Valery Babanov: "Mountains always constitute a real danger"

Interview with Valery Babanov on June, 14 2006 for www.mountain.ru

Valery Babanov:
Having left from Katmandu on April, 15, I expected to get Base camp under Chomo Lonzo already on April 21. But in practice because of setting in for snowfalls we had to stay three days more in the area of the settlement of Kharta: we had not time to get with a caravan of yaks through Shau La pass at 4950 meters. This time delay was went against me. I reached BC only on April, 24. For these three days of bad weather a lot of snow fell in the mountains: the next day during my attempt to make a reconnaissance of Chomo Lonzo West Face for 8 hours of heavy climb I managed to overcome only half-way of the planned route. I was really damped by this failure. I had to make some hard climbs hauling my gear to organize high-altitude camp, so-called ABC, at 5900 meters. I expected that ABC should become my basic camp where I would spend the most part of the time: acclimatization, ascent, etc., therefore I needed to get a lot of things in it.

Already in the first push upward I understood that actually all the approaches were not too short and I would need at least one week to organize ABC. The things turned out to be in this way. I finished setting the high-altitude camp on May, 2. Weather did not allow to relax as well. Since the morning it was usually sunny, then, in the afternoon clouds gathered and at about three one o'clock in the afternoon it started snowing.

Unstable weather and time delay from the initial schedule had set thinking above the chosen object of ascent.

Nevertheless, in the morning on May, 3, I started to climb Chomo Lonzo Main (7790m) West Face. I had in view of some days and my rucksack turned out heavy. But this attempt was over in less than no time. I managed to make three pitches above a bergschrund when a heavy snowfall pushed me into the corner and forced to descend to ABC and then downwards, in Base camp (4750 m). Good rest was just the thing for me...

15.06.2006