Sumur Valley Expedition

The plan was to ascend the Sumur valley in Ladakh with the objective of exploring the complex glacier system at its head, and to climb one or more virgin peaks, before crossing to the Upper Rassa glacier where only one peak had been climbed previously. From a base camp at 5160m by the Sumur Lakes they explored the extensive Sumur glacier system, and first ascents were made of Pt 6068 (Deception Point), Pk 6078 (Tsagtuk Kangri aka Twin Peak), and Pk 5991 (Sumur Kangri). The peaks were graded F, PD and AD respectively. All peaks were climbed in excellent clear weather, but options were limited by unstable snow lying on northerly faces. There was evidence of recent avalanches, and this prevented them from venturing onto the Rassa glacier.