Cho Oyu is the sixth-highest mountain in the world at above sea level. Cho Oyu means "Turquoise Goddess" in Tibetan. The mountain is the westernmost major peak of the Khumbu sub-section of the Mahalangur Himalaya 20 km west of Mount Everest. The mountain stands on the ChinaNepal border. Just a few kilometres west of Cho Oyu is Nangpa La, a glaciated pass that serves as the main trading route between the Tibetans and the Khumbu's Sherpas. This pass separates the Khumbu and RolwalingHimalayas. Due to its proximity to this pass and the generally moderate slopes of the standard northwest ridge route, Cho Oyu is considered the easiest 8,000 metre peak to climb. It is a popular objective for professionally guided parties.
Cho Oyu was first attempted in 1952 by an expedition organised and financed by the Joint Himalayan Committee of Great Britain as preparation for an attempt on Mount Everest the following year. The expedition was led by Eric Shipton and included Edmund Hillary, Tom Bourdillon and George Lowe. A foray by Hillary and Lowe was stopped due to technical difficulties and avalanche danger at an ice cliff above and a report of Chinese troops a short distance across the border influenced Shipton to retreat from the mountain rather than continue to attempt to summit. The mountain was first climbed on October 19, 1954, via the north-west ridge by Herbert Tichy, Joseph Jöchler and SherpaPasang Dawa Lama of an Austrian expedition. Cho Oyu was the fifth 8000 metre peak to be climbed, after Annapurna in June 1950, Mount Everest in May 1953, Nanga Parbat in July 1953 and K2 in July 1954. Until the ascent of Mount Everest by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler in 1978, this was the highest peak climbed without supplemental oxygen. Cho Oyu is considered the easiest eight-thousander, with the lowest death-summit ratio. It is the second most climbed eight-thousander after Everest, and has over four times the ascents of the third most popular eight-thousander, Gasherbrum II. It is marketed as a "trekking peak", achievable for climbers with high fitness, but low mountaineering experience. It has a broadly flat summit plateau with no cairn, which can be a source of confusion, and debate, amongst climbers.
1984 Věra Komárková and Dina Štěrbová were the first women to climb Cho Oyu. Štěrbová was also the first woman from Czechoslovakia to climb an 8000er.
1985 On February 12, PolesMaciej Berbeka and Maciej Pawlikowski make the first winter ascent. It is the only winter ascent on eight-thousander made on a new route and first winter without additional oxygen support. Repeated three days later by Andrzej Heinrich and Jerzy Kukuczka. Kukuczka set an additional record - climbed two eight-thousanders during the same winter. Earlier he climbed Dhaulagiri.
1988 On November 2, a Slovenian expedition consisting of Iztok Tomazin, Roman Robas, Blaž Jereb, Rado Nadvešnik, Marko Prezelj, and Jože Rozman, reach the summit via the never before climbed north face.
1994 First solo ascent via the South West face by Yasushi Yamanoi.
2004 Second summit by a double amputee
2007 Second Indian ascent. Expedition led by Abhilekh Singh Virdi.
2009 Clifton Maloney, husband of US Representative Carolyn Maloney and at that time the oldest American to summit an eight-thousander, died at age 71 after summiting on 25 September. His final words were "I’m the happiest man in the world. I’ve just summited a beautiful mountain."
2011 Dutch climber Ronald Naar dies after becoming unwell at.
