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In 1899 Douglas Freshfield was to be
the first mountaineer who set out with his party along the
Dzongri trek route to examine the great western face of
Kanchenjunga (Khangchendzonga), rising from the Kanchenjunga Glacier.
 Though vast environmental changes have
taken place since then, nevertheless we have chocked out
an itinerary for you to relive those moments.
ABOUT DOUGLAS W. FRESHFIELD
Douglas W. Freshfield (1845-1934), a
British barrister, mountaineer, writer, poet and
geographer, was one of the greatest mountain explorer of
any age. A prominent figure in the Royal Geographical
Society. Following the footsteps of the 1883
mountaineering party of W Graham, which after climbing an
18000 ft peak, was forced to return to Darjeeling after
only a week, Douglas Freshfield set out with his party in
1899. He was to be the first mountaineer to trek in a
circle around Khangchendzonga, from the North. When he
finally arrived safely in 1899,at Dzongri, he lit a big
bonfire, which was visible as far as Darjeeling. The
Governor of Bengal ordered Gun Salute to be fired in his
honour.
He was also the first mountaineer to
examine the great western face of Khangchendzonga, rising
from the Khangchendzonga Glacier. Douglas Freshfield had
traveled to Green Lakes along with the famous Italian
photographer Vittorio Sella’ who had photographed
Siniolchu from Zemu Valley. Freshfield has described
Siniolchu as “The Most Superb Triumph of Mountain
Architecture and The Most Beautiful Snow Mountain in the
World”.
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