Mount Gongga facts for kids
Mount Gongga, also known as Minya Konka, is the tallest mountain in Sichuan province, China. Local people call it "The King of Sichuan Mountains."
This amazing peak is part of the Daxue Shan range. It sits between the Dadu River and Yalong River. Mount Gongga is special because it's the easternmost peak in the world that is taller than 7,000 meters (about 23,000 feet). It is also the third highest peak outside the famous Himalaya and Karakoram mountain ranges. Only Tirich Mir and Kongur Tagh are taller. The mountain rises steeply above deep gorges nearby.
Exploring Mount Gongga
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Graf Béla Széchenyi (from Ed. Ellinger in Österreichs Illustrierter Zeitung, 1900)
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Title page of an expedition report from a member of Graf Béla Széchenyi's expedition
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Joseph Rock
People have been interested in Mount Gongga for a long time. The first known measurement of the mountain was done by an expedition led by Graf Béla Széchenyi between 1877 and 1880. They estimated its height to be about 7,600 meters (24,934 feet). About 45 years later, a missionary named J. H. Edgar also sketched the mountain from a distance.
In 1930, an explorer named Joseph Rock tried to measure the mountain's height. He thought it was about 30,250 feet (9,220 meters) tall. He even told the National Geographic Society that Minya Konka might be the highest mountain in the world! However, his measurement was later found to be too high. After talking with the Society, Rock changed his estimate to 7,803 meters (25,600 feet). In the same year, a Swiss geographer named Eduard Imhof measured it as 7,590 meters (24,902 feet).
The First Climb
A second American team came to Mount Gongga in 1932. This team was much better prepared. They did a very accurate survey of the peak and the area around it. Their measurement of the summit's height matched Imhof's figure of 7,590 meters.
Two members of this small team, Terris Moore and Richard Burdsall, successfully climbed to the top. The other two climbing members were Arthur B. Emmons and Jack T. Young. They started climbing from the west side of the mountain. They followed the Northwest Ridge to reach the summit.
This was a truly amazing achievement for its time. The mountain is very high and far away from towns. The climbing group was also very small. This climb was the highest summit reached by Americans until 1958. The book written by the expedition members, "Men Against The Clouds," is still a famous book in mountaineering.
Images for kids
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Mount Gongga Northwest Ridge
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Mount Gongga, photographed from the west during the 1980 American expedition.
See also
In Spanish: Monte Gongga para niños
