Himalayas in the world have fascinating high mountains and glittering peaks to get the extreme pleasure of mountain expedition. The beauty, vastness, and mystery always have an everlasting appeal for those who venture in this vast Himalayan region for mountain trekking and mountain expedition. Eight of the world’s 14 peaks over 8000 meters including Mt. Everest (8848m), Kanchanjunga (8598m), Lhotse (8516m), Makalu (8462m), Dhaulagiri (8167m), Manaslu (8156m), Cho Oyu (8153) and Annapurna (8091m), are only in Nepal Himalayas. The listed top 8 extreme mountain expeditions for 2014 are presented here.
Mt. Everest Expedition, the top most mountain expedition in the world, has proved to be a yardstick of climbing achievement. Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain, is the greatest challenge and one of the most famous mountains on earth. The mountain receives around 1000 summit attempts every year. The southern approach to Everest via the Khumbu Valley is popular among the climbers. Mt. Everest was first summitted in 1953 by Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Edmund Hillary. Most of the mountaineers dream to reach the summit of Everest in their life time. Successful Everest Expedition leaves one with the sense of most proud and adventurous people on Earth. However, Everest expeditions encounter many seen and unseen obstacles including high altitude, harsh weather and even sheer exhaustion. Hence, Everest is a deadly inexplicable, beguiling, and magnificent mountain.
2. LHOTSE EXPEDITION
The Lhotse Expedition, one of the top mountain adventures in the world, takes to the proximity of Mount Everest. Lhotse means South Face. Three peaks that make up the Lhotse massif are: Lhotse East or middle, Lhotse Shar and Lhotse. South Face of Lhotse is the most technical face of Lhotse. The Lhotse South Face is also one of the largest mountain faces in the world. The section during the climb, which has been unanimously declared the most dangerous, is the Khumbu Icefall. Both Mt Everest and Lhotse share the same base camp. In fact, Lhotse is a part of Everest massif itself. However, Lhotse is considered to be an independent mountain. After several unsuccessful attempts, the South Face was successfully climbed only in 1984.
3. CHO OYU EXPEDITION
Cho Oyu Expedition, one of the extreme mountain expedition for 2014, takes to the peak of one of the world’s highest 8000er mountains. Despite being the 6th highest mountain in the world, Cho Oyu has the highest success rate among the world’s fourteen 8,000er Himalayan peaks. The ascent to the summit is short and direct with a few small technical sections which can be climbed safely using fixed lines. However, climbing Cho Oyu is still a demanding undertaking, the mountain being one of the highest on earth. Cho Oyu lies about 20km west of Mt. Everest on the Nepal-Tibet border. An Austrian team first climbed Cho Oyu in 1954 followed by the Indian and German teams in 1958 and 1964 respectively. Cho Oyu consists mainly of five ridges – Northwest, Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and West with the Jabula Glacier on the north, Lanba Glacier on the south, and Gecongba Glacier.
Makalu Expedition, a must go extreme mountain expedition, summits to the fifth tallest mountain in the world. A close neighbor to Mount Everest, it lies in the northeast region of Nepal. It is relatively less attempted mountain. Mountaineers need to have a lot of mountaineering experience including one attempt on an 8,000 meter to climb Mount Makalu. The first attempt on Makalu was made by an American team in 1954, but it was first climbed by a French Team in 1955. The mountain has two important subsidiary peaks. The route to Makalu Base Camp (4823m) involves a sustained steep slope with magnificent views of Makalu to the north.
Manaslu Expedition, a must summit mountain expedition, climbs the world’s eighth highest mountain – Mt. Manaslu. Mt. Manaslu resides at the edge of one of the most secluded Himalayan valleys in the central-western Nepal Himalaya – Kali Gandaki valley 40 miles east of Annapurna. The Manaslu’s long ridges and valley glaciers provide feasible approaches from all directions culminating in a peak that towers steeply above its surrounding landscape. At least six different routes to Manaslu exist today of which the south face is the toughest in climbing history. The first attempt to Manaslu was made in 1953 by a Japanese team from the Budhi Gandaki Valley, however, the first ascent was made only in 1956. Actually, all the three peaks of Manaslu were first summitted by the Japanese.
Kanchenjungha Expedition, an extreme mountain expedition, maps out the third-highest mountain in the world. Located in the Eastern Nepal the border of Nepal and Sikkim, Kanchenjunga is the most easterly of the 8,000 meter Himalayan peaks and consists of four separate summits – Main Summit, Middle Summit, South Summit and Yalung Kang or West Summit. Kanchenjunga was first summitted in 1955 by a British Expedition team. The three of the five peaks, the main, central, and south, lie on the border of Nepal and Sikkim, India. Other two peaks lie completely in the Taplejung District of Nepal.
7. ANNAPURNA EXPEDITION
Annapurna Expedition, one of top extreme mountain expeditions in Nepal for 2014, covers the top of Mount Annapurna (8091m) – the 10th highest mountain in the world. Annapurna, adjacent to Pokhara, was the first eight-thousander to be climbed. The four summits with the entire massif of Annapurna form the northern barrier of Pokhara Valley. The main summit stands to the west of the Annapurna Sanctuary. The mountain has glaciers on its western and north-western slopes which drain into a great gorge cut through the Himalaya by the Kaligandaki River. However, despite being the first eight-thousander to be climbed, Annapurna is still one of the least climbed 8,000er peaks. The reason is that all the routes on the mountain pose severe difficulties for climbing.
8. DHAULAGIRI EXPEDITION
Dhaulagiri Expedition, one of the extreme mountain climbing adventures to the seventh highest peak in the world, reaches to the top of Mount Dhaulagiri. Mt. Dhaulagiri lies on the north-west of Pokhara and south of the Nepal- Tibet border. Dhaulagiri was first climbed by the Swiss team in 1960 via the North East Ridge. Dhaulagiri, along with another eight thousander Annapurna, make Kaligandaki the deepest gorge. It is also one of the most difficult mountains in the world.
Dhaulagiri is an interesting peak with more than six different routes. The normal climbing route is considered a reasonable climb with only short technical climbing sections and moderate avalanche danger. The South and West faces of Dhaulagiri both feature massive drops; each rises over 4000 meters from its base, and each has been the site of epic climbs. The tangled topography of twisting ridges, glaciers, and ice falls is crested by a stretch of thirty miles. Several pyramid-shaped peaks rise along the main crest. Four of the summits, numbered form east to west, rise above 25,000 feet.
