Mighty Meerathang Glacier | NIMAS BMC 7/8

Before you  check out this beautiful and mighty Meerathang glacier, hope that you have read the previous blogs in the NIMAS Basic Moutaineeringf course BMC series.

1. Basic Mountaineering Course NIMAS – The Beginning.
2. Sela pass &Jaswantgarh war memorial
3. Riverside New Melling 
4. River Crossing & Survival 
5. Hot water springs at Mago
6. The beautiful Jeethang

DAY 19 MEERATHANG GLACIER – First Visit

Getting ready on time 0700hrs we were off to Meerathang glacier carrying the ice shoes & ice axe in the rOOksOOk. Gorichen peak continued to hide behind clouds as I was still waiting to get my first peek at it. As the climb continued to gain height we started to feel breathless. Glad I had trained really hard fort this, else it would have been a nightmare to climb this high.

As we reached the base of the hill, climbing became more demanding on lungs. But I knew there would be a beautiful scene awaiting us . I could see the beautiful blue water tarn unfold slowly in the horizon. The view was sight for sore eyes. Instructors shouted as I tried to take photos. I wanted to take photos so badly but no stops were allowed. I managed to get a spy photo.

We climbed further to feel the snow for the first time. The ice shoes were put on as we moved ahead towards the glacier. We had our full gear on. The seat harness, descenders, carabiners and ice axe were out . Crampons were put on the ice shoes ready to climb the Meerathang glacier

Bro Tip

The anti glares which I bought had (wayfarers) had huge gaps from the side. This was a big reason for getting red eyes in the cold wind. I would prefer a proper curved anti-glare which is better equipped for wind.

At the glacier we gathered for Ice wall Puja before started our training. Sir offered some prasad to the Ice wall and asked to bless us. Barfani Baba ki…Jai.

The lecture started with introduction to walking technique on glacier. It covered 10 point, 4 point, 3 point & 2 point walking/climbing technique for different inclinations. We huddled up to see how Sanjay sir, Gurung Sir & Ram Sir set up the rope across the wall. As we were roped in for a glacial walk instructors demoed how to climb the glacier. It looked like a piece of cake for them. We felt that it was anything but a cake walk as we pulled & pushed the rope and  huffed & puffed  to make our way through the ice.

Once back down we practiced 2 point climbing. At this altitude this takes a lot of energy. We felt pretty tired. The super cold wind was no help. The square glares were equally useless. Reiterating my earlier point buy the curved glares rather than wayfarers for better eye protection. First day of glacier training ended as it started to snow heavily .

We had soup after training before the descend. Soup had never been this tasty. Worsening weather & chilly winds meant that we had to rush down towards out tents. I planned to take some photos on the descend but the worsening weather & shouting instructors meant no stops were taken for pics.The only pic i could manage. 

This blue tarn / lake is a site for sore eyes. Reduced visibility didn’t do justice to the pics. I was sure to click lot of pics here the next day. For the time being only eyes could capture the beautiful views as we rushed down fearing heavier snowfall. Scree is a huge problem during descend as we had to be cautious not to push any stones on the guys ahead of us at lower height. Heading back to the camp the mountain goat was cooked & served. That night we had the best possible food at 16000 freaking ft. I had never tasted anything so delicious at such remote place under snowfall. Heaven.

DAY 20 MEERATHANG GLACIER – Second Visit

Many high blood pressure & fever cases dropped out the next day for rest. Gorichen was still hidden in clouds away from being photographed. Not so photo freindly i guess. I had only one motive that day- to climb at a batter pace than yesterday and to photograph the abundant beauty of nature. I did manage to climb faster than yesterday. The lungs were performing powerfully today. Acclimatisation was getting stronger.

As I felt stronger , I was able to take better photos. Enjoy

As we reached the advance base camp we had tea. Ice shoes & crampon were put on. The shouts got us charged. Barfani baba ki ….. Jai. Behold the mighty Meerathang glacier

The heavy ice shoes feel like a plaster holding back an ankle fracture. Walking with these shoes require some time to get used to. Looking at the wall we  could see the AMC guys trying free climbing ( without safety rope) . Balls of steel.

Back to the climb we jumarred our way to the top of the ice wall like the previous day. Once at the top we could see the huge expanse of the glacier- consisting of icicles & bergschrunds (showing off my newly acquired knowledge). The view was terrific as the blue ice river against the back drop of Gorichen looked beautiful. Before I could whip out the camera, the clouds came back to hide Gorichen. Gorichen was indeed shy of a photo.

Once we were done with the photo frenzy it was time for rappelling the ice wall. Never having rappelled against ice I was a bit nervous as nothing beyond the ice wall’s edge was visible. Gurung Sir set up the base for rappelling

But once I got started the nervousness vanished and I was enjoying every moment of it. I reached down in no time.

Next up was the four point climbing on which we would be graded the next day. Again the demo given by  the energetic Ram sir made it look super easy. Actual climbing it was a different story. No sooner did I start climbing I was breathless.

Breathlessness at high altitude is a real problem. Acclimatization does take some time before you can get to your high energy levels. Here is where your training before the course plays a big roll to get you fit enough to enjoy the course rather than feel like a tired weak person. Sweat in your training rather than bleed in the war.

I climbed slowly to reach the top and my only plan for the next day was to do the 4 point climbing at a flying pace. Everybody tried their hand at 4 point climbing completing our glacier session.

After having hot soup we descended towards out camp. One last pic of the beautiful Meerathang lake. Because 100 pics of the same lake and you still cant get enough.

While descending we could only think about the dinner. Apart from the crystal clear rivers, huge ice walls, glaciers , rock climbing , ice climbing etc the hot mutton at 16000ft is definitely a delicious memory. Single serving is just not enough.

A day full of beautiful memories & a sky full of stars. Good night.

Here is my vlog of my first encounter with Meerathang glacier.. If you like reading my story till now you will definitely like the video. Bare in mind these videos are of old video making style as I was just getting started. My newer videos have a different feel. Subscribe to my channel.

The last few days in NIMAS included the ice climbing test , endurance tests, Tawang visit. Have a look below

PARTS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

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