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Name: Miroslav Caban
Nickname: Miro
Sports: mountaineering
Date of Birth: 4th of April, 1968
Home country: Czech Republic
Marital status: Married
Website: www.448.cz |
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Height (feet): 26329
Height (meters): 8027 (also 8013 and 8046 depending on the source)
Location: the Himalayas
Country: Tibet
Coordinates: 28º21N 85º47E
Difficulty: major mountain expedition (two routes with different difficulty)
Easiest route: snow/ice climb
Best months for climbing: April, May
First climbed: 1964 (first winter ascent in 2005)
Nearest major airport: Kathmandu, Nepal
Shisha Pangma 8027 meters
Shisha Pangma is the 'easiest' 8000 m mountain what comes to the technique of climbing. It is the only 8000 m summit lying completely in China (Tibet precisely) and due to restrictions imposed by China it was also the last to be climbed only in 1964 (by Chinese expedition). As such extreme elevation measurements are never easy to do, three heights - 8013, 8027 and 8046 - are being listed. These make her either the 13th or 14th highest peak in the world. We stick with 8027m which comes from the last official Chinese measurement done in 1983.
The mountain name stands for “crest above the grassy plains” (Tibetan shi sha sbang), “place of saint” (Sanskrit gosainthan) or “sherpa woman” (coming from spelling interpretation of Shisha-Pangma). It is located in South-Central Tibet and further away from the more compressed terrain with the jagged summits. Thus, its vertical relief is a bit less dramatic but since it is a mighty eight-thousander climbers must behave accordingly and never give up their vigilance.
The climb profile via the common (North) trek trail is moderate but very long. The South face is a lot more craggy. The difficulty level of this route and the extreme conditions dominating there throughout the winter demonstrates well the fact that the first real winter ascent was accomplished only in 2005. The same expedition tried for the summit a year before but was stopped only 300 meters away as they were frozen to bones: temperature of minus 52 Celsius, freezing wind, and 90 minutes of daylight remaining. A night bivouac would certainly mean a never-ending sleep, and thus, they returned without reaching the very summit. |
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