Heavy snowfall in Dhaulagiri mountain and poor weather have put climbs on the mountain on hold, with teams backtracking from higher camps to Base Camp as they seek safer, lower altitudes until conditions improve. Meanwhile, the expedition is not cancelled, with teams pausing activities and staying on standby as they await better weather to continue their attempts to climb the eighth-thousand-meter peak.
Dhaulagiri Teams Retreat as Poor Weather Continues to Hinder Efforts
Tashi Lakpa Sherpa, founder of 14 Peaks Expeditions, and head of the Dhaulagiri expedition said that climbers and route-finding teams which had moved up the mountain for acclimatisation and preparation works have turned back due to the bad weather. The teams had moved up the mountain to conduct rotations, acclimatisation, and prepare the route for the main ascent, but they have decided to turn back for the meantime as the mountainous region is witnessing poor weather conditions.
“The summit route of Dhaulagiri has not opened this year, and our teams have only reached II camp to prepare the route and fix the line of the climbing cord,” said Tashi Lakpa. He added that they decided to descend due to a weather disturbance that has emerged in the Bay of Bengal, which is expected to impact the weather in the Himalayas for the days to come. “Our route-finding team and climbing teams are down-climbing to the Base Camp, while our clients are heading to the Pokhara and Jomsom valleys for the time being,” he said.
Meanwhile, the expedition leadership has declared the retreat as a postponement, noting that they will wait for better weather before attempting to climb Dhaulagiri. Tashi Lakpa said they will continue to monitor the development on the mountain and the weather before making their next moves. “We have decided to postpone the expedition for now to allow the mountain to clear, and it is not a cancellation. We will go back to Base Camp and wait for a better opportunity to push,” he said.
The decision will allow the climbing and support teams to take time to analyse the snow conditions, assess the route, and understand the weather patterns before they make another attempt to push to higher altitudes on Dhaulagiri. The postponement also demonstrated the risks that come with adverse weather, where bad weather can halt most climbing activities on the mountain.
Route-finding teams and other support teams have to deal with snowstorms which can obstruct their view on the mountain and make the route unstable and dangerous. The expedition organisers are on standby as they monitor the weather forecast for the mountain to determine when it will be possible to resume activities on the mountain.
34 Foreign Climbers with Permission to Attempt Dhaulagiri
According to the Department of Tourism, there are four expedition teams comprising 34 foreign climbers who have received the necessary permits to climb Dhaulagiri this autumn. The mountain peak, which is 8,167 meters tall, is among the eight-thousand-meter summits in Nepal that attract foreign climbers. The postponement of the Dhaulagiri expedition comes as Nepal’s autumn climbing season faces multiple challenges as several mountaineering expeditions have had to retreat due to unfavourable weather conditions.
In addition, heavy snowfall has led to the closure of trails on Mount Manaslu and prompted many climbers to descend from higher camps due to heightened avalanche risks. Expedition companies have reported that over a thousand people, including 493 foreign climbers, have cancelled their Manaslu climbing plans this autumn. Despite the setback, the Dhaulagiri climbing teams are ready to resume their expedition and attempt to conquer the mountain peak if weather and other conditions permit. The timing of their next move will be dictated by the weather forecast, snowfall, and overall status of the mountain and its route.
