Tackling Island Peak – Nepal’s Most Popular Trekking Peak

Island Peak (20,305 feet) was given the name of Imja Tse in 1983, although even locals still use the former.c because it resembles an island in a sea of ice when seen from Dingboche.

The next year, the first people to climb this mountain were Charles Wylie, Alf Gregory, Charles Evans and Tenzing Norgay, who were preparing for their Everest bid - this was where they perfected their oxygen systems, although oxygen is not necessary. People still use Island Peak to prepare for Everest or other high peaks. It is an offshoot of the south ridge of Lhotse Shar, separated by a small col.

Island Peak lies within Sagarmatha National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site famous for its exotic wildlife that includes red pandas, snow leopards, musk deer, mountain goats and colourful pheasants. The peak is atop the Chukung glacier between the Ama Dablam and Lhotse mountains. It is the perfect introduction to Himalayan mountain climbing.

This is the most popular trekking peak, with over 300 groups attempting the expedition each year, although it is more technical than some of the others and so requires walking experience such as winter walking in Scotland.  Island Peak is probably the easiest and most affordable way for you to obtain high-altitude experience. This trek will take around two weeks at least, although four is more leisurely. A typical price is £2,600 per person.

You begin in Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu, a destination popular with tourists, trekkers and adventure seekers that presents a very appealing blend of Hinduism, Buddhism and Western influence. You will generally be given a day to partake of its diversity. The trek begins at Lukla airstrip after a hair-raising landing- then transfer. It passes through many Sherpa villages, high mountain passes and remote valleys. The local population is mostly Buddhist, and there are many monasteries to be found.

Accommodation will generally be in tea houses that feature a wide array of hot food and drink, although washing facilities are basic and you may have to share a room. On the mountain, you will stay in a tent.

You then pass the Lhotse and Imja glaciers prior to reaching Everest Base Camp, where you branch off to Chukkung. Island Peak is reached through the Dudh Kosi valley, where views grow steadily more spectacular. Three days later, you will approach Island Peak’s base camp at Pareshaya Gab (18,702 feet).  You will have the opportunity to climb Kala Patar (18,372 feet), which offers some of the best views of Everest that exist. You then climb Island Peak. Summit day is typically between 12 and 14 hours, which is demanding. After heavy snowfall, slopes can be prone to avalanches. The hardest part is a wall of rock and ice that slopes around 45 degrees and leads to the narrow summit ridge.

20,305 feet up on Island Peak, you are presented with some of the most breathtaking scenery in the Himalayas: fine views of the high mountains of the region. Nuptse (25,849 feet), Lhotse (27,890 feet) and Lhotse middle peak (27,562 feet) form a semi circle to the north. Makalu (27,805 feet) lies to the east while Baruntse and Ama Dablam are to the south.