Twenty two climbers on Saturday successfully made it to the top of Mount Dhaulagiri, the first group to summit eight-thousanders this year.
Ten climbers and their 12 Sherpa guides reached the summit at around 10.30 am, according to Dawa Futi Sherpa of Imagine Nepal, an agency that organized the expedition. Dhaulagiri is the seventh highest peak in the world with an altitude of 8,167 meters (26,795 ft).
“Our team members are on their way to the base camp after successfully reaching the top,” Dawa Futi told Everest Chronicle.
The expedition was led by Mingma Galje Sherpa, known as Mingma G, the famous guide known for leading the first K2 winter expedition in 2021. Last year, he also led a team to the real summit of Manaslu, the first in four decades.
Imagine Nepal said that the same team now plans to attempt Kanchanjunga, the third highest peak in the world.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Nepal’s himalayas, climbers are waiting for summit push in Annapurna, Makalu and Kanchenjunga, while Sherpas are fixing ropes to the summit of Mount Everest.
Governmental officials and agencies expect a slight decline in the number of climbers this year, owing to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and uncertainty over Chinese and Indian climbers.
Until Friday, Nepal’s Department of Tourism (DoT) had issued 505 climbing permits for the spring. Of them, 204 are climbing permits for Everest. Last year, Nepal had issued nearly 700 permits to mountains above 6,000 meters.
Nepal is home to eight of the total fourteen eight-thousander mountains in the world.
