October 6, 2013
Climbing to the pass (Lobsang Sherpa)
Adam Angel reports that today the team crossed Tsharka (Chharka) Pass (16,530 feet) and descended to Tsharka Bhot (13,600 feet) which is a Tibetan style village nestled in the high valley. They are now back on the south side of the watershed in the Tsharka valley. Adam said that they hit a few inches of fresh snow up in the pass but their mules were able to negotiate it without problems. The group is getting super strong and acclimatized by now. This was their sixth big pass in excess of 15,000 feet that they have crossed, and they still have two more big passes to go! Tomorrow they will move up to the yak kharka (grazing area) high camp below the Niwal Pass (which will be the highest, at over 18,000 feet).
Eric Simonson