British Xiashe North Face

It is rumoured that Xiashe (5,833m) in the Quionglai Shan of West Sichuan had been attempted once before by a Korean team, but this 'illegal' expedition was unsuccessful. Two New Zealand women pipped Douglas and Tunstall to the summit by a few days to claim the first official ascent. However, the British pair established a fine new route on the hitherto unclimbed 1300m north face, then descended by the west ridge. They called their route (which was graded Scottish IV/5) 'Don't Cook Yak in Anger'. In the meantime, Prentice opted for a solo reconnaissance of the area (the mapping of which leaves a lot to be desired) during which he made an unsuccessful attempt on Pt 5690m by its long north-east ridge.