Bandarpunch


Bandarpunch is a mountain massif in the Garhwal Himalaya in Uttarakhand, India. The massif has 3 peaks: White Peak, also called Banderpunch II, to the west above Yamunotri; almost 5 km east is Bandarpunch main peak or Banderpunch I ; and about 4 km to the north-east is Kalanag.
file:Swargarohini and Bandarpunch in the Himalaya, from Landour.jpg|thumb|240x160px|
Swargarohini and Bandarpunch peaks in the Himalaya, viewed from Landour.

Mythology

The name is inspired by the mythological tale in which Hanuman, the monkey god, extinguishes his tail, after it catches fire during the battle between King Rama and Ravana in Lanka, by going to the summit of the mountain.

Climbing history

In 1937, a team of Doon School masters who were keen alpinists, J.T.M Gibson and John Martyn along with sherpa Tenzing Norgay reached the summit ridge for the first time. In 1946, another Doon expedition made a summit attempt, this time including, in addition to the original members, schoolmaster R. L. Holdsworth and a pupil, Nandu Jayal, Major Chengappa Nanda and Jonh Munro. The attempt was made from the south, after crossing the Darwa Pass, but was unsuccessful due to poor weather.
Major General Harold Williams led the first successful climbing expedition in 1950. The first team to summit Bandarpoonch Peak comprised legendary mountaineer Tenzing Norgay, Sergeant Roy Greenwood and Sherpa Kin Chok Tshering.

Geography

Bandarpunch is located at the western edge of the high Himalayan range where it turns the corner to the northwest. It is part of the Sankari Range and lies within the Govind Pashu Vihar National Park and Sanctuary. It is a major watershed for the headwaters of the Yamuna River, whose source lies above Yamunotri, on the west end of the massif below White Peak. Yamunotri is the westernmost of the four most sacred pilgrimage places and destination for thousands of pilgrims annually. On the north side of the Bandapoonch massif, the 12 km long glacier from its flanks feeds the Ruinsar Gad which flows into the Yamuna at Seema. On the south side, the glacier at the base of Bandarpoonch peak feeds the Hanuman Ganga River which joins the Yamuna at Hanuman Chatti.