Trip Facts
Overview
Kanchenjunga (8586m) is the third-tallest mountain in the world after Mt. Everest (8848 m) and Mt. K2 (8611m). Kanchenjunga is a word of Sikkimese origin. Indigenous people from Himalaya particularly of Darjeeling, Taplejung and Sikkim highly revere the peak as a sacred mountain. It is locally known as Sewalungma among Limbu and Rai communities in Nepal. Mountain people still believe that the mountain is the place where gods dwell which implicates their respect towards nature.
Kanchenjunga massif encompasses 16 peaks among which four are above 8000m. The mountain comprises of four glaciers covering an area of 314 sq. kilometers, and is a major source for Brahmaputra and Ganges catchments. Kanchenjunga feature narrow icy ridges spotted with smaller peaks, sloping plateau and hanging glaciers. The risk of avalanches also exists. Joe Brown and George Band successfully conquered the Mt. Kanchenjunga on May 25, 1955 and made it a historic day in the history of Kanchenjunga expedition. This team was led by Charles Evan and all other participants were from UK. The standard route and the one used in the first successful attempt follows southwest route via the Yalung Glacier. However, the north route is considered the safest, although not the easiest route to climb.
An interesting fact related to the mountain is that it has actually never been summitted. The first successful mountaineers Brown and Band stopped short of stepping foot on the top of the mountain as per the request of then Maharajah of Sikkim. The tradition has been continued ever since.
Kanchenjunga expedition was the first successful attempt made by any British over eight-thousanders. Mt. Kanchenjunga is a least climbed technical mountain despite of its comparatively low government Royalty as compare to Mt. Everest. The Royalty to climb Mt. Everest is US$11000, US$5500, and US$2750 in spring, autumn and winter/summer season respectively, where as Kanchenjunga Royalty is only US$1800, US$900 and US$450 for spring, autumn and winter season respectively. In the mountaineering sector, technical mountains represent tougher mountains to climb. It is considered as a technical peak mainly because of the longer expedition period. Kanchenjunga expedition involves intricate climbing from the very beginning and also includes longer horizontal walking in Death Zone above 8,000 meters. Thus, this mountain is regarded as a demanding mountain that requires well planned logistics, highly professional supporting staffs as well as safety & security measures.