Kusum Kanguru | 1981 SW Buttress (W Face) up; NW side down from E Smt

A New Zealand expedition to Kusum Kanguru in 1981 via SW Buttress (W Face) up; NW side down from E Smt, led by Bill Denz. Summit reached on 7th October 1981. 1 members recorded.

Expedition Details

Field	Value
ID	2898
Imported	2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634
Expedition ID	KUSU81302
Peak ID	KUSU
Year	1981
Season	3
Host Country	1
Route 1	SW Buttress (W Face) up; NW side down from E Smt
Route 2	-
Route 3	-
Route 4	-
Nationality	New Zealand
Leaders	Bill Denz
Sponsor	-
Success 1	True
Success 2	False
Success 3	False
Success 4	False
Ascent 1	1st?
Ascent 2	-
Ascent 3	-
Ascent 4	-
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Countries	-
Approach	-
Basecamp Date	-
Summit Date	1981-10-07
Summit Time	-
Summit Days	0
Total Days	0
Termination Date	-
Termination Reason	1
Termination Notes	-
High Point (m)	6370
Traverse	True
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Camps	0
Fixed Rope (m)	0
Total Members	1
Summit Members	1
Member Deaths	0
Total Hired	0
Summit Hired	0
Hired Deaths	0
No Hired	True
O2 Used	False
O2 None	True
O2 Climb	False
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Taken	False
O2 Unknown	False
Other Summits	-
Campsites	Smt(07/10)
Route Notes	Bill Denz made a solo traverse of the mountain in October via the West Face to the main summit and then traversed the ridge to the NE Summit before descending the northwest flank. Paul Maxim (Denz biographer) - 7 Aug 2010 (email) Bill Denz of New Zealand did 4 trips to Nepal for the sole purpose of climbing. Details are as follows: (1) Kusum Kanguru Oct 1981. Obtained permission to climb this peak which he did Oct 5-8th, completely solo and in doing so made the 1st ascent of the high peak, 1st solo ascent of the peak and 1st traverse of the mountain. From Lukla he established his base camp at 16,000 ft under the Southwest Face on Oct 1, but declined to climb the face due to falling ice and so started out up the rock/snow/ice buttress on its left side on the 5th. Spent one and a half days climbing this feature to the West Summit where he bivied waiting for a frost to help stabilise the ridge to the high summit. This he climbed on the 7th, taking all day in the very difficult and trying conditions. Bivied on the high peak that night then descended the Northwest Flank into the Kyashar watershed. Spent two more days bush bashing back out onto the Everest trail. (2) Menlungste attempt Sept 1982/Oct. Illegal solo attempt on this untouched peak which lies just inside Tibet. Accessed the mountain via the Rolwaling Valley and a high pass and set up a base camp inside Tibet at 17,800 ft and directly under the southern flanks of the peak. Set out to climb the peak, but managed only a few hundred metres before aborting to ensure the safe return of his novice partner from base camp should he be killed climbing. Endured a long hard descent back into Nepal via another route due to storms and lack of food. Denz was the 1st climber ever to attempt the peak. (3) Menlungste attempt April 1983. A second completely solo attempt via the same route as above, but unable to make the pass due to high avalanche conditions. (4) Makalu. Attempt on West Pillar, oxygen free and alpine style with Peter Hillary (NZ), Fred From (AU) and Mark Moorhead (AU). Strong progress made right up to Oct 3 when From and Denz were caught in small slab avalanche at 6300m. Denz buried and killed. Moorhead also killed in a fall several days later. Expedition called off despite less than 900 metres of relatively easy travel remaining to summit.
Accidents	-
Achievement	-
Agency	-
Commercial Route	-
Standard Route	-
Primary Route	False
Primary Member	False
Primary Reference	False
Primary ID	-
Checksum	2447496
Year	1981
Summit Success	True
O2 Summary	None
Route (lowercase)	sw buttress (w face) up; nw side down from e smt

Members

Field	Value
ID	23640
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	KUSU81302
Member ID	01
Peak ID	KUSU
Year	1981
Season	3
First Name	Matthew William (Bill)
Last Name	Denz
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1951
Calculated Age	30
Citizenship	New Zealand
Status	Leader
Residence	Dunedin, New Zealand
Occupation	Alpine guide
Leader	True
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	False
Sherpa	False
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	True
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	True
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	-
High Point (m)	True
Personal High Point (m)	6370
Summit Date 1	1981-10-07
Summit Date 2	-
Summit Date 3	-
Summit Time 1	-
Summit Time 2	-
Summit Time 3	-
Route 1	1
Route 2	0
Route 3	0
Ascent 1	1
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	False
O2 None	True
O2 Climb	False
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	-
Death	False
Death Date	-
Death Time	-
Death Type	0
Death Height (m)	0
Death Class	0
AMS	False
Weather	False
Injury	False
Injury Date	-
Injury Time	-
Injury Type	0
Injury Height (m)	0
Death Notes	-
Member Notes	-
Necrology	(1951-1983) Died 3 Oct 1983 on Makalu from avalanche
Summit Bid	5
Summit Term	1
HCN	0
Checksum	2431940
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	matthew william (bill) denz
Year of Birth	1951
Year	1981
Age at Expedition	30
Role	Leader

1 recorded members.

Name	Sex	Year of Birth	Citizenship	Status	Residence	Occupation
Matthew William (Bill) Denz	M	1951	New Zealand	Leader	Dunedin, New Zealand	Alpine guide	Details Other expeditions

References

Field	Value
ID	3978
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:36.307770
Expedition ID	KUSU81302
Reference ID	01
Year	1981
Type	3
Journal	MM
Author	-
Title	-
Publisher	-
Publication Date	1982
Language	-
Citation	83:10 (Jan 1982)
Yak 94	-
Notes	-

1 recorded references.

Expedition ID	Journal	Author	Title	Publisher	Citation	Yak 94
KUSU81302	MM	-	-	-	83:10 (Jan 1982)	-