
Muztagh Ata (meaning 'Ice Mountain Father' in
English), formerly known as Mount Tagharma and Wi-tagh, is the second highest of the mountains which form the northern edge of the
Tibetan Plateau, with an elevation of .
It is sometimes regarded as being part of the
Kunlun Mountains, although physically it is more closely connected to the
Pamirs. It is one of the relatively easier 7,000 m peaks in the world to climb, due to its gentle western slope and the comparatively drier weather of
Xinjiang
Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...
, though a thorough acclimatization period and a very strong physical condition are crucial for success.
Location

Muztagh Ata lies just south of
Kongur Tagh, the highest peak of this somewhat isolated range that is separated from the main chain of the Kunlun by the large
Yarkand River valley, and thus generally included in the "Eastern
Pamirs". Not far to the north and east of this group are the lowlands of the
Tarim Basin
The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Xinjiang, Northwestern China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, Ch ...
and the
Taklamakan Desert. The
Karakoram Highway
The Karakoram Highway (, ), also known as the KKH, National Highway 35 (), N-35, and the ChinaPakistan Friendship Highway, is a National Highways of Pakistan, national highway which extends from Hasan Abdal in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab p ...
passes very close to both peaks as well as
Karakul Lake, from which the mountain is conveniently viewed. The closest city is to the mountain is
Tashkurgan
Tashkurgan, historically known as Sarikol and Shitoucheng, is a town in the far west of China, close to the country's border with Tajikistan. It is seat of Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County, in the autonomous region of Xinjiang. Tajiksethnic ...
, the westernmost town in China and very close to the border with
Tajikistan
Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...
and
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
.
History
According to Michael Witzel:
The
Swedish explorer and geographer
Sven Hedin made the first recorded attempt to climb Muztagh Ata, in 1894. On his first expedition in 1900
Aurel Stein reached the summit while crossing the Karakorum Pass. Additional attempts were made in 1900, 1904 and 1947, the last by the team of
Eric Shipton and
Bill Tilman who came very close to the summit but were turned back due to cold and deep snow.
The first ascent of the peak was in 1956 by a large party of
Chinese and
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
climbers (including
Liu Lianman and
Xu Jing) led by E.A. Beletskiy, via the west ridge, which is now the standard route.
Since the first ascent, many ascents of Muztagh Ata have been made. In 1980, a party led by Ned Gillette made a ski ascent/descent of the standard route, the first ski ascent of a mountain over . An ascent of the much harder south-east ridge was made in 2000 and a secondary route at the west side of the mountain was first climbed in the summer of 2005. In 2011, the Swedish climber Anneli Wester camped on the summit overnight after climbing the mountain solo and alpine style. In 2013,
Aron Ralston, the man who famously amputated his own arm during a hiking accident in 2003, made the summit without his compatriot Michael Ash, who sustained a lung injury and was forced to return to base camp.
References
Citations
Sources
* Jill Neate, ''High Asia: An Illustrated History of the 7000 Metre Peaks'', .
Himalayan Index
External links
*
Muztagh Ata on Peakbagger.comMuztagh Ata on Silk Road ExpeditionMuztagh Ata on Lenin Peak Website
{{Authority control
Mountains of Xinjiang
Seven-thousanders of the Pamir
Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County