Imja Tse
{{short description|Mountain in Khumbu, Nepal}}
{{Infobox mountain
| name = Imja Tse
| other_name = Island Peak
| photo = ImjaTse.jpg
| photo_caption = An island in a sea of ice
| elevation_m = 6165
| elevation_ref = {{cite web |url=https://nepalmountaineering.org/nma-peaks |title=NMA Expedition Peaks |website=nepalmountaineering.org |access-date=8 May 2023 |archive-date=6 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306172225/https://nepalmountaineering.org/nma-peaks |url-status=}}{{cite opentopomap|Island Peak|27.92079|86.93516|8 May 2023}}
| prominence_m = 475
| prominence_ref= {{cite web |url=https://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=10645 |title=Island Peak, Nepal |access-date=27 May 2025 |website=Peakbagger.com}}
| range = Khumbu Himal
| listing = Mountains of Nepal
| country = Nepal
| region = Khumbu
| district = Solukhumbu
| part_type = Protected area | part = Sagarmatha National Park
| map = Nepal
| map_caption = Location in NE Nepal
| map_size =
| label_position = left
| coordinates = {{coord|27.92079|N|86.93516|E|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| first_ascent = 1956 by Hans-Rudolf Von Gunten and 2 unknown Sherpas
| easiest_route = North Ridge PD+
glacier/scrambling/ice climbing
|fetchwikidata=ALL
}}
Imja Tse, better known as Island Peak, is a mountain in Sagarmatha National Park in the Himalayas of eastern Nepal. The peak was named Island Peak in 1953 by members of the British Mount Everest expedition because it appears as an island in a sea of ice when viewed from Dingboche.{{cite journal |journal= Himalayan Journal |year=1954 |title= Everest, 1953 |volume=18 |author=Wylie, Charles |url=https://www.himalayanclub.org/hj/18/1/everest-1953-1/ |access-date=13 July 2018 }} The peak was later renamed in 1983 to Imja Tse but Island Peak remains the popular choice.{{cite web|url=http://www.nepalmountaineering.org/index.php?razer=peak_detail&&name=Imja-tse(Island%20Peak)|title=Imja Tse|publisher=Nepal Mountaineering Association|access-date=23 May 2009}} The peak is actually an extension of the ridge coming down off the south end of Lhotse Shar.
The southwest summit of Imja Tse was first climbed in 1953 as part of a training exercise by a British expedition that went on to summit Mount Everest. The team that climbed Imja Tse comprised Tenzing Norgay, Charles Evans, Alfred Gregory, Charles Wylie and seven other Sherpas. The main summit was first climbed in 1956 by Hans-Rudolf Von Gunten and two unknown Sherpas, members of a Swiss team that went on to make the second ascent of Everest and the first ascent of Lhotse.{{cite book|last=O'Connor|first=Bill|title=The Trekking Peaks of Nepal|publisher=The Crowood Press|year=1989|page=74}}{{cite web |url=http://www.himalayandatabase.com |title=Himalayan Database The Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley |access-date=13 July 2018 }}
Climbing route
File:Alonzo-lyons-imja-tse-island-peak-sign-DSCN5840.jpg
File:Summitting Island Peak.jpg, 2004]]
To climb Island Peak, one has the option of starting from a base camp at {{Convert|5087|m|ft|-1}} called Pareshaya Gyab and starting the climb between 2 and 3 A.M. Another popular option is to ascend to High Camp at around {{Convert|5600|m|ft|-2}} to reduce the amount of effort and time needed for summit day. However, an adequate water supply and concerns about sleeping at a higher altitude may dictate starting from base camp. Base camp to high camp is basically a hike but just above high camp, some rocky steps require moderate scrambling up through a broad open gully. At the top of the gully, glacier travel begins and proceeds up a steep snow and ice slope. From here, fixed ropes may be set up by the guides for the strenuous ascent of nearly {{Convert|100|m|ft|-1}} to the summit ridge. The climb to the summit is somewhat difficult due to steep climbing. On top, while Mount Everest is a mere ten kilometres away to the north, the view is blocked by the massive wall of Lhotse, towering {{Convert|2300|m|ft|-2|abbr=on}} above the summit.
= Headwall crevasse =
A substantial crevasse along most of the headwall leading to the summit ridge has sometimes caused teams to turn back. In April 2009, the Nepal Mountaineering Association tasked the Nepal Mountaineering Instructors' Association with installing stairs (ladders) at the crevasse.{{cite web |url=http://www.nepalmountaineering.org/nl.php?year=2009&month=April |title=Newsletter of the Nepal Mountaineering Association |publisher=Nepal Mountaineering Association |access-date=29 October 2016 |archive-date=2016-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161029174606/http://www.nepalmountaineering.org/nl.php?year=2009&month=April |url-status=dead }} As of the 2016 fall climbing season, a 5-metre high fixed aluminum ladder is being used to cross the crevasse.
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons}}
- {{wikivoyage-inline|Island Peak Trek}}
{{Authority control}}