Annapurna Expedition

Annapurna at 8091 m is the tenth highest mountain in the world, and the first mountain standing in the category of 8000 m peak to be climbed in 1950. It is located in the North-central Nepal stretching along with Lamjung Himal from the Kali Gandaki in the west to the Marshyangdi in the east. The mountain has glaciers on its western and north-western slopes which drain into this gorge. Annapurna means “full of food” in Sanskrit but normally interpreted as “Goddess of the Harvests”.

Annapurna Expedition is one of the popular expeditions in Nepal. Annapurna 8091 m was first climbed by a French expedition team guided by Maurice Herzog, who reached the summit on 3rd June, 1950. It took 20 years for another team to succeed on the same mountain summit. There are four summits in the range of Annapurna. The entire massif forms a fence on the northern side of the Pokhara valley. The main top stands to the west of Annapurna sanctuary. The south face of Annapurna is one of the largest and precipitous faces in the world. The face is awesome in size and difficult. The total massif and nearby area is protected within the 7,629 sq. km. as Annapurna Conservation Area led by Project (ACAP), the first and huge conservation area in Nepal, which was established in 1986. In 1970 a British expedition led by Chris Bonington, climbed the south face of Annapurna including the Alpine Ian Clough, who was killed by a falling ice pillar during the comedown. In 1978 an expedition led by Arlene Blum became the first American team to climb Annapurna I. The expedition was also incredible for being composed completely of women. Jerzy Kukuczka and Artur Hajzer, a Polish climber made the first ascent of an eight thousand in winter, on February 3, 1987.