Himalayan Club reaches Joshinath peak of Mt Nilkantha

Kolkata, June 18 (UNI) A seven-member team of the Kolkata Himalayan Club, along with four sherpas, reached the 6,596-m high Mount Nilkanth Joshimath peak on June 17.

The team set off on this expedition on June 11, according to a release issued here today.

This was the first Indian civilian ascent of the mountain. Mt Nilkanth lies in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. It is located about nine km to the west of the holy shrine of Badrinath, where it rises vertically, almost 3500 m above it.

Its magnificently sculpted icy spire is held in deep reverence as an embodiment of Lord Shiva, the destroyer of evil.

Despite over a dozen attempts on Mount Nilkanth (till 2006), it had been ascended only four times, twice by Army Expeditions and twice by foreign civilian teams led by internationally-reputed mountaineers.

Its avalanche-ridden ramparts and sheer rock faces, makes it a very difficult peak to overcome. Considering its reputation as a largely impregnable mountain, the annals of Indian mountaineering history reflects that very few climbing teams have had the temerity to lead expeditions on Mt Nilkanth.

The Himalayan Club, Kolkata, in the wake of its successful ascent of Mount Kamet (7756m) in 2006, had sent a team of young mountaineers on May 18 on a month-long expedition to the mountain, under the leadership of AVM (Retd) Apurba Kr Bhattacharyya.

This climb represents the fifth ascent of the peak since the first attempt in 1937.

They reached Joshimath on June 17. The team will return to Kolkata on June 22.

UNI