1932. M inya Konka (G ongga Shan )
1 9 3 2 . M i n y a Ko n k a ( G o n g g a S h a n ) N ic k C l i n c h
At 2:40 p.m . on O ctober 28, 1932, Terris M oore an d R ichard Burdsall stood on th e su m m it o f M inya Konka. At 24,891 feet, this was th e highest m o u n ta in in w estern C hina, an d th e highest m ountain to be sum m ited by Americans for the next 26 years. They took pictures o f the American and C hinese flags as well as a com plete 360-degree p a n o ram a o f the view from th e to p before beginning their descent. The clim b was the culm in atio n o f a b rilliant effort by fo u r young A m ericans, R ichard L. Burdsall, A rth u r B. E m m ons, Terris M oore, an d Jack T. Young. (Young was an A m erican o f Chinese ancestry.) The m o u n tain was high, dangerous, little know n, and in rem ote w arlord-torn C hina. The advantage o f having A m erican m issionaries along the way was offset by violently unsettled conditions. The m ountains o f western C hina and eastern Tibet are isolated, rough coun try, w ith alm ost constant bad w eather and significant avalanche danger. Like the Alps in the early 19th century, the countryside was well populated and traveled by locals, b u t the m ountains th e m selves were com pletely unknow n. The A m erican clim bers traveled so far back in th e boonies o f one o f the m ost underrated m o u n tain areas in the w orld, and were so far ahead o f their tim e in their style, that despite w riting a book (M en Against the Clouds, 1935), their achievement has long been under-appreciated. The A m ericans w ent by ship to Shanghai, arm o red b o at to C hungking, bus to C hengdu, hired porters escorted by soldiers, and finally used yaks to reach the base of the m ou n tain . They explored and surveyed the peak, selected the m ost feasible route, the northwest ridge, and climbed it. Unlike previous Himalayan expeditions, they did n o t use porters. As Burdsall and M oore wrote, “In Alaska, w here there are no native porters, A m erican clim bers ... have developed a technique
o f cu ttin g dow n to bare essentials, using only the lightest-w eight e q u ip m en t, th e n carrying these m in im u m needs on their ow n backs.” T hey h ad the essential ingredients for success on big m o u n tains: skill, aggressive ness, ju d g m en t, an d luck. T he m o u n ta in was technically m oderate b u t it h ad treacherous obsta cles a n d considerable risk from storm s an d avalanches. T hey split the seam o n th e far edge o f th e envelope, b u t rem ain ed inside. They reached the sum m it, sus tain in g serious frostbite (including a loss o f E m m o n s’ toes), and re tu rn e d alive. Later clim bers w ould n o t be so fo rtu n ate , dying in falls an d avalanches. T he next clim b o f M inya Konka was in 1957 by a large Chinese party. The leader questioned th e lack o f evidence o f the A m erican party on the sum m it, b u t in his Alpine Journal article graciously said the A m ericans m ade the first ascent. H e m ust have liked the description in their bo o k o f the view from the su m m it, since he copied it in his article. The A m ericans’ lack o f fuss, in a region away from the beaten m ou n tain eerin g track o f the Himalaya and Karakoram , in a tim e o f depression and w orld war, obscured their accom plishm ent. But as storm s and avalanches trap an increasing n u m b er o f m ountaineers in the wilds o f the b o r der co u n try betw een C hina and Tibet, the rep u tatio n o f the 1932 climb will grow. T heir example will never fail to inspire A m erican m ountaineers.
At 2:40 p.m . on O ctober 28, 1932, Terris M oore an d R ichard Burdsall stood on th e su m m it o f M inya Konka. At 24,891 feet, this was th e highest m o u n ta in in w estern C hina, an d th e highest m ountain to be sum m ited by Americans for the next 26 years. They took pictures o f the American and C hinese flags as well as a com plete 360-degree p a n o ram a o f the view from th e to p before beginning their descent. The clim b was the culm in atio n o f a b rilliant effort by fo u r young A m ericans, R ichard L. Burdsall, A rth u r B. E m m ons, Terris M oore, an d Jack T. Young. (Young was an A m erican o f Chinese ancestry.) The m o u n tain was high, dangerous, little know n, and in rem ote w arlord-torn C hina. The advantage o f having A m erican m issionaries along the way was offset by violently unsettled conditions. The m ountains o f western C hina and eastern Tibet are isolated, rough coun try, w ith alm ost constant bad w eather and significant avalanche danger. Like the Alps in the early 19th century, the countryside was well populated and traveled by locals, b u t the m ountains th e m selves were com pletely unknow n. The A m erican clim bers traveled so far back in th e boonies o f one o f the m ost underrated m o u n tain areas in the w orld, and were so far ahead o f their tim e in their style, that despite w riting a book (M en Against the Clouds, 1935), their achievement has long been under-appreciated. The A m ericans w ent by ship to Shanghai, arm o red b o at to C hungking, bus to C hengdu, hired porters escorted by soldiers, and finally used yaks to reach the base of the m ou n tain . They explored and surveyed the peak, selected the m ost feasible route, the northwest ridge, and climbed it. Unlike previous Himalayan expeditions, they did n o t use porters. As Burdsall and M oore wrote, “In Alaska, w here there are no native porters, A m erican clim bers ... have developed a technique
o f cu ttin g dow n to bare essentials, using only the lightest-w eight e q u ip m en t, th e n carrying these m in im u m needs on their ow n backs.” T hey h ad the essential ingredients for success on big m o u n tains: skill, aggressive ness, ju d g m en t, an d luck. T he m o u n ta in was technically m oderate b u t it h ad treacherous obsta cles a n d considerable risk from storm s an d avalanches. T hey split the seam o n th e far edge o f th e envelope, b u t rem ain ed inside. They reached the sum m it, sus tain in g serious frostbite (including a loss o f E m m o n s’ toes), and re tu rn e d alive. Later clim bers w ould n o t be so fo rtu n ate , dying in falls an d avalanches. T he next clim b o f M inya Konka was in 1957 by a large Chinese party. The leader questioned th e lack o f evidence o f the A m erican party on the sum m it, b u t in his Alpine Journal article graciously said the A m ericans m ade the first ascent. H e m ust have liked the description in their bo o k o f the view from the su m m it, since he copied it in his article. The A m ericans’ lack o f fuss, in a region away from the beaten m ou n tain eerin g track o f the Himalaya and Karakoram , in a tim e o f depression and w orld war, obscured their accom plishm ent. But as storm s and avalanches trap an increasing n u m b er o f m ountaineers in the wilds o f the b o r der co u n try betw een C hina and Tibet, the rep u tatio n o f the 1932 climb will grow. T heir example will never fail to inspire A m erican m ountaineers.
