In this month’s edition of The Line, we bring you two brand-new AAJ stories—plus a vintage report that’s had a fresh update.
Suraj Kushwaha leading the final corner on Fissure in Time. Photo: Nikhil Bhandari.
COOL CLIMBS IN NORTHERN INDIA
Rathan Thadi, near Manali, India. Photo: Suraj Kushwaha.
Supported by an AAC Live Your Dream Grant, Suraj Kushwaha from Vermont and Nikhil Bhandari from Hyderabad, India, explored a beautiful granite dome near Manali in northern India. Last spring, Kushwaha had attempted a route on the 4,600-meter formation, dubbed Rathan Thadi Dome, but melting snow soaked the rock and halted the effort. Armed with the lessons from that experience, he returned with Bhandari in October and climbed two beautiful rock routes: Rathan Thadi Direct (6 pitches, 5.11-) and Fissure in Time (6 pitches, 5.10 A2 M2). Kushwaha said the latter would go free at about 5.12-. The two also found some quality bouldering in the valley, the highlight of which was Tehelka (“Chaos,” V6).
In addition to winning an AAC grant, this expedition was the capstone project of Kushwaha’s participation in the Scarpa Athlete Mentorship Program (supported by Mountain Hardwear), which aims to help athletes from historically marginalized communities take their game to the next level. You can download Kushwaha’s complete report on the Rathan Thadi climbs at the AAJ website.
Working on Tehelka (V6). Photo: Kiran Kallur.
THE TRENCH CONNECTION
In early March 2023, Dylan Miller, Seth Classen, and Keagan Walker made a rare winter ascent of the Main Tower (6,910 feet) in the Mendenhall massif, via the standard route up the west ridge. A few weeks later, Dylan and Seth returned with Alex Burkhart and Cameron Jardell for an even more ambitious project: a new route up the south face.
Top: Seth Classen during the descent from the top of the Main Tower after making the first ascent of The Trench Connection. Bottom: The new line. The descent was to the left. Photos: Dylan Miller.
Starting in the afternoon of March 26, the quartet made the 10-mile, seven-hour approach on skis and reached the base of Main Tower at nightfall. Although the temperature soon plummeted, they had planned a nighttime ascent to minimize the solar effect on the deep snow they’d be climbing. Hours later they reached the top of Main Tower after completing The Trench Connection (1,600’, IV AI3 85°). They descended the normal route, using the anchors from their winter ascent three weeks earlier, and skied back toward town, reaching the cars by 10 a.m. on March 27 after a long, frosty night in the Alaskan wilderness. Read Dylan’s story at the AAJ website.
HISTORY: BAINTHA BRAKK II
Baintha Brakk II, the 6,960-meter neighbor of the famous Baintha Brakk (The Ogre) in the Karakoram, was first climbed in 1983 by a Korean team, by the northwest buttress. The AAJ report was scant and, it turns out, had some errors. These have now been corrected thanks to Kim Dong-soo from Korea, who also provided some historical photos from the climb. Two members of the 1983 expedition reached the summit: Lim Deok-yong and Yoo Han-gyu. During the final push above Camp 3, the two had to bivy in a snow cave at 6,800 meters without sleeping bags before carrying on to the top. Read the updated report here.
Climbing at 6,400 meters during the 1983 first ascent of Baintha Brakk II (a.k.a. Ogre II). Photo: Korean Ogre II Expedition.
Baintha Brakk II as seen from Baintha Brakk, showing the line up the northwest buttress attempted in 2015, very close to the 1983 first ascent of Baintha Brakk II by a Korean expedition. Photo: Kyle Dempster.
Many American climbers will remember Baintha Brakk II as the peak that Scott Adamson and Kyle Dempster from Utah attempted twice by the north face. Tragically, they disappeared during their second attempt, in 2016. One year earlier, Marcos Costa (Brazil) and Jesse Mease (USA) made a four-day, alpine-style attempt to repeat the Korean route on Baintha Brakk II, finding very difficult climbing before retreating at 6,700 meters. Although conditions undoubtedly were different three decades after the first ascent, the photos from 2015 are ample testimony to the difficulty of the ground the Korean team climbed in 1983.
Most reports older than 2010 in the AAJ online archive are not accompanied by any photos. If your climb was published in the AAJ before 2010, we invite you to submit photos to update our online stories and complete the historical record. Contact us at aaj@americanalpineclub.org.
THE CUTTING EDGE PODCAST: WHITE SAPPHIRE
For the final episode of the Cutting Edge podcast’s 2023 season, we interviewed Christian Black, Vitaliy Musiyenko, and Hayden Wyatt about their new route on White Sapphire, a peak in northern India’s spectacular Kishtwar district. Supported by a Cutting Edge Grant from the AAC, the three climbers put up Brilliant Blue (850m, AI3 80°M7+), probably making the third ascent of the 6,040-meter peak. Two of the three climbers had never been to the Himalaya, and this interview captures their wide-eyed enthusiasm, as well as their ability to go with the flow—a critical element for success in the Greater Ranges. Listen here.
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The Line is the newsletter of the American Alpine Journal (AAJ), emailed to more than 80,000 climbers each month. Find the archive of past editions here. Contact Heidi McDowell for sponsorship opportunities. Questions or suggestions? Email us: aaj@americanalpineclub.org.