Lhotse | 1973 S Ridge-W Ridge
A Japan expedition to Lhotse in 1973 via S Ridge-W Ridge, led by Ryohei Uchida. Summit reached on 8th May 1973. 9 members recorded.
Expedition Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ID | 2347 |
| Imported | 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634 |
| Expedition ID | LHOT73101 |
| Peak ID | LHOT |
| Year | 1973 |
| Season | 1 |
| Host Country | 1 |
| Route 1 | S Ridge-W Ridge |
| Route 2 | - |
| Route 3 | - |
| Route 4 | - |
| Nationality | Japan |
| Leaders | Ryohei Uchida |
| Sponsor | Kanagawa Mountaineering Federation Lhotse South Wall Expedition |
| Success 1 | False |
| Success 2 | False |
| Success 3 | False |
| Success 4 | False |
| Ascent 1 | - |
| Ascent 2 | - |
| Ascent 3 | - |
| Ascent 4 | - |
| Claimed | False |
| Disputed | False |
| Countries | - |
| Approach | Khumbu Valley |
| Basecamp Date | 1973-03-25 |
| Summit Date | 1973-05-08 |
| Summit Time | - |
| Summit Days | 44 |
| Total Days | 0 |
| Termination Date | - |
| Termination Reason | 5 |
| Termination Notes | Abandoned at 7300m due to avalanching |
| High Point (m) | 7300 |
| Traverse | False |
| Ski | False |
| Paraglide | False |
| Camps | 4 |
| Fixed Rope (m) | 0 |
| Total Members | 9 |
| Summit Members | 0 |
| Member Deaths | 0 |
| Total Hired | 5 |
| Summit Hired | 0 |
| Hired Deaths | 0 |
| No Hired | False |
| 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 | BC(25/03,4900m),C1(04/04,5800m),C2(13/04,6350m),C3(02/05,6850m),xxx(08/05,7300m) |
| Route Notes | Hiroshima - 20 May 73 Arrive today Mitsuo Hiroshima, Tsuneatsu Tsuchiya and Shigeru Tanaka if weather good, otherwise tomorrow. C1 5800m - 4 April route to C2 very long rock ridge so advance camp at 6000m (established 10 April). C2 6350m - 13 April route to C3 snow face with some very deep crevasses. C3 6850m - 2 May-29 April already decided site for C3. 8 May Hiroshima, Toyotaro Ohmasu and Masutomo Takita arrived at 7300m and wanted to establish C4 there, but but many snow avalanches from South Face. Every morning clear, every afternoon snow, so abandoned making C4; this highest point reached. 9 May decided must turn back to avoid accident. 1300m to summit all rock face. Possible to climb if good weather and no avalanching. If possible I want to go another mountain. Had wanted to go to South Face directly at east end to summit, but too many avalanches at east end. At base camp 3 days, decided changed and actually approached from west. C4 site below West or East Ridge at west end; ridge very long, almost impossible route. 7 climbing members, above 6000m only 3. Others not in good, strong health, so Hiroshima had to make route all the time. Too weak an expedition for such a high peak. No accident no serious illness, no frostbite, no yeti. Uchida & Hiroshima - 20 Feb 73 Arrive Thyangboche 6 March; arrive basecamp 20 March. Leave KTM 22 Feb, drive to Lamosangu and trek except Hiroshima flies to Lukla on 28 with all equipment. Uchida & Hiroshima - 12 Feb 73 Arrive KTM 11 Feb 9 members. South Wall, up Lhotse Glaciers, very steep. Below 6000m snow, upper rock. 5000m fixed rope. Equipment to Lukla by air. Members to walk in to Lukla, Namche 1 week rest, acclimatization, BC on Lhotse Glacier at 5300m. This the first try via this route. 6 camps; each 500m above other. This time hope to reach 7500-8000m as high altitude recon. Some spare pavers, want to go to top. Arrive base end of March; leave base end of May; 2 months of climbing. Leave KTM about 22nd Feb 5 high altitude Sherpas 3 tons baggage |
| Accidents | - |
| Achievement | - |
| Agency | - |
| Commercial Route | - |
| Standard Route | - |
| Primary Route | False |
| Primary Member | False |
| Primary Reference | - |
| Primary ID | - |
| Checksum | 2444594 |
| Year | 1973 |
| Summit Success | False |
| O2 Summary | None |
| Route (lowercase) | s ridge-w ridge |
Members
9 recorded members.
| Name | Sex | Year of Birth | Citizenship | Status | Residence | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryohei Uchida | M | 1936 | Japan | Leader | Yokohama, Japan | Executive of Uchida Photo Studio | Details Other expeditions |
| Mitsuo Hiroshima | M | 1943 | Japan | Deputy Leader | Hachioji, Tokyo, Japan | Teacher at Tsukui High School, Kanagawa prefecture | Details Other expeditions |
| Haruhisa Sunagawa | M | 1942 | Japan | Climbing Leader | Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan | Officer of Fujisawa city hall | Details Other expeditions |
| Masutomo Takita | M | 1946 | Japan | Climber | Yokohama, Japan | Engineer with Hotta Denki Saisaku Yokohama | Details Other expeditions |
| Rinya Hisono | M | 1945 | Japan | Climber | Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan | Electronics engineer (Sanes Denki Co.) | Details Other expeditions |
| Toyotaro Ohmasu | M | 1943 | Japan | Climber | Yokohama, Japan | Engineer with Tsukishima Kikai Co. | Details Other expeditions |
| Yasuyuki Hirai | M | 1942 | Japan | Climber | Tokyo, Japan | Executive of Hirai Seisakusho Co. | Details Other expeditions |
| Tsuneatsu Tsuchiya | M | 1934 | Japan | Exp Doctor | Yokohama, Japan | Physician at Yokohama City University Hospital | Details Other expeditions |
| Shigeru Tanaka | M | 1935 | Japan | Journalist | Yokohama, Japan | Employee of Kanagawa Newsreeel Association | Details Other expeditions |
References
4 recorded references.
| Expedition ID | Journal | Author | Title | Publisher | Citation | Yak 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LHOT73101 | AAJ | Cheney, Michael J. | - | - | 48:203 (1974) | - |
| LHOT73101 | HJ | Uchida, Ryohei | Lhotse, 1973 | - | 33:18-23 (1973-74) | - |
| LHOT73101 | - | - | http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12197420302/Asia-Nepal-Lhotse-South-Face-Attempt | - | - | - |
| LHOT73101 | - | - | https://www.himalayanclub.org/hj/33/5/lhotse-1973/ | - | - | - |