Gimmigela Chuli, or The Twins, are two-peak mountains in the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
, located on the border between
Taplejung
Taplejung District ( ne, ताप्लेजुङ जिल्ला ) is one of 77 districts of Nepal and one of the 14 districts of Province No. 1. It is remotely located in the Himalayas in Eastern Nepal with Tibet to the north across the ...
,
Mechi
Mechi ( ne, मेची अञ्चल ) was one of the fourteen zones of Nepal until the restructuring of zones to provinces, comprising four districts; namely Ilam, Jhapa, Panchthar and Taplejung. Its headquarters are at Ilam. It comes und ...
,
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
and
Sikkim
Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
Location
It has an elevation of above sea level and prominence is at . It is situated approximately NNE from
Kangchenjunga.
The mountain has a
subpeak, Gimmigela Chuli II metres; prominence is at . This subpeak, sometimes referred to as "Gimmigela's Sister", lies entirely within India. Together the two peaks, Gimmigela I and Gimmigela II, are known as "The Twins".
Climbing history
A Japanese expedition attempted to reach the west (main) summit in 1993 via the east ridge from
Sikkim
Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
, ending on 18 October 1993 after the death of expedition leader Masanori Sato. The team had achieved the first ascent of Gimmigela II and were on the summit ridge connecting the two peaks in an attempt to summit Gimmigela I when Sato fell 35 meters into a hidden
crevasse
A crevasse is a deep crack, that forms in a glacier or ice sheet that can be a few inches across to over 40 feet. Crevasses form as a result of the movement and resulting stress associated with the shear stress generated when two semi-rigid pie ...
. Despite the efforts of the other team members, his body was not recovered and the expedition was terminated.
One year later in October 1994, Taroh Tanigawa, Koji Nagakubo and Yuichi Yoshida, members of the failed attempt in 1993, achieved the first ascent of Gimmigela I.
"Gimmigela Chuli East, Northeast Face"
''American Alpine Journal''. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
References
{{Reflist
External links
Gimmigala Chuli on Peakery
Mountains of the Province No. 1
Mountains of Sikkim
India–Nepal border
International mountains of Asia
Seven-thousanders of the Himalayas