Excellent video presentation by Jon Warren @ Mussoorie Mountain Festival about his successful attempt on Bandarpunch in May 2019
BANDARPUNCH (6316m)
BANDARPUNCH (6316m)
Uttarakhand
- 21 DAYS
- 12 MAX GROUP SIZE
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6316m
MAX ALTITUDE 
8
Demanding Climb
TBA
Trip leader
Trip leader
2,35,000 / 3990
Trip cost
2,35,000 / 3990
We suggest that you use the Inquire Now button for further details.
The 2024 edition would be our 7th successive expedition on the mountain.
The name Bandarpunch / Banderpunch (also spelt as Bandarpoonch) literally means “monkey’s tail” in Hindi and is a lovely mountain in the Western Garhwal region of Uttarakhand. This massif has three mountains above 6000m, namely the twin peaks of Bandarpunch I (6316m) and Bandarpunch II (6102m) and Kalanag (Black Peak) at 6387m. Bandarpunch II is also called the ‘White Peak’. The massif can easily be spotted from many places in Garhwal. The first successful expedition to Bandarpunch was led by Maj Gen Harold Williams in 1950 with a team comprising of legendary mountaineer Tenzing Norgay. They approached the mountain from the Hanuman Ganga valley lying south west of the mountain. This mountain rose to prominence when the Doon school masters Jack Gibson and John Martyn started using this area to offer climbing experience to their wards during the summer holidays. They were the first ones to actually reconnoiter the route in 1937. Tenzing Norgay refers to Bandarpunch as ‘The Doon School Mountain’ in his autobiography. We approach the mountain from the south east route; the same route which was successfully climbed for the first time by Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) in 1975 when it took its students of Advance Mountaineering Course in the spring season. The trek to base camp starts from Sukhi, which lies on the road going up to Gangotri. The base camp is a beautiful two days hike from here and we set up two alpine camps above Base Camp before attempting summit. The climbing route is fairly straightforward but is highly crevasse littered between Camp 1 & Summit. This mountain is a perfect training ground for expedition climbing in Himalaya, with the summit offering incredible views of the high mountains of Garhwal in the south & the east (including Satopanth, Sudarshan Parbat, Chandra Parbat, Swetvaran, Matri, Thelu, Srikanth, Jogin, Gangotri range & Jaonli) and mountains of Kinnaur in the western sky.
Itinerary
Show Detailed Itinerary
After the mandatory briefing at IMF in Delhi, we embark on a road journey to 0ur hotel in Dehradun.
The drive to Uttarkashi goes through windy roads passing through small yet busy hill towns. On a clear day we can have the first glimpse of the mountain on our drive to Uttarkashi. After lunch at the hotel the guides go through your gear and sort out any things you may have missed. Uttarkashi is home to Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), one of the premier mountaineering instruction schools in India. Hundreds of young adults have graduated from these schools and have gone on to become great mountaineers. Overnight at Uttarkashi Hotel.
We start early in the morning & drive 2.5 hrs to the starting point of our trek at Sukhi. Sukhi is a small village at an altitude of 2500m and has few houses and many apple orchards. Sep/ Oct is apple harvest time in this area, so you might find many villagers offering apples for free. It is a steep trek up to a Khagi pass at 3420m from where we descend steeply down to the forest camp. The pass offers a good view of our route to the summit on the west and views of Gangotri I, II, III, Jaonli & Srikanth peaks in the south. Overnight at Camp.
It is a long days walk to the base camp. We descend to the confluence of Son Gad & Chaiyaan Gad rivers and follow Chaiyyan Gad all the way up to the Base Camp. The walk is very beautiful as it goes through dense forests, some beautiful meadows and finally goes above the tree line to get to the base camp at the foot of the Chaiyyan glacier. We might come across some shepherds camping in the meadows with their flock. Overnight at Camp.
We use this day to sort our climbing gear and to acclimatise. We go for a hike to a high point on a trail and return to Base Camp by late afternoon. Overnight at Camp.
Trip Cost
2,35,000 / 3990
DELHI TO DELHI , TWIN SHARINGPayment Schedule
₹70000 / $1000 - Booking Amount
TRIP COST INCLUDES
- - All travel from Delhi and back to Delhi by rail (by Non AC car / 2 or 3 tier ac coach)
- - All transport in a non AC car as per the itinerary above
- - Accommodation on twin share basis in tents – 15nights / ‘A’ class hotels – 02nights (all meals included)
- - Accommodation in Delhi on return for one night on bed & breakfast basis.
- - Professional guide fee, wildlife fee and climbing permit
- - All trekking arrangements with an experienced guiding team, camp staff, cook etc.
- - GST as applicable (Subject to change as per govt rules).
TRIP COST EXCLUDES
- - Individual Climbing Gear.
- - Sleeping Bag & items of personal clothing climbing Gear. (budget on spending approx INR 12000 if renting all climbing equipment)
- - Any costs arising from early departure from the expedition.
- - Expenses of personal nature like laundry, phone calls, beverages, insurance & tips.
- - Any costs arising out of unforeseen circumstances such as bad weather, landslides, road conditions and any other circumstances beyond our control.
- - Beverages and snacks at Uttatkashi,tips for porters and local guides.
Cancellation terms
If it becomes necessary to cancel your trip, you must notify the office immediately in writing. The following terms would be applicable.
• If you cancel more than 60 days prior to departure, we will charge 5% of the trip cost as cancellation fee and refund the balance.
• If you cancel less than 60 days prior to departure, we will charge 25% of the trip cost as cancellation fee and refund the balance.
• If you cancel less than 45 days prior to departure, we will charge a 50% cancellation fee and balance amount would be held as a credit towards a future trip taken within 1 year from the date of cancellation.
• If you cancel less than 30 days prior to departure, the entire deposit would be forfeited.
The tour price is quoted as a package. No partial refunds or credit will be given for services not used. We recommend that you obtain cancellation travel insurance upon booking. If you can replace your spot by getting someone else to take that seat cancellation charges would be waived completely.
Pls note that these cancellation terms may be amended from time to time.
What to expect
A climbing expedition to a peak above 6000m which require moderate level of technical climbing skills. The technical sections start above base camp and might go all the way to the summit hence would require us to establish more than one camp above base. Acclimatization is extremely important and there will be multiple rotations above base camp for both ferrying loads and to acclimatize well.
You have full support till base camp which means you only carry a back pack till BC. We encourage climbers to carry a little more weight than just a back pack as it helps higher up on the climb but it is optional.
Above base camp the sherpa team puts all the fixed ropes and hauls all the common gear - food, fuel, tents etc. All climbers are expected to carry all their personal gear with them - climbing eqpt/ clothing/ sleeping bag/ mattress etc. We also do a couple of load ferries on the way up. On the way down we normally bring it all in one go.
At high camps - Food & water is prepared by the guides & sherpa team. If someone wants to help with shoveling snow/ pitching tents etc he/ she is welcome but again it is optional.
So above base camp all the climbers are expected to take care of themselves and haul their personal stuff and we do the rest.
One needs to be familiar with walking in snow and ice and must have a good standard of fitness. You should be familiar with Ice Axe arrest and crampon skills, the use of ascenders (jumar) and descenders, and how to use your particular harness.
1. Photo Album - June 2018
2. Photo Album - Fall 2015
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A Short 5 Min video presentation on our Bandarpunch Climb by Jon Warren
A tale from the Monkey's Tail - Blog post on our 2018 Climb by Divya Bhalla
Videos
2,35,000 / 3990
Trip cost
2,35,000 / 3990
We suggest that you use the Inquire Now button for further details.
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