The Kangshung Face (Chinese: 康雄壁) or East Face is the eastern-facing side of

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heig ...

, one of the Tibetan sides of the mountain. It is 3,350 metres (11,000 ft) from its base on the Kangshung Glacier to the summit.''Mount Everest'', 1:50,000 map, 1:25,000 map, and route guide. Prepared under the direction of

Bradford Washburn Henry Bradford Washburn Jr. (June 7, 1910 – January 10, 2007) was an American explorer, mountaineer, photographer, and cartographer. He established the Boston Museum of Science, served as its director from 1939–1980, and from 1985 until his d ...

for the

National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...

, the

Boston Museum of Science The Museum of Science (MoS) is a science museum and indoor zoo in Boston, Massachusetts, located in Science Park, a plot of land spanning the Charles River. Along with over 700 interactive exhibits, the museum features a number of live presentat ...

, and the

Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internatio ...

, 1991. It is a broad face, topped on the right (when seen from below) by the upper Northeast Ridge, and on the left by the Southeast Ridge and the South Col. Most of the upper part of the face is composed of hanging

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

s, while the lower part consists of steep rock buttresses with

couloir A ''couloir'' (, "passage" or "corridor") is a narrow gully with a steep gradient in a mountainous terrain.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, p. 121. . Geology A couloir may be a seam, scar, or fissu ...

s between them. The steep southern third of the Kangshung Face also comprises the Northeastern Face of

Lhotse Lhotse ( ne, ल्होत्से ; , ''lho tse'', ) is the fourth highest mountain in the world at , after Mount Everest, K2, and Kangchenjunga. The main summit is on the border between Tibet Autonomous Region of China and the Khumbu ...

; this section may be considered a separate face altogether following the division of the South "Neverest" Buttress up to the

South Col The South Col is a sharp-edged col between Mount Everest and Lhotse, the highest and fourth-highest mountains in the world, respectively. The South Col is typically swept by high winds, leaving it free of significant snow accumulation. Since 195 ...

. It is considered to be a dangerous route of ascent, compared to the standard North Col and South Col routes, and it is the most remote face of the mountain, with a longer approach.

History

The eastern side of the mountain was relatively unknown to the outside world until the 20th century, owing to the complex and isolated terrain and climate of

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

, and

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

reverence for the mountains prohibiting their ascent. In 1921,

George Mallory George Herbert Leigh Mallory (18 June 1886 – 8 or 9 June 1924) was an English mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest in the early 1920s. Born in Cheshire, Mallory became a student at Winchester ...

and

Guy Bullock Guy Henry Bullock (23 July 1887 – 12 April 1956) was a British diplomat who is best known for his participation in the 1921 British Mount Everest reconnaissance expedition. As expedition mountaineers, he and George Mallory found a northern acc ...

were the first Westerners to witness and survey the Kangshung Face, as a part of the initial 1921 British reconnaissance expedition which had gained permission for the first-time ever from the

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...

to attempt ascents of Everest. Mallory and Bullock were led by local

yak The domestic yak (''Bos grunniens''), also known as the Tartary ox, grunting ox or hairy cattle, is a species of long-haired domesticated cattle found throughout the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, the Tibetan Plateau, Kachin Sta ...

herders to the east side the mountain, passing through the high ''Langma La'' and the

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

forests of ''

Kama Chu KhartaKharta is sometimes romanised as Kharda, Khata or Karta. ( zh, c=卡达) is a region in Tibet lying to the east of Mount Everest and centred on the Kharta valley and Kama valley.Kama is sometimes romanised as Karma. The Kharta valley start ...

''. At that time of the year in August, there were meadows of flowers and rich vegetation in the valleys and beside the

Kangshung Glacier The Kangshung Glacier ( zh, c=卓穷冰川) is one of the three main glaciers of Mount Everest, and is in the Tibet region Himalayas, within the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The other two are the Khumbu Glacier and Rongbuk Glacier. Geograph ...

. In 1980, a young American climber, Andy Harvard, undertook a modern reconnaissance of the East Face. Today, there are numerous trekking companies that guide clients to the Kangshung Glacier where they can view Everest. It takes six or seven days to reach the Kangshung Glacier from the nearest road at Yeuba (near

Kharta KhartaKharta is sometimes romanised as Kharda, Khata or Karta. ( zh, c=卡达) is a region in Tibet lying to the east of Mount Everest and centred on the Kharta valley and Kama valley.Kama is sometimes romanised as Karma. The Kharta valley start ...

Climbing history

A 1981 American attempt led by Richard Blum and

Louis Reichardt Louis French Reichardt (born June 4, 1942) is a noted American neuroscientist and mountaineering, mountaineer, the first American to summit both Everest and K2. He was also director of the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, the largest ...

, including

Edmund Hillary Sir Edmund Percival Hillary (20 July 1919 – 11 January 2008) was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953, Hillary and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reached t ...

George Lowe George Edward Lowe (born November 10, 1957) is an American voice actor and comedian whose voice roles include Space Ghost on the animated series ''Space Ghost Coast to Coast'' and its spin-off, ''Cartoon Planet''.John Roskelley John Roskelley (born December 1, 1948) is an American mountain climber and author from Spokane, Washington. He made first ascents and notable ascents of 7,000-meter (22,966 ft.) and 8,000-meter peaks (26,247 ft.) in Nepal, India, and Pakistan. ...

David Breashears David Finlay Breashears (born December 20, 1955) is an American mountaineer, filmmaker, author, and motivational speaker. In 1985, he reached the summit of Mount Everest a second time, becoming the first American to reach the summit of Mount Evere ...

, and Kim Momb made progress on the steep rock buttresses, but aborted at around 7000 meters due to high avalanche danger. The first successful ascent of the Kangshung Face was made in 1983 by an American expedition led by James D. Morrissey. After five and a half weeks of effort, Kim Momb,

Carlos Buhler Carlos Buhler (born October 17, 1954 in Harrison, New York) is one of America's leading high altitude mountaineers. Buhler's specialty is high-standard mountaineering characterized by small teams, no oxygen, minimal gear and equipment, and relative ...

, and

summited on 8 October 1983.

Briton British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies.: British nationality law governs mod ...

to summit without the use of bottled oxygen. Ed Webster (USA) and Robert Anderson (USA) made it to the South Summit but did not reach the summit. Paul Teare (Canada) made it to the South Col, but descended because he was feeling unwell. In support were: Miriam Zieman (USA), doctor; Joseph Blackburn (USA), photographer; Pasang Norbu (Nepal), cook and Kasang Tsering (Tibet), cookboy. In 1992 a Chilean expedition successfully climbed this route being the second expedition to do it. The climbers who reached the summit were

Rodrigo Jordan Rodrigo Jordán Fuchs (born June 30, 1959 in Santiago, Chile) is a Chilean business man, a University Professor, social entrepreneur and mountaineer. He is a founder and president of Vertical S.A., Leadership Professor in Pontifical Catholic Unive ...

, Cristian Garcia-Huidobro and Juan Sebastian Montes. Kangshung face is where Lincoln Hall was found alive after he was left for dead on his 2006 expedition to summit Mount Everest.

Ascending the Kangshung Face

To climb the face, the 3 kilometer (2 mi) wide base of the wall must be surpassed by climbing up either the deep gashes of avalanche-swept gullies or the vertical, overhanging rock buttresses, full of deadly ice towers and unsteady snow. Since the crux of the route is near the bottom, retreat is more difficult, making the climb more committing; the relative isolation of the face and probable lack of other climbers also add to the commitment factor. The hanging glaciers and snow slopes pose a large risk of avalanches, especially in the case of a storm, adding to the objective danger of the route. Taking into account these challenges, George Mallory noted in his expedition book: "Other men, less wise, might attempt this way if they would, but, emphatically, it was not for us."Stephen Venables, ''Everest: Alone at the Summit'', p. 8.

References

External links

View from the Base Camp, South Col to the left

{{Mount Everest Mount Everest Climbing routes

History

Climbing history

Ascending the Kangshung Face

References

Further reading

External links