A bold new line has been added to one of Nepal's most storied unclimbed-peak sagas. Between October 23 and 27, Russian climbers Alexander Parfenov and Alexander Semenov climbed a previously unexplored southeast-facing buttress on Lunag Ri, a 6,895m (some sources say 6,907m) peak in the Rolwaling Himal, right on the Nepal-Tibet border.
The route was serious by any measure: mixed climbing up to M6, aid moves at A2–A3, ice sections reaching WI5–WI6, and long pitches of steep snow with almost no gear for protection. They placed a piton near the top of the pillar, then began rappelling, reaching the base of the wall on October 28. An incoming storm and health problems made the call for them — and the confusing summit area, a jumble of linked peaks and ridges, left even them unsure exactly how close to the true summit they had come.
The mountain has a rich recent history. A French team — including Max Belleville, Mathieu Detrie, Mathieu Maynadier and Sebastien Ratel — climbed the southeast face in 2010 with their route Close the Door (1,200m), topping out on a subsidiary southeast point of 6,812–6,830m but running out of steam before traversing to the main summit. Conrad Anker and David Lama twice probed the west side: in 2015 they stopped about 300m short, and in 2016 Anker suffered a heart attack at around 5,800m and was helicopter-evacuated, while Lama continued alone to a point 250m below the top.
The breakthrough came in October 2018, when Lama returned solo and climbed the southwest face and northwest ridge — 1,500m of vertical gain with terrain up to 90°, much of it without a rope — over three days to make the first ascent. He won a Piolet d'Or for it. Parfenov and Semenov's new route doesn't change that summit ledger, but it is a significant exploration of a major feature on a remote Himalayan peak, and a reminder of how much unclimbed terrain still hides between Nepal's famous 8,000m giants.
For travellers, the story matters for a different reason: the Rolwaling Valley remains one of Nepal's quieter trekking corners. It sits west of the Khumbu, offers approaches to Tashi Labsta pass into the Everest region, and sees a fraction of the foot traffic of Everest Base Camp — all with dramatic peaks like Lunag Ri and Gauri Sankar towering overhead.
