THE LAST
OPEN RANGE
BEFORE CLOSED
INNER TIBET
WEST OF LITANG IT’S BASICALLY ENDLESS PEAKS FOR 1000km, STARTING FROM GENYEN, BUT THE THING IS EVERYONE JUST GOES TO THE SAME BIT – THERE’S PEAKS EVERYWHERE BUT NO ONE’S GOING TO THE OTHERS. IT’S MADNESS.
JIMMY C
NOTE CURRENTLY THE MAIN GENYEN PEAK IS OFF LIMITS TO CLIMBERS. IT WILL REOPEN, BUT UNTIL THEN WE ARE GOING TO OTHER PEAKS IN THE RANGE
AT A GLANCE
- DATES TRIPS RUN OCTOBER 15 – JANUARY 15
- TRIP LENGTH 18 DAYS
- PRICES FROM USD6000
- TEAM SIZE 1 – 5
- STYLE SELF SUPPORTED, HORSE PORTERAGE
- INCLUDES 3 STAR HOTELS, EFFICIENT LOGISTICS, ALL PERMITS, WESTERN TRIP LEADER, LOCAL LIAISON
- MOUNTAIN:TRANSIT DAY RATIO 2:1
- CLIMBING DEMANDS EASY APPROACH, GRADE III – IV CLIMBING, A LOT OF SNOW & ICE, HIGH PROPORTION OF HIGH CAMP NIGHTS
- IDEAL FOR FIRST 6000m EXPEDITION, TRAINING & TESTING, ALTERNATIVE TO THE POPULAR 6000m TRIPS ELSEWHERE
.
GENYEN IS SYNONYMOUS WITH EASTERN TIBET CLIMBING. WHILST THE GONGGA RANGE GETS MORE ATTENTION DUE TO IT’S PROXIMITY TO CHENGDU & IT’S LONG HISTORY OF ASCENTS, ANYONE WHO FOLLOWS CLIMBING IN TIBET WILL KNOW ABOUT GENYEN.
FOR YEARS GENYEN WAS MOSTLY OFF LIMITS DUE TO POLITICS & SIMPLE ACCESS ISSUES – IT USED TO TAKE 2 LONG DAYS TO GET THERE VIA DETERIORATING ROADS – AND FOR MOST WAS NO CLOSER THAN THE BACKDROP AS THEY LEFT LITANG FOR OTHER PLACES. CLANDESTINELY OF COURSE CLIMBERS WERE MAKING IT IN, SOMETHING WHICH GROUND TO A HALT WITH THE DEATHS OF CHRISTINE BOSKOFF & CHARLIE FOWLER ON GENYEN PEAKS SLOPES IN 2006 THAT ALSO BEGAN THE END OF PIRATE-STYLE CLIMBING IN THE REGION.
TODAY GENYEN IS OPEN & ACCESSIBLE, BUT STILL RETAINS IT’S REMOTENESS DESPITE IT. APPROACHES ARE STILL SOLID, VIA A STRING OF MOUNTAIN TOWNS, MONASTERIES & GOMPAS. THE TRAILS INTO CENTRAL GENYEN ARE AS COLOURFUL AS THE CLIMBING ITSELF, WITH THE KNOTWORK OF DOZENS OF 5000-6000m PEAKS DOWN FRACTALISH VALLEYS, BIG WALLS & FACES.
IN RECENT YEARS WE HAVE SPENT TIME IN THE WESTERN APPROACHES, ON ROUTES FACING INTO INNER TIBET, AS WELL AS TRIPS TO THE BIG WALLS THAT SIT UP TOWARDS 6000m AND OFFER NEW STYLES OF CLIMBING THAT’S STILL IN IT’S INFANCY.
GENYEN PEAK ITSELF LOOKS OUT OVER THE RANGE AND IS STILL SURROUNDED BY AN ENIGMA, WITH IT’S MULTITUDE OF NEW ROUTE OPTIONS & FLUCTUATING ACCESS ISSUES FROM BOTH THE AUTHORITIES AND THE MONASTERY AT ITS BASE.
SHADOWED SOMEWHAT FROM THE SNOWS THAT CAN HIT GONGGA, GENYEN IS BOTH MORE RELIABLE & LESS VISITED, HAVING LIFETIMES-WORTH OF NEW ROUTE OPTIONS THAT INCLUDE DOZENS OF +5500m PEAKS WITHOUT FIRST ASCENTS – OR SO THEY SAY. THE SPIRITS OF FOWLER & BOSKOFF STILL PERVADE THE PLACE AS MORE THAN ONE CLIMBER HAS FOUND, THINKING THEY WERE ON UNCLIMBED TERRAIN, ONLY TO FIND AN OLD PITON OR TWO QUIETLY WAITING OUT THE AGES, A NOD OF APPROVAL FROM THE VISIONARIES THAT HAVE GONE BEFORE.
