Informative

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

Neeti Singhal

Last updated: 07-11-2022

Pack all your skills when you decide to come here for CB13 (6,264M) and CB14 (6,078M) are quite the pair and a perfect duo to provide you with all the challenges you are looking for as a mountaineer! As the most aspired-for peaks in the region, they hold somewhat of a star-status in the Chandrabhaga massif in the Lahaul district of Himachal Pradesh. 

Situated on the South Dhaka glacier, CB13 is the highest peak in the CB range of mountains and CB14, its little shorter cousin. With their peculiar terrain which is quintessential of the landscape of Lahaul, these are technically challenging peaks individually, made even more difficult when attempted together as a dual climb. But where’s the fun in climbing if it is a smooth ride, right? 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

"CB13 and CB14 are not everyone's cup of tea", said one of the climbers from our recent expedition to the mountain. From our experience, we can say that these 6000M peaks are quite the firecrackers for their height. With their uneven landscape and impossible slopes, they almost seem unwelcoming at first sight but aren’t actually so -they only demand a little more patience, a fair bit of attention and a lot of mettle - you got these, and they will call for you! 

The task of this climb may seem humongous (and it is!), knowing a few of the challenges you may encounter helps immensely in being prepared for them and reducing the risks involved. Introducing you to as many real and probable difficulties on this expedition as possible is the task we’ve taken on hand and hope to accomplish through this article. However, we hope that these will inspire you and make the want of the climb in you stronger instead of proving to be deterrents. 

 

Difficulty Level of the Trek:

Mt. CB13 and CB14 expedition is a level 7 on the Bikat Rating Scale.

About the BRS: The Bikat Rating Scale rates the difficulty level of all treks and expeditions in our portfolio after taking into account their geographical and climatic conditions. 

According to this scale, if you are a beginner who is unsure of your fitness level and don’t know what to expect on a trek, a trek rated one will be a good place to start. 

If you liked your very first trekking experience and are looking to test your limits next, the treks rated 2 or 3 will do the job for you.

A beginner who is sure of their fitness level on the other hand is welcome to skip the first two levels and directly start with one of the treks rated 3.

From 4 onwards, the rules change a little. It is mandatory to have trekking experience of the previous level to participate in the next level.

 

The Trails of CB13 and CB14:

Considered a stepping stone to enter the world of the big mountains, this dual climb to Mt. CB13 and CB14 is for experienced mountaineers only. Prior knowledge of technical equipment and mountaineering techniques such as the use of ice axes, roping up procedures, rappelling, crampons, and jumar climbing is a must. The technical ascent to the summit along with extreme and unpredictable weather conditions and rough terrain demand high levels of physical fitness as well as high capacity for mental endurance. A climb up these peaks serves as a preparatory expedition for many 8000M+ peaks and helps the transition from trekking peaks to climbing summits. It is perfect for those mountaineers who have prior experience of high-altitude climbing and some technical knowledge. 

If your knowledge of mountaineering equipment and techniques needs brushing up, however, there is absolutely no need to worry! As a learning-based organization, we will be providing you with the equipment and training needed to use them during the initial days of the expedition. Nonetheless, it helps to know the challenges you are likely to encounter if you decide to undertake this journey. Let us help acquaint you to some exciting difficulties which make the expedition challenging as well as fun!

 

Challenge 1: Time Commitment

Expeditions, as opposed to treks, demand a lot of time. Climbing Mt CB13 and CB14 is a 16 day affair excluding the travel time to and from the city of Manali. To get anywhere into the Himalayas is a time consuming process, which is true even in this case. Since Himachal Pradesh is not connected by railways and has a sketchy air travel approach, reaching Manali requires one to take a flight to the closest airport and then spend half a day in a bus or a cab. Reaching Batal which is the trailhead of the expedition, takes an additional day of road travel.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 2: The Approach

CB13 is one of those gems which was made more accessible after the inaugural of Atal Tunnel as before this, there was no easy way to make your way into the isolated and cut off region of Lahaul. The beauty of Lahaul is one of its kind which you notice as soon as you come out on the other side of the tunnel - the difference is so stark, it's unmissable! The landscape and its beauty is the very definition of raw which extends to the peaks in the region. Given how remote the region is, as you can imagine, getting to it is quite an adventure on its own.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

The roads that get you to Batal are said to be one of the riskiest roads to drive on. The roads from Gramphu, which is the halfway mark to Batal, get tricky as we get onto smaller, kachcha roads which go towards Spiti. As smooth as the ride was up until then, it is all rocks, boulders and dust from here on – the ultimate off-road experience with crazy nallas along the way which the drivers in the region cross with some superhero-level confidence. From the first drive on, the expedition to these magnificent peaks reaches in and pulls out all kinds of fears in you as you try to muster the courage to stay in your seat on these bumpy roads with a steep fall.

 

Challenge 3: Landscape of Lahaul

The landscape of Lahaul is not always your best friend. Quintessential of the climate in the cold desert region of Himachal Pradesh where the duo finds itself stationed, the confusing weather with dry and brutal heat alongside the biting breeze is just as much of a challenge in trying to climb the peaks as climbing the peaks itself. It is mostly inhospitable, and requires a lot of adapting to. Given that there is close to no vegetation in the entire region, and the high altitude, the air there is extremely dry which can make your throat scratchy and your face burnt from the harsh sun from which there is no respite. The dry climate also makes it harder for the body to adapt to the environment adding to the technical challenge of climbing these gorgeous yet unforgiving peaks.

Check out - Highlights of CB13 and CB14

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 4: Self-Reliance, Acclimatization and Load Ferry

While you can get a lot of support from support teams in smaller treks, this is barely the case with high-altitude expeditions. Expeditions require a lot more self-reliance where each climber needs to carry their own weight in the team so as to not become a liability. This means having the required technical knowledge, being physically capable of carrying yourself and all your gear + clothing + ration to and in-between camps which gets harder and harder as the altitude increases. As difficult as it is all on its own, it gets even more interesting when this tedious exercise has to be carried out over long stretches of moraine made of patches of black ice, loose rocks and no trail. Welcome to Chandra Bhaga!

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 5: Gearing Up

The farther away you go from sea level, the harder it gets for the body to accomplish basic functions – altitude tends to reduce speed, efficiency and even slows down brain functions compromising essential tasks such as decision making and planning. All the body’s resources are used for the most vital of functions. It serves well to know that the energy reserves on high-altitude are very limited so as to better calculate where they can be expended. The simplest of tasks at such an altitude seem extremely daunting. 

CB13 has 3 campsites at the following altitudes – Basecamp at 4,440M, Advanced Base Camp at 4,900M, and Summit Camp at 5,650M. Since all our climbs begin at high altitude, and because of the number of gears required to undertake each climb between camps, gearing up before the climb is one exhausting process. The simple task of prepping your equipment and putting it on before each climb takes up a lot of this limited energy, can wear you out and make you breathless. The general gearing up would include: a harness, an ascender, a descender, a few carabineers (screw type and plain type), sling, sling tape, self-anchor, helmet, snow boots, crampons, and layering up according to the temperature. 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Because of its peculiar terrain, the climb from Base Camp to Advanced Base Camp is all boulders and rocks which means it is safer to wear your hiking shoes on this patch. Wearing hiking shoes means carrying the additional 3 kgs of snow boots on your back, adding to the overall weight of your sack.

 

Challenge 6: A Tricky Terrain, a Technical Climb & the Many Dependencies

Given its peculiar terrain of alternating rock and snow patches, these mountains are a technical climb which require rock climbing as well as high-altitude climbing skills is varied terrain and hence a heavy dependence on mountaineering equipment. The landscape is especially tricky since these are mostly rocky mountains and the loose rock, due to slight shifts in temperature, tends to come loose. As difficult as it is to walk on loose rock, the bigger concern is the rocks that come flying down the mountain from all sides at great speed. The speed of the rock and not its size will determine the damage each hit will do. It is an added element to constantly keep a watch out for these flying weapons of the mountain and try to constantly dodge them from each side as you try to climb up or down its slopes. 

As the mountain changes face every year for the receding glacier exposing more of its crumbling rock underneath, it's only getting harder to climb each passing year. Its long stretches of boulder sections continue all the way to the top of the mountain calling for some serious rock climbing skills on the patches of rocks chest-high which run vertical and tall.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Since climbing at this altitude is, although, a team effort but equally an individual journey, having knowledge about the techniques of mountaineering and knowing your way with your equipment are essential to contribute to the success of the team instead of becoming a liability. Self-management, knowing the risks and being able to be self-sufficient in case of an emergency is absolutely vital. 

At high altitude, the success of your expedition depends, to a great degree, on the quality of your equipment and the trust you are able to place in it. Each small piece of clothing and tool can be the difference between failure and success, mishap and control, life and death! It is extremely important to care for, maintain and pay the equipment their due respect because they are support systems that take you to heights and bring you back down safely. 

 

Challenge 7: Short Distances, Long Days!

It is only on the trails of CB13 and CB14 that you realise that distance is only an illusion. You know when you ask your expedition leader 'how much farther for the day', on these peaks is where you learn the answer to that doesn't mean much because even half a kilometre takes what seems like an eternity to cover on the insane terrain of this peak. The massive boulders, loose rocks, long (very long) vertical slopes, and snow which pulls you down to your waist with each step, getting anywhere on this mountain is a tedious affair. But one that leaves you with a widest smile for getting there in the end - so well, it's all worth it! 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 8: The Summit Push

There are no easy days on this climb. Right from when you step out of your hotel at Manali, you are in for a bittersweet ride - from the bumpy roads that take you to Batal to the (very) long trek up to the Base Camp to the loose rocks and crumbling mountains which are about one-step-up, two-steps-down all the way to Advanced Base Camp to the snow-that-doesn't-hold-you on the slopes up to Summit Camp to the unmenacingly steep slopes and hard terrain to the summit with the slopes only getting harder to come down on. CB13 and CB14 are 16 days of brutal exhaustion - the kind that leaves you satisfied in the end!

Check out - Photo Story of CB13 and CB14

Although all the days are a call for mettle waiting to be answered, the summit push is especially hard due to the terrain and the length of the push. To head to the summit requires you to wake up and push off in the dead of the night after an extremely long and tiring climb on the previous day. Negotiating the hidden crevasses, rock gullies (made more difficult because of crampons) and icy slopes which are continuous and steep all the way to the top is brutal. 

The approximately 650M of ascent is a constant shift between rock and snow and will be traversed using a fixed rope all the way through. It is a continuous and steep ascent and takes anywhere between 8-10 hours, one way, depending on the condition of the snow at the time. 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

The last 150M to CB13 is especially daunting for it is a vertical climb on boulders which requires some serious rock climbing skills at high altitude. The last section demands balancing in some awkward positions and some serious gymnastic moves to navigate this exposed and vertical rock section which leaves little room for error as even a slight slip could prove to be extremely damaging. The vertical patch of high rocks takes close to 2 hours to climb – one climber at the time must ascent on this section since it is an accident prone area with loose rocks getting knocked down with each step up, the dislodged rocks likely to hit the climber behind. With the terrain being dry and rocky, the entire route to the summit is prone to rock fall from all directions – it serves well to be highly cautious at all times. CB14 has even lesser snow on its slopes making it that much harder to climb.

The slope to the summit is so vertical that you can see your Summit Camp all the way through, up until very close to the summit. 

 

Challenge 9: Dual Summit

If you feel strongly about dual climbs, CB13 and CB14 would be our primary recommendation for this expedition challenges all your limits and is a perfect playground to put to use all the skills you believe you possess as a mountaineer. However, the very fact that it is a dual climb calls for some change in strategy for managing energy reserves on this expedition. Since most climbing expeditions are a single summit push, we are used to save up for and expend all our energy on the one summit day, when it is okay to come back completely spent, with only enough reserves left to make a safe climb down. 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

However, dual climbs are a more complex math problem and require a well thought-out and better calculated plan for a successful ascent up both the mountains. 

It is commonly believed that double climbs require double the energy but that is hardly the case – what is required however, is a better management of energy and not a super power to somehow force a higher production of a limited resource!

 

Challenge 10: Physical Comfort

Treks usually are short and comfortable. But when that period is doubled, forgoing everyday luxuries such as toilets, toilet tents, warmth and private spaces, starts to seem as difficult as the climb itself. Being on a 16 day expedition means adjusting to a new way of living and given the duration of the expedition, it is a huge adjustment. Living on uneven land, sleeping on the icy cold snow, trying to keep your body functional at subzero temperatures where you are in a constant state of discomfort and, no toilet tents after the basecamp! Expeditions of this sort demand that you shed all your inhibitions and co-exist in the truest sense. No respite from the constant biting cold is literally like living in the freezer for 16 days with high speed winds making it even more challenging. The conundrum of wanting to stay in your tent but also needing to spend time outside for better acclimatization, is very real! In snowy terrain, we melt the snow for all hydration requirements and for the preparation of food which takes a long time to cook given the weather conditions. On the mountain, we carry packaged food, which again is a shift from our daily food consumption habits. Basically, a high-altitude climb is extremely demanding on a lot of fronts but can feel very rewarding at the same time. There is something extremely gratifying about shedding convenience.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 11: Mental and Emotional Acumen

High-altitude climbing is as mentally and emotionally strenuous a sport as it is physical. With a constant sense of discomfort, the focus the mountain demands, the harsh conditions which make it very appealing to abandon your climb, the constant debate in your head of whether to take a step forward or turn back, the will to keep pushing forward and the need to make difficult decisions every step of the way – climbing requires a lot of mental strength and emotional stability. While it is important to have a certain level of fitness, there are factors much beyond a climber’s physical strength that determine the success of the climb. You don’t just bring your fitness, but your entire personality to the base of the mountain. 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 12: Weather Windows

Along with being a harsh and inhospitable terrain, the rising altitude makes the weather extremely unstable and volatile. Keeping up with the unpredictable weather, constantly having to change plans in order to adapt to the current situation takes knowledge, patience and continuous recalibration which can be both physically as well as mentally exhausting. There is also a constant need to keep adjusting your pace to reach the campsite for the day since there is heavy dependence on clear weather windows for each day, which tend to be very limited. Besides this, even on clear days, the weather as you keep going higher up, becomes harsher, drier and sends you regular surprises in the form of high-speed winds, whiteouts and snowstorms.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 13: Reaching the Top is Only Half the Job Done

We tend to focus so much on the ascent and getting to the top that we forget that these are the very steep slopes which we also have to descend at some point. Drained energy and the general nature of descend being a little more precarious than ascends tends to make these bits a bit trickier. The slopes of CB13 and 14 being all rock and some snow, make descent even trickier – they demand extreme focus and unwavering attention in addition to a lot more physical stamina. No biggie though, the awareness of it and conserving enough energy to get down would make a universe of a difference in keeping you safe.

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

Challenge 14: Patience, Tolerance and Humility 

CB13 and CB14 are known for their technical climb, patches of difficult rock and ice negotiations and an overall challenging terrain in addition to unpredictable weather conditions. While these are known devils during the climb, the skills that can actually determine the success of an expedition are a part of each climber’s personality. While technical skills can be learnt and mastered, forbearance, tolerance and self-restraint are some of the true markers of a good climbing team in high-altitude expeditions. It is not the temperance of climbers in the periods of ‘doing’ but those of ‘non-doing’ that separate a good climber from a bad one. We love expeditions because they make transparent the strength of every climber's character - the difficulty of the task introduces you to a different version of yourself and how you handle that is the true test you put yourself through. Getting to the summit is only a part of the challenge - to measure your own self in the face of something extreme is the actual challenge the mountain throws at you! 

 

CB13 & CB14: Who Is This Expedition Meant For?

 

GEAR REQUIRED FOR Mt. CB13 and CB14

While we will be providing most of the technical equipment needed for the trek (tents, sleeping bags, crampons, snow boots, ice axe, ropes, slings, carabineers, ascender, gaiters, descender etc.), there is some basic gear you will need from your end to get through your expedition comfortably. 

Some of the things you will need are:

1) A sturdy, lightweight backpack: Given that there are no avenues to offload your pack or to shed some weight, a good backpack which sits comfortably on your back without putting too much pressure on it can be the deciding factor between making it to the summit or not. Check out the article below, in case you feel stuck on what constitutes ‘good’ when we talk about backpacks. 

How to choose your backpack 

 

2) Comfortable trekking shoes: While we will be providing you with snow boots that will be our constant companions after Base Camp, you will need a good pair of trekking shoes for the days before we get to the base of the mountain. Happy feet equal a happy trek. Conventional sports shoes don’t suit trekking trails. We recommend wearing high ankle shoes with sturdy soles. These not only provide better support but also reduce the possibility of injuries while hiking. In case, you need help with a list of deciding factors that make for good trekking shoes, please refer to the article below.

How to choose a good pair of hiking shoes 

 

3) Right Clothing: Any high-altitude expedition requires specific kinds of clothing. It should be warm but light weight. It should also be such that it is easily packaged. On high-altitude expeditions, we usually employ the layering method where you put on multiple layers of clothing instead of one very heavy, thick jacket. This is for two reasons: 

- The weather in Himalayan regions is unpredictable and changes very quickly. Layering gives you the freedom to adapt to that accordingly where you are not left feeling too hot or too cold.

- These are easy to carry and are packing-friendly.

 

4) Right Sunglasses: When you know you are going to be in and around snow or in any high-altitude location where the sun is harsh, you might want to carry a good pair of sunglasses. It is especially vital on terrains such as CB13 & CB14 since you will encounter a lot of ice on the upper reaches of the mountains. A lack of this can prove to be fatal. No sunglasses can prove to be the difference between clear vision and snow blindness. The article below can help you pick out just the right pair. 

How to pick high-altitude UV protection glasses?

 

We hope this article answers all the questions you may have about the CB13 & CB14 expedition. In case you need further assistance/information with something, please feel free to reach out to us. We are only a phone call away. 

 

Neeti Singhal

A psychologist, a developmental researcher, and a constant seeker of stories, Neeti is usually found Read more

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