shared. It appears that the crevasses after the "crampon up point" are getting bigger each year. In fact we heard that the Sagarmatha National Park officials may have to either determine another route or fix ladders across some of the bigger cracks. Will try to post a few photos soon.
Kicki - Oct 9, 2011 4:14 pm Date Climbed: Mar 19, 2011
justahiker - Nov 11, 2022 11:18 pm Date Climbed: Oct 14, 2022
Amazing experience!Beautiful region and summit itself.
The first time above the elevation of 6,000m. It was not easy because of the altitude, but technically it was not too demanding.
We had amazing weather and views of surrounding summits.
yadahzoemtn - Mar 15, 2020 10:11 am Date Climbed: Oct 9, 2019
After the trek to Everest Base CampWith incredible mountaineering friends, Ling and Larry. This is the highest I have ever been. This mountain was magical and loaded with all kinds of features and fun.
Surjo10 - Sep 2, 2019 12:36 am Date Climbed: Feb 3, 2019
IMJA TSEFANTASTIC.
Surjo10 - Sep 1, 2019 11:07 am Date Climbed: May 5, 2019
Island PeakWonderful experience.
Yulia Zi - Jul 5, 2019 4:08 pm Date Climbed: Oct 10, 2018
Great weather Summit from the lower BCWas my first time climbing in Nepal. Went with the local mountaineering club and we teamed up with the guides in Nepal. 100% success and 7 people team got to the top and back. Definitely, a big day and many of us felt the altitude.
Part of the team went on to summiting Ama Dablam after Island Peak.
The weather was so perfect that at some point I had no gloves jumaring up the final headwall.
We did train a lot back in California and were very disciplined about acclimation hikes every day along our trek to Khumbu.
One of the most beautiful experiences of my life. Got to see Ama Dablam BC as well and it was fantastic.
rvj536 - Dec 9, 2018 4:04 am Date Climbed: May 9, 2017
Island PeakJust after the dark cloud of Boards had passed, the two of us set off on our Expedition to summit Island Peak, a mountain that had last been summited by School nearly 20 years ago. What lay ahead of us was nearly a month in the Himalayas which involved 160 kilometres of trekking, an altitude gain of nearly 13,500 feet and experiencing temperatures that dipped well below -15 centigrade. It was, in every sense, an adventure of a lifetime.
We began our journey when our plane landed at the infamous Tenzing-Hillary Airport at Lukla. The airport is perched on the side of a hill and has a 500 meter runway which makes the landing quite a daunting experience! We began our trek from here and slowly made our way up through the scenic Dudh Kosi Valley. On the second day of our trek we started getting close to the famous Namche Bazaar. We crossed the famous Hillary Bridge after which it was a steep climb to Namche. It was here that we got our first view of Lhotse (8,500 meters), Nuptes (7,800 meters) and the fabled Mt. Everest (8,848 meters). We soon reached Namche afterwards, which is the capital of the Khumbu Region and the hub of Mountaineering Activity in the Everest Region. We stayed in Namche for 3 days as we needed a day for acclimatisation and we also taught at Shree Himalayan School, a school setup by Sir Edmund Hillary.
We left Namche and continued onwards and upwards. As we gained altitude, we left the tree line behind us and entered a landscape with scanty tundra vegetation. We soon reached the village of Dingboche where we got to see Island Peak. But before we could move towards Island Peak, we had planned to trek to Everest Base Camp and climb Kala Pathar (5,500 meters), a small peak right next to Everest. This would help us acclimatise and enable us to climb Island Peak with greater ease. So instead of going into the Imja Valley and towards Island Peak, we started making our way through the Khumbu Valley towards Everest Base Camp.
We first made our way to Gorak Shep from where we would climb Kala Pathar. The climb to Kala Pathar was quite strenuous, but we were rewarded with a great view of Everest and Lhotse. After climbing Kala Pathar, we resumed our trek towards EBC which was only a few hours away from Gorak Shep. The weather conditions had started to deteriorate and by the time we reached EBC it had started snowing heavily. We took a couple of pictures after which we took a closer look at the Khumbu Ice Fall. With the weather conditions getting worse, we decided that we should start moving down and made our way down back to Dingboche.
It was now, that we finally began our final push towards Island Peak. We trekked to Chukung where we met our climbing Sherpa’s and got all of our mountaineering equipment. We then moved forward to Island Peak Base Camp where we prepared for the climb.
We began our climb to the summit from Base Camp at 2:15 am. The sky was clear and it was a full moon, so visibility was great. The snow reflected the moonlight well and that was a boon for us and made our job of walking dead in the night much easier. For the first hour or so we trekked around to the back of the mountain from where we started climbing up. We trekked along a very steep trail all the way to the ‘Crampon Point’. It was here that the actual glacier began and that we had to wear our crampons, which are small metal spikes that give you grip on ice while climbing. We then started to traverse the glacier. We encountered a number of crevasses on the way which had been tackled by the use of ladders. We soon reached the final barrier between us and the summit. It was a near vertical face of the mountain of a height of about 150 meters. We attached ourselves to the fixed rope and began ascending slowly. This was quite a difficult task and it took us nearly an hour and a half to reach all the way to summit ridge. We than walked about 10 meters along the narrow ridge to the summit. We had finally made it. 6,189 meters. We then raised our School flag and tri-color on the summit. We sat there for about 10 minutes just admiring the view and thinking about our journey. The feeling that we had ‘conquered’ anything did not seep into us. Rather, a sense of deep satisfaction entered the both of us, a feeling not of success- the great mountaineer George Mallory rightly said, “Have we gained success? That word means nothing here.” Rather the feeling of solidarity took over. We then began our descent through heavy snow and eventually, reached Base Camp safely.
Our expedition to Island Peak was one of the fullest and best experiences of our lives and it is something we both will surely keep close to our hearts for the rest of our lives.
ye2bnik - Nov 21, 2017 8:44 am Date Climbed: Nov 7, 2017
Good climb in perfect conditionsVery nice and bit challenging climb. Started from BC at 1.30am, on the top after less than 6 hours. Fantastic view from the top!
Frank - Apr 12, 2017 2:51 pm Date Climbed: Oct 14, 2016
Island peak, what a viewNice climb. Took us about 4 hrs. from BC to the summit. Clear sky, so awesome view on the surrounding mountains. Lhotse face is impressive!
rocky29oct - Nov 19, 2016 10:46 am Date Climbed: May 14, 2016
Great mountainThis is a great mountain with amazing views.
MountainDuck - Apr 9, 2016 1:59 pm Date Climbed: Apr 25, 2014
Normal Route - Perfect Day - Turned aroundGot to 20000 feet (about 6100 meters) & made the decision to turn around as partner was showing early symptoms of altitude sickness.
Peak Freak - Jan 16, 2016 1:14 am Date Climbed: May 24, 2014
Spontaneous!Was trekking in Nepal and trying to figure out what to do next... Met a fellow on the summit of Kala Pataar who was en route to Island Peak. We re-connected the next day in Dingboche, and I accompanied him to Chukung, where it turns out I could rent gear, get a permit, and join a team for the climb the following day. We were the only 7 on the mountain, and all 7 of us made it to the summit together!
kunlun - Nov 20, 2015 8:05 am Date Climbed: Nov 12, 2015
An interesting climb but not too hardA little cold at BC but the weather was great at the summit. I had climbed Mera prior to Imja Tse so didn't have much trouble with the altitude. Took around 11 hours BC to BC at a leisure pace.
whatdoIknow - Nov 13, 2014 9:10 am
good daygreat view from summit
Cissa - Nov 1, 2014 4:41 am Date Climbed: Oct 18, 2014
Normal route alpine styleClimbed without fixed ropes or sherpa support from BC, amongst some hostility from some sherpas for doing so. Headwall was about 200m and then a short walk to the summit in a narrow ridge. I'd say that climbed free this is in the AD-/AD range. Perfect weather and not too cold.
jasperreed - May 14, 2014 1:10 pm
Normal routeEasy climb in perfect conditions (May 2013) with a local guide. Terrible fixed ropes (cheap plastic twisted ones that you use to tie things to a trailer) which barely caught in the jumar and horrible ancient anchors but Thankfully I didn't plunge to my death. In chukkung I set up a z pulley just for something to do and some local guides came over and stood around watching with no idea what I was doing. If safety is a big deal for you and you want to do guided climbing in Nepal go with a western agency......
bechtt - May 13, 2014 7:58 pm Date Climbed: Apr 26, 2014
Normal routeTook us about 6 hours to summit from base camp starting at 1:20a. The ice ramp which now goes practically to the summit was very busy on the way down, even with three ropes. Some big crevasses in the glacier makes things interesting. Pictures
jonboy - May 2, 2014 11:09 pm Date Climbed: Nov 15, 2012
normal routeWhat a great experience. It took us quite a while to get up the head wall. I was surprised at how much rock scrambling there was before getting to the glacier. If I were to do it again, I think I'd rather start the summit push from high camp even though you'd have to haul your water up.
matous - Jan 8, 2013 4:47 am Date Climbed: Nov 8, 2011
normal routewe used no ported no guides. we slept at high camp to escape the crowds, but be warned no water at high camp...
punchline - Nov 23, 2012 11:55 am Date Climbed: Nov 1, 2012
Normal RouteBeautiful but long day - left "base camp" at 1:30am to try to avoid the crowds. Unfortunately most everyone was en route around that time. About 50 people on summit this day and we had to sit and wait at the bottom of the headwall for awhile. Interesting in that we have relatives that climbed about 6 years ago and they barely recognized the route in the photos we shared. It appears that the crevasses after the "crampon up point" are getting bigger each year. In fact we heard that the Sagarmatha National Park officials may have to either determine another route or fix ladders across some of the bigger cracks. Will try to post a few photos soon.
Kicki - Oct 9, 2011 4:14 pm Date Climbed: Mar 19, 2011
Normal routeFrom high camp to summit! A fantastic experience!