Mt. Gurla Mandata

About 100km (62 miles) south to Mt. Kailash sits another imposingly snow-clad mountain, Gurla Mandata. Highly regarded as the 'Mountain of Goddess', Mt. Gurla Mandata resembles a mother, gently gazing at Mt. Kailash, the Sacred Mountain. At an altitude of 7,728m (25,354 ft), it is the highest mountain in Ngari. By far Gurla Mandata glaciers, as thick as 200m (656 ft), are the thickest glaciers in China, ranking the largest among those of the Himalayas in China as well.
Among its six ridges, the east one has been transformed into steep cliffs by yearly erosions. The five ridges in the west, with softer slopes, are considered relatively safe for climbing. However, though several attempts have been made by foreign mountaineers since 1902, it was not until 1985 that Mt. Gurla Mandata was first conquered by a Sino-Japan expedition.