Kangchenjunga Region

Kangchenjunga, which means “Five Treasures of Snows”, is aptly named for the five peaks which comprise the massif. Three of the five lie on the border of Sikkim, India, while the other two rise entirely within Nepal. The highest of these is Kangchenjunga Main, which, at an elevation of 8586 m above sea level, is the third highest mountain in the world. Kangchenjunga was first attempted in 1905, by a British team, but bad tempers and an ill-timed avalanche laid waste to two members of their party and forced a hasty retreat. The first successful ascent of Kangchenjunga was not until May 25, 1955, by Englishmen, Joe Brown and George Band, followed the next day by teammates Norman Hardie and Tony Streather.

Rosy at dawn, brilliant and remote in the sunshine, cold and repellent in the shadow… [Kangchenjunga] seems to float above the haze and darkness of the valleys between, its great mass filling the north-western horizon.