Swargarohini
Encyclopedia
Swargarohini is a mountain
massif
in the Bandarpunch
Range of the Garhwal
Himalaya. It lies in the Uttarkashi District of the northern India
n state of Uttarakhand
, west of the Gangotri group of peaks. It comprises four separate peaks; Swargarohini I is the main peak, and is the subject of this article. While not particularly high by Himalayan standards, and not the highest in the Bandarpunch range, Swargarohini I is notable for its dramatic local relief. For example, its north face drops 2000 metres (6,561.7 ft) in less than 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) of horizontal distance, and its south face achieves the same drop in less than 3 kilometres (1.9 mi). This makes it a steep and challenging climb. Swargarohini I has two summits, east and west. The east summit is given an elevation of 6247 m (20,495 ft), slightly lower than the west summit. However the first ascensionists of the west summit claim that that summit is the higher of the two.
This snow-clad peak along is the source of the Tons River
and along with the Bandarpunch
massif it acts as a divider between the Yamuna
and the Bhagirathi Rivers.
& their Dog.According to Legends its believed that is
only way one can go to heaven with human body itself.
); Dilsher Singh Virk, Peter Fuhrman and Bruce MacKinnon (Canada
); and Mohan Singh and Rattan Singh (India
) made the first ascent of the west summit of Swargarohini I, ascending from the west side.
The first ascent came on May 3, 1990, by a team of instructors from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering. They climbed from the Ruinsara Valley on the north side, via the eastern col
connecting the peak to the rest of the range, and found challenging rock climbing
to achieve the col, leading to easier snow slopes above. However, other sources claim that this ascent stopped (5 m (16 ft)) short of the summit due to the presence of an unstable cornice.
The south face of the peak was attempted unsuccessfully in 1991. On June 7, 1993, an expedition from Sweden
made the first undisputed ascent of the peak via this face. The summit team comprised Birger Andrén, Ingela Nilsson, and Ake Nilsson. They ascended a rock ridge on the eastern side of the south face, leading to the easy east-southeast ridge.
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
massif
Massif
In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole...
in the Bandarpunch
Bandarpunch
Bandarpunch is a major peak of the Garhwal division of the Himalayas, in the Indian state of Uttaranchal. It literally means "Tail of the monkey" or "Tail of Hanuman" in Hindi. It's a twin peak: Bandarpunch-I & Bandarpunch-II...
Range of the Garhwal
Garhwal Division
Garhwal is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by...
Himalaya. It lies in the Uttarkashi District of the northern India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state of Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...
, west of the Gangotri group of peaks. It comprises four separate peaks; Swargarohini I is the main peak, and is the subject of this article. While not particularly high by Himalayan standards, and not the highest in the Bandarpunch range, Swargarohini I is notable for its dramatic local relief. For example, its north face drops 2000 metres (6,561.7 ft) in less than 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) of horizontal distance, and its south face achieves the same drop in less than 3 kilometres (1.9 mi). This makes it a steep and challenging climb. Swargarohini I has two summits, east and west. The east summit is given an elevation of 6247 m (20,495 ft), slightly lower than the west summit. However the first ascensionists of the west summit claim that that summit is the higher of the two.
This snow-clad peak along is the source of the Tons River
Tons River
The Tons is the largest tributary of the Yamuna and flows through Garhwal region in Uttarakhand, touching Himachal Pradesh. The Tons thrust is named after this river....
and along with the Bandarpunch
Bandarpunch
Bandarpunch is a major peak of the Garhwal division of the Himalayas, in the Indian state of Uttaranchal. It literally means "Tail of the monkey" or "Tail of Hanuman" in Hindi. It's a twin peak: Bandarpunch-I & Bandarpunch-II...
massif it acts as a divider between the Yamuna
Yamuna
The Yamuna is the largest tributary river of the Ganges in northern India...
and the Bhagirathi Rivers.
Legends and history
Swargorhini derives it names from the Legends associated with that it peaks forms the path to heaven that was followed by Pandavas, DraupadiDraupadi
In the epic Mahābhārata, Draupadi, also known as ' is the "emerged" daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla and the wife of the five Pandavas. When Yudhisthira becomes the king of Hastinapura at the end of the war, Draupadi becomes the queen of Indraprastha...
& their Dog.According to Legends its believed that is
only way one can go to heaven with human body itself.
Climbing history
Swargarohini I has seen many climbing attempts. As of 1994, fifteen attempts had been made. On October 25, 1974, Charles Clarke (EnglandUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
); Dilsher Singh Virk, Peter Fuhrman and Bruce MacKinnon (Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
); and Mohan Singh and Rattan Singh (India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
) made the first ascent of the west summit of Swargarohini I, ascending from the west side.
The first ascent came on May 3, 1990, by a team of instructors from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering. They climbed from the Ruinsara Valley on the north side, via the eastern col
Mountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
connecting the peak to the rest of the range, and found challenging rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
to achieve the col, leading to easier snow slopes above. However, other sources claim that this ascent stopped (5 m (16 ft)) short of the summit due to the presence of an unstable cornice.
The south face of the peak was attempted unsuccessfully in 1991. On June 7, 1993, an expedition from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
made the first undisputed ascent of the peak via this face. The summit team comprised Birger Andrén, Ingela Nilsson, and Ake Nilsson. They ascended a rock ridge on the eastern side of the south face, leading to the easy east-southeast ridge.