Makalu | 2015 Makalu La-NW Ridge

A UK expedition to Makalu in 2015 via Makalu La-NW Ridge, led by Adrian Ballinger. Summit reached on 29th September 2015. 9 members recorded.

Expedition Details

Field	Value
ID	8895
Imported	2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
Host Country	1
Route 1	Makalu La-NW Ridge
Route 2	-
Route 3	-
Route 4	-
Nationality	UK
Leaders	Adrian Ballinger
Sponsor	Alpenglow Makalu Ski Expedition 2015
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	USA
Approach	Tumlingtar->Shipton La->Makalu BC
Basecamp Date	2015-08-28
Summit Date	2015-09-29
Summit Time	-
Summit Days	32
Total Days	35
Termination Date	2015-10-02
Termination Reason	5
Termination Notes	Abandoned at 8100m due dangerous snow conditions
High Point (m)	8100
Traverse	False
Ski	True
Paraglide	False
Camps	4
Fixed Rope (m)	0
Total Members	5
Summit Members	0
Member Deaths	0
Total Hired	4
Summit Hired	0
Hired Deaths	0
No Hired	False
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	True
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Taken	False
O2 Unknown	False
Other Summits	-
Campsites	BC(28/08,4700m),ABC(29/08,5700m),C1(08/09,6100m),C2(10/09,6600m),C3(21/09,7450m),C4(28/09,7650m),Shrpas.xxx(29/09,8100m),Mbrs.xxx(29/09,7650m)
Route Notes	BC 28/09 4700m ABC 02/09 5700m C1 08/09 6100m C2 10/09 6600m C3 21/09 7450m C4 28/09 7650m HPt 29/09 8100m by Mingma Chhiring, Palden Namgye HPt 29/09 7650m by Ballinger, Harrington, O'Neill & Morrison First summit attempt was abandoned on 22 Sept due to deep snow and dangerous conditions. Ballinger, Morrison, O'Neill and Harrington reached C3. They had carried their skis up and left them there for next summit push. During their second summit push they reached C4, but abandoned climbed because Mingma Chhiring was caught in an avalanche. Mingma Chhiring, Palden Namgye, Tenzing Gyalzen and Panuru reached C4 on 28 Sept. On 29 Sept Palden and Mingma Chhiring were fixing ropes and reached 8100m when Mingma Chhiring was caught in an avalanche and dragged down for about 50m. He bruised his ribs. When avalanche happened members had just reached C4. Everyone stayed at C4 that night. The next morning they discussed what to do; however, the Sherpa team said that they were not going back up due to the bad conditions. As Harrington and O'Neill had attempted to climb Makalu without oxygen, they had ascended to C4 without using oxygen. However due to having to clear the mountain, they used oxygen on the descent. On 30 Sept Ballinger, Morrison and O'Neill skied from C4 to C3. Harrington walked as she had her skis at C3. O'Neill and Morrison also skied from C3 to C2. Harrington and Ballinger walked to C2. Entire team skied again from C2 to ABC. DesLauriers reached ABC. She was altitude sick and left ABC on 4 Sept. Sherpas: Palden Namgye/Namgyal,Phortse, Khumbu, 20/9/72 Mingma Tshering (Mingma Chhiring), Phortse, Khumbu, 26/4/72 Tenzing Gyalzen, Phortse, Khumbu, 2/7/1991 Panuru (Pasang Nuru, Pa Nuru), Phortse, Khumbu, 22/5/1968
Accidents	-
Achievement	-
Agency	Shangri-La Nepal Treks
Commercial Route	False
Standard Route	True
Primary Route	False
Primary Member	False
Primary Reference	False
Primary ID	-
Checksum	2460255
Year	2015
Summit Success	False
O2 Summary	Used
Route (lowercase)	makalu la-nw ridge

Members

Field	Value
ID	64565
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	01
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Adrian John
Last Name	Ballinger
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1976
Calculated Age	39
Citizenship	UK
Status	Leader
Residence	Olympic Valley, California
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	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	True
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	From C3 to high pt to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2440835
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	adrian john ballinger
Year of Birth	1976
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	39
Role	Leader

Field	Value
ID	64566
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	03
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Emily Anne
Last Name	Harrington
Sex	F
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1986
Calculated Age	29
Citizenship	USA
Status	Climber
Residence	Olympic Valley, California
Occupation	Professional alpinist
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	False
Sherpa	False
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	True
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	False
O2 Descent	True
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	On descent from C4 to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2444651
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	emily anne harrington
Year of Birth	1986
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	29
Role	Member

Field	Value
ID	64567
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	02
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Catherine Katzenbach (Kit)
Last Name	DesLauriers
Sex	F
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1969
Calculated Age	45
Citizenship	USA
Status	Climber
Residence	Teton Village, Wyoming
Occupation	Professional athlete
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	True
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	False
Sherpa	False
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	0
Summit Date 1	-
Summit Date 2	-
Summit Date 3	-
Summit Time 1	-
Summit Time 2	-
Summit Time 3	-
Route 1	0
Route 2	0
Route 3	0
Ascent 1	0
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	True
Injury Date	2015-08-29
Injury Time	-
Injury Type	1
Injury Height (m)	5700
Death Notes	-
Member Notes	-
Necrology	-
Summit Bid	1
Summit Term	6
HCN	0
Checksum	2438557
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	catherine katzenbach (kit) deslauriers
Year of Birth	1969
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	46
Role	BC Only

Field	Value
ID	64568
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	05
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Hilaree Janet
Last Name	O'Neill
Sex	F
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1972
Calculated Age	42
Citizenship	USA
Status	Climber
Residence	Telluride, Colorado
Occupation	Alpinist & skier
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	False
Sherpa	False
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	True
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	False
O2 Descent	True
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	On descent from C4 to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2439670
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	hilaree janet o'neill
Year of Birth	1972
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	43
Role	Member

Field	Value
ID	64569
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	04
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	James White
Last Name	Morrison
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1974
Calculated Age	40
Citizenship	USA
Status	Climber
Residence	Truckee, California
Occupation	Entrepreneur & skier
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	False
Sherpa	False
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	True
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	From C3 to high pt to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2440393
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	james white morrison
Year of Birth	1974
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	41
Role	Member

Field	Value
ID	64570
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	06
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Mingma Tshering (Mingma Chhiring)
Last Name	Sherpa
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1972
Calculated Age	43
Citizenship	Nepal
Status	H-A Worker
Residence	Phortse, Khumbu
Occupation	-
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	True
Sherpa	True
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	True
Personal High Point (m)	8100
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	From C3 to high pt to C2
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	Brother of Danuru/Danu & Panuru
Necrology	-
Summit Bid	4
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2439439
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	mingma tshering (mingma chhiring) sherpa
Year of Birth	1972
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	43
Role	Hired

Field	Value
ID	64571
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	07
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Palden Namgye/Namgyal
Last Name	Sherpa
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1972
Calculated Age	42
Citizenship	Nepal
Status	H-A Worker
Residence	Phortse, Khumbu
Occupation	-
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	True
Sherpa	True
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	True
Personal High Point (m)	8100
Summit Date 1	2015-09-29
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	From C3 to high pt to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	4
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2439586
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	palden namgye/namgyal sherpa
Year of Birth	1972
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	43
Role	Hired

Field	Value
ID	64626
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	09
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Tenzing Gyalzen
Last Name	Sherpa
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1991
Calculated Age	24
Citizenship	Nepal
Status	H-A Worker
Residence	Phortse, Khumbu
Occupation	-
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	True
Sherpa	True
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-28
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
O2 Descent	False
O2 Sleep	False
O2 Medical	False
O2 Notes	From C3 to high pt to C2
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	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2446426
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	tenzing gyalzen sherpa
Year of Birth	1991
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	24
Role	Hired

Field	Value
ID	64627
Imported	2026-03-06 18:06:05.675609
Expedition ID	MAKA15301
Member ID	08
Peak ID	MAKA
Year	2015
Season	3
First Name	Panuru (Pasang Nuru, Pa Nuru)
Last Name	Sherpa
Sex	M
Age	0
Birth Date	-
Year of Birth	1968
Calculated Age	47
Citizenship	Nepal
Status	H-A Worker
Residence	Phortse, Khumbu
Occupation	-
Leader	False
Deputy	False
Basecamp Only	False
Not to BC	False
Support	False
Disabled	False
Hired	True
Sherpa	True
Tibetan	False
Summit Success	False
Claimed	False
Disputed	False
Solo	False
Traverse	False
Ski	False
Paraglide	False
Speed	False
High Point (m)	False
Personal High Point (m)	7650
Summit Date 1	2015-09-28
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	0
Ascent 2	0
Ascent 3	0
O2 Used	True
O2 None	False
O2 Climb	True
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	Brother of Dawa Nuru/Danuru (Phortse)
Necrology	-
Summit Bid	3
Summit Term	4
HCN	0
Checksum	2438008
Summit Note 1	-
Summit Note 2	-
Summit Note 3	-
Death Route	-
Name (lowercase)	panuru (pasang nuru, pa nuru) sherpa
Year of Birth	1968
Year	2015
Age at Expedition	47
Role	Hired

9 recorded members.

Name	Sex	Year of Birth	Citizenship	Status	Residence	Occupation
Adrian John Ballinger	M	1976	UK	Leader	Olympic Valley, California	Alpine guide	Details Other expeditions
Emily Anne Harrington	F	1986	USA	Climber	Olympic Valley, California	Professional alpinist	Details Other expeditions
Catherine Katzenbach (Kit) DesLauriers	F	1969	USA	Climber	Teton Village, Wyoming	Professional athlete	Details Other expeditions
Hilaree Janet O'Neill	F	1972	USA	Climber	Telluride, Colorado	Alpinist & skier	Details Other expeditions
James White Morrison	M	1974	USA	Climber	Truckee, California	Entrepreneur & skier	Details Other expeditions
Mingma Tshering (Mingma Chhiring) Sherpa	M	1972	Nepal	H-A Worker	Phortse, Khumbu	-	Details Other expeditions
Palden Namgye/Namgyal Sherpa	M	1972	Nepal	H-A Worker	Phortse, Khumbu	-	Details Other expeditions
Tenzing Gyalzen Sherpa	M	1991	Nepal	H-A Worker	Phortse, Khumbu	-	Details Other expeditions
Panuru (Pasang Nuru, Pa Nuru) Sherpa	M	1968	Nepal	H-A Worker	Phortse, Khumbu	-	Details Other expeditions

References

0 recorded references.