12/11/2022
Thajiwas valley is a famous beauty spot in Sonamarg and the Thajiwas Range, overlooking it, is as fine a range as any of like size in Kashmir. It runs SE to NW and joins the Sindh river at Sh*tkari just below Sonamarg where the westward flow of the river is turned South to the Vale of Kashmir. The overlooking igneous Thajiwas range is by no means a cragman's paradise. It affords some varied and arduous climbing and for those who are found snow and ice work, it is an excellent playground. The range culminates in 4854m Thajiwas peak and between the ridges are six fairly well defined hanging glaciers which are steep, harder of ascent than average alpine glacier.
Glacier 1 overlooks the Sonamarg and is directly under 4854m Thajiwas peak. The Thajiwas peak was first climbed by J. Waller in 1937. It was his second attempt to this peak and were successful in reaching its summit via a 300m Couloir which was later named as Waller's Couloir. The second ascent was made by Jackson and Buzzard in 1945 but this time the route was by Glacier 2 ( Waller's descent route in 1937).
Glacier 2 is divided from Glacier 1 by two parallel rock ridges running up to the higher buttresses or subsidiary summits of Thajiwas peak.
Glacier 2 is bounded to the south by a series of very steep buttresses and rock ribs that culminate the summits of Cefn Carnedd 4800m, The Blade 4,820 meters and The Arrow 4830 meters forming the south wall of Glacier 2.
They were first climbed by Buzzard and Jackson in 1945 ascending Amphitheatre Gully, traversing Umbrella peak to the snow col between the two peaks and then up the snow to the summit.
Image Courtesy
Old photographs belong to C.W.F. Noyce
