Makalu | 1988 Left side of W Face-N Face
A UK expedition to Makalu in 1988 via Left side of W Face-N Face, led by Doug Scott. Summit reached on 1st October 1988. 11 members recorded.
Expedition Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ID | 880 |
| Imported | 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634 |
| Expedition ID | MAKA88301 |
| Peak ID | MAKA |
| Year | 1988 |
| Season | 3 |
| Host Country | 1 |
| Route 1 | Left side of W Face-N Face |
| Route 2 | - |
| Route 3 | - |
| Route 4 | - |
| Nationality | UK |
| Leaders | Doug Scott |
| Sponsor | Makalu 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 | Australia, India, Ireland |
| Approach | - |
| Basecamp Date | 1988-08-29 |
| Summit Date | 1988-10-01 |
| Summit Time | - |
| Summit Days | 33 |
| Total Days | 39 |
| Termination Date | 1988-10-07 |
| Termination Reason | 5 |
| Termination Notes | Abandoned at 8100m due to high wind and avalanche accident/danger, snow, and too many others on mountain at same time |
| High Point (m) | 8100 |
| Traverse | False |
| Ski | False |
| Paraglide | False |
| Camps | 0 |
| Fixed Rope (m) | 0 |
| Total Members | 11 |
| Summit Members | 0 |
| Member Deaths | 0 |
| Total Hired | 1 |
| 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 | Some peaks between Chago and Pethangtse |
| Campsites | BC(29/08,4700m),ABC(02/09,5500m),Biv1(20/09,6100m),Biv2(21/09,7100m),Biv3(27/09,6100m),Biv4(28/09,6500m),Biv5(29/09,7100m),Biv6(30/09,7800m),xxx(01/10,8100m) |
| Route Notes | 1st push: BC at lower BC site ABC at higher BC site Biv at bottom of Roger Baxter Jones Couloir High point at North Face. Bivs by Allen and Hinkes. 1st biv on 20th Sep by Miller, Smith, Child and Allen. On 22nd went to Makalu La; at same time others to 7000m. Then big snowstorm and weather now cold which meant couloir now dangerous. Hinkes and Allen then went to left ridge of couloir, crossed into cwm, bived at 7800m (Spanish C4). On 1st Oct at 4:00 am they went on up and got avalanched. Took 5 days get them off. Winds now strong and route avalanche-prone. Parkin, Scott and Prabhu along with Child, Smith and Miller had gone to Makalu La 29th Sep but wind and snow drove them down. Hinkes and Allen started from ABC 28th Sep. Smith and Child went up on 7th Oct but only to C1. "So many others on mountain normal route was like a motorway and not many with any ideas of Himalayan climbing" - Scott. West Face impossible: wind slabs and powdered snow. Allen fell 400m because unconscious and Hinkes came to him and helped him down. Were at 8100m in summit bid on 1 Oct at 10:00 am. Had been climbing semi-alpine-style using Spanish fixed ropes to C2 and carrying tent (Spanish making their own and summit bid same day). 30 Sept 2 Mexicans had tried for top and planned another try on 3rd or 4th Oct. None of this expedition had been on West Face till Allen left today by helicopter. |
| Accidents | Yates hepatitis and left BC Sep 24; Allen head injuries from avalanche |
| Achievement | - |
| Agency | Amtrek |
| Commercial Route | - |
| Standard Route | - |
| Primary Route | False |
| Primary Member | False |
| Primary Reference | - |
| Primary ID | - |
| Checksum | 2450414 |
| Year | 1988 |
| Summit Success | False |
| O2 Summary | None |
| Route (lowercase) | left side of w face-n face |
Members
11 recorded members.
| Name | Sex | Year of Birth | Citizenship | Status | Residence | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simon Andrew Yates | M | 1963 | UK | Climber | Croft, Leicester, England | Alpine guide & farm laborer | Details Other expeditions |
| Richard Frank (Rick) Allen | M | 1954 | UK | Climber | Aberdeen, Scotland | Petroleum engineer | Details Other expeditions |
| Gregory John (Greg) Child | M | 1957 | Australia | Climber | Seattle, Washington | Writer | Details Other expeditions |
| Alan Charles Hinkes | M | 1954 | UK | Climber | Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England | Alpine guide | Details Other expeditions |
| Mark Miller | M | 1961 | UK | Climber | Sheffield, S Yorkshire, England | Alpine guide | Details Other expeditions |
| Praful Mistry | M | 1951 | India | Climber | Baroda, India | Engineer | Details Other expeditions |
| Terry Mooney | M | 1948 | Ireland | Climber | Belfast, Northern Ireland | Barrister | Details Other expeditions |
| Andrew David (Andy) Parkin | M | 1954 | UK | Climber | Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France | Artist (interior decorator & joiner) | Details Other expeditions |
| Sharavati (Sharu) Prabhu | F | 1959 | India | Climber | Bombay, India | Marketing staff (Tata Co) | Details Other expeditions |
| Douglas Keith (Doug) Scott | M | 1941 | UK | Leader | Carlisle, Cumbria, England | Author | Details Other expeditions |
| Sean Smith | M | 1961 | UK | Climber | Bath, Avon, England | Alpinist | Details Other expeditions |
References
6 recorded references.
| Expedition ID | Journal | Author | Title | Publisher | Citation | Yak 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAKA88301 | AAJ | Scott, Douglas | - | - | 63:191 (1989) | - |
| MAKA88301 | HJ | Scott, Doug | British Makalu Expedition, 1988 | - | 46:139-140 (1988-1989) | - |
| MAKA88301 | MM | - | - | - | 124:10 (Nov 1988) | - |
| MAKA88301 | MM | - | - | - | 125:11 (Jan 1989) | - |
| MAKA88301 | - | - | http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12198919101/Asia-Nepal-Makalu-Attempt | - | - | - |
| MAKA88301 | - | - | https://www.himalayanclub.org/hj/46/22/expeditions-and-notes-46/ | - | - | - |