In October of this year, climbers Luka Lindic of Slovenia and Fanny Schmutz of France established a new climbing route on an unnamed 5,600-meter peak in the remote Genyen Massif in western China’s Sichuan Province. The 700-meter ascent, graded VII A1, took place near the Tibetan border, in an area that remains poorly explored by climbers.
The original plan had to be changed due to permit issues, after which the couple headed to Genyen Valley. Local motorcyclists transported them from the entrance to the valley to the river, where the climbers set up base camp.
To acclimatize, the pair first climbed a neighboring 5,200-meter peak along a route approximately 300 meters long. After resting, they set their sights on the west face of the 5,600-meter peak known as Garmunei Gou. After spending the night below the face to make an early start, they encountered colder than expected conditions: snow made traversing the shaded sections of the mountain difficult.
To move more efficiently, the climbers left their bivouac gear approximately halfway up the route. The upper crux of the wall proved to be very steep, with few belay opportunities, and required traverses, diagonal rappelling, and short sections of aid climbing (A.I.C.). They reached the summit at night, rating the route as VII A1. The descent took place along ropes back to the abandoned gear around 3 a.m., where they rested, and returned to base camp the next day.
During a subsequent reconnaissance, Fanny Schmutz suffered an ankle sprain, after which the team decided to abandon further ascents.
The Genyen Massif, centered on the 6,204-meter Genyen Peak—the third-highest in Sichuan—includes dozens of peaks, many of which remain unclimbed. The massif is located in the Garze-Tibet Autonomous Region.
Source: alp.org.ua