Makalu | 1995 Makalu La-NW Ridge
A France expedition to Makalu in 1995 via Makalu La-NW Ridge, led by Benoit Chamoux. Summit reached on 7th May 1995. 3 members recorded.
Expedition Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ID | 1448 |
| Imported | 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634 |
| Expedition ID | MAKA95104 |
| Peak ID | MAKA |
| Year | 1995 |
| Season | 1 |
| Host Country | 1 |
| Route 1 | Makalu La-NW Ridge |
| Route 2 | - |
| Route 3 | - |
| Route 4 | - |
| Nationality | France |
| Leaders | Benoit Chamoux |
| Sponsor | Two French and one British (on Spanish Makalu permit) |
| Success 1 | True |
| Success 2 | False |
| Success 3 | False |
| Success 4 | False |
| Ascent 1 | 42nd disputed |
| Ascent 2 | - |
| Ascent 3 | - |
| Ascent 4 | - |
| Claimed | False |
| Disputed | True |
| Countries | UK |
| Approach | - |
| Basecamp Date | 1995-04-09 |
| Summit Date | 1995-05-07 |
| Summit Time | 1300 |
| Summit Days | 28 |
| Total Days | 0 |
| Termination Date | - |
| Termination Reason | 1 |
| Termination Notes | Success disputed |
| High Point (m) | 8485 |
| Traverse | False |
| Ski | False |
| Paraglide | False |
| Camps | 3 |
| Fixed Rope (m) | 250 |
| Total Members | 3 |
| Summit Members | 2 |
| Member Deaths | 0 |
| Total Hired | 4 |
| 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(09/04,5450m),C1(13/04,6200m),C2(19/04,6800m),C3(25/04,7400m),Biv(06/05,7900m+),Smt(07/05) |
| Route Notes | BC above and to west of junction. 27th April 1st summit bid by 2 members, stopped at 7000-8000m serac - was lot of ice, so down to BC. On 6 May biv at 7900-8000m at bottom of last serac. On 7 May fixed rope at 8400m to 8500m because couls in very dry rock. Started up at 3:00 am and on top at 1:00 pm, having carried rope and fixed 120m+ of rope; returned to biv 8:00 pm and down to BC on 8th. Made second bid waiting a week for wind to drop. * Two Spaniards Vallejo and Oiarzabal, who reached summit on 8 May 1995, said on 8 Oct 95 (when they came to Lhotse) that Chamoux and Royer did not go all the way to top the previous day. Spaniards saw footprints stop 50-60m below summit; stopped at plateau which is bottom of summit pyramid. French were very late on 7th May and would have taken 1 more hour on difficult terrain to reach top. Viesturs - 26 March 97: Australians told Viesturs and Hall that Chamoux's footprints in snow stopped at first pinnacle, well below summit. Snow would have revealed prints if wind didn't blow them away. |
| Accidents | None |
| Achievement | - |
| Agency | Cho Oyu Trekking |
| Commercial Route | - |
| Standard Route | True |
| Primary Route | False |
| Primary Member | False |
| Primary Reference | - |
| Primary ID | - |
| Checksum | 2452830 |
| Year | 1995 |
| Summit Success | True |
| O2 Summary | None |
| Route (lowercase) | makalu la-nw ridge |
Members
3 recorded members.
| Name | Sex | Year of Birth | Citizenship | Status | Residence | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benoit Chamoux | M | 1961 | France | Leader | La Roche-sur-Foron, Haute-Savoie, France | Alpine guide & alpinist | Details Other expeditions |
| Pierre Alain Royer | M | 1953 | France | Climber | Les Houches, Haute-Savoie, France | Alpine guide & cameraman | Details Other expeditions |
| Alan Charles Hinkes | M | 1954 | UK | Climber | Washington, Tyne & Wear, England | Alpinist | Details Other expeditions |
References
3 recorded references.
| Expedition ID | Journal | Author | Title | Publisher | Citation | Yak 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MAKA95104 | AAJ | Hawley, Elizabeth | - | - | 70:272 (1996) | - |
| MAKA95104 | HIGH | - | - | - | 155:11 (Oct 1995) | - |
| MAKA95104 | - | - | http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12199627202/Asia-Nepal-Makalu-Ascents-and-Tragedy | - | - | - |