Lobuche East

Submitted by Frank Verwijs using Add-a-Peak.

Description

Lobuche East is the hardest of the trekking peaks (fee: $350 for four climbers) that commercial groups attempt. In the Everest region(Khumbu) only Kwangde and Kusum Kangguru are more difficult. The main peak of Lobuche, however is to the NW of Lobuche East and is not included in the trekking peak permit. Therefore, a legal climb to Lobuche West (Main) requires an expedition-peak-permit and is considerable more expensive than Lobuche East. Now follows a description of Lobuche East (20075ft, 6119m 27° 57′ 34.2″ N, 86° 47′ 23.8″ E). Very few climbers who attempt this peak reach the real summit, but many attain the worth-while false summit. Good conditions and a dawn or pre-dawn start is recommended. The average angle for the rocky slabs above the lake (high camp) at about 16,500' to the start of the snow ridge at around 18,600' average 45 to 50 degrees and the route is marked with cairns. This is nice for alpine starts. These rock slabs could be tricky with snow on the rock and there are a couple of moves as you approach the SW ridge that parties may want to be roped up to surmount. The snow covered south west ridge route from 18,600' to the summit ridge is close to 70 degrees in places and may require two axes (at least for the leader), front pointing and belaying. (It is better to avoid the south west face unless you are looking for more of a challenge.) Most climbers who take the SW ridge approach stop at the top of the ridge and consider this to be the false summit of Lobuche East. To reach the true summit of Lobuche East, which is a continuation on the knife-edged ridge heading north west, a rope is recommended due to the exposure. A fall here would be disasterous. There is a slight descent from the false summit along the NW ridge and then a steep climb to the highest point on the long summit ridge. This is a couple of rope lenghts at most. From the true East summit, you will see more knife edge ridge leading NW to a massive notch that separates Lobuche East from Lobuche West, which is higher. The true summit proved to be, at first, an unatainable goal, but rocky outliners of Lobuche East were first climbed by the Swiss in 1952. Subsequent attempts fell short of the summit, finally climbed in 1984. Lobuche West was first climbed in 1955, by the South shoulder, which was also the first attempt. Since then the mountain has been scaled only a few times, also by the East-Face.

• Lobuche - Wikipedia