Kanchenjunga (8598m)

Kanchenjunga means "Five Mangnificent Snow Treasures." The five mountains from the southeast are South Peak (8491m), Central Peak (8478m), and Main Peak; turning westward there are Yalung Kang and Kambachen.

Starting from the primary peak, Kanchenjunga, the Kanchenjunga Region encompasses, to the southwest, the mountain ridges of Yalung Kang, Kambachen and Jannu. It continues southward from Jonsang La to Langpo Peak, Pyramid Peak, and Nepal Peak - all on Sikkim's border - through Central Peak and South Peak. It continues further from Talung Peak and Kabru North and South Peaks to the twin peaks of Rathong and Kokthan. To the west of Jonsang La, on Tibet's borders, are Jongsang Peak, Outlier, Lashar, Chabuk, and Ohnmi Kangri. Further south lie Nupchu and Sharpu. This, then, is the Kangchenjunga Region. It is a great mountain range which includes four peaks that are more than 8000m in elevation and eighteen peaks over 7000m. The Kangchenjunga and Yalung Glaciers at the upper reaches of the Tamur River drain these mountains.

(Photo Courtesy: Milan Shrestha)
(Text from Shiro Shirahata, Nepal Himalaya, Heian, 1983)

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