Discover the Majestic Heights: Exploring the World’s 15 Tallest Mountains

The Himalayas span approximately 1,500 miles, from Pakistan and India to China, Nepal, and Bhutan via Nepal and China. Mount Everest, which stands at a staggering 29,029 feet above sea level, is the tallest mountain in the world. There are 35 additional Himalayan peaks that surpass the 25,000-foot mark. No other mountain on the planet is comparable in height anywhere near that high.

1. Mount Everest

Mount Everest is in the Mahalangur Himalaya Range in the Solukhumbu District of the Sagarmatha Zone in Nepal. It is 8,848 meters (29,029 feet) high. Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made their first ascent on May 29, 1953. Apa Sherpa holds the record for climbing Mount Everest the most times (21 times) as of 2011, while Min Bahadur Sherchan, who reached the summit at the age of 76 on May 25, 2008, is the oldest climber to do so. Mount Everest was climbed by 5,104 people, with 3,142 of them reaching the summit.

Mount Everest

2. K2

The Baltoro Karakoram has a peak elevation of 8,611 meters (28,251 feet). K2 is located on the border between Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan and China’s Xinjiang province, Tashkurgan. The first ascents to this peak were made by Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli. K2 is the world’s second-highest mountain, with 302 climbers reaching the top in 2010. At least 80 climbers perished while attempting to reach the summit in 2010. The mountain is dubbed “the Savage Mountain” because it is the world’s most perilous and difficult to climb.

K2 - Second highest mountain in the world
Photo by Adeeb Ur Rehman Raja via Flickr

3. Kangchenjunga

With an elevation of 8,586 meters (28,169 feet), this is the world’s third tallest peak, located in the Himalayas range on the boundary between India and Nepal. Joe Brown and George Band were the first to reach the summit of this peak on May 25, 1955. Kangchenjunga is a massif with an elevation of 8,450 meters, with peaks named Kangchenjunga Main, Kangchenjunga West, Kangchenjunga Central, Kangchenjunga South, and Kangchenjunga.

Kangchenjunga

4. Lhotse

The main summit is located on the border between China and Nepal, at 8,516 meters (27,940 feet) above sea level. The peaks next to Main Lhotse are Lhotse East (8,414 meters) and Lhotse South (8,383 meters). On May 18, 1956, Fritz Luchsinger and Ernst Reiss made the first climb of this mountain in the Mahalangur Himalaya range. As of 2008, 20 climbers had perished, and 371 had reached the summit.

Lhotse

5. Makalu

Makalu is the world’s fifth highest peak, with an elevation of 8,481 meters and a location on the boundary between Nepal and Tibet. On May 15, 1955, Lionel Terray and Jean Couzy attempted the first ascent. The Makalu is related to a number of the world’s highest peaks.

Makalu Mountain from Nepal border, Photo by Bisesh Gurung on Unsplash

6. Cho Oyu

Cho Oyu is located in the Mahalangur Himalayan range on the Chinese-Nepal border, about 20 kilometers west of Mount Everest. Its total elevation is 8,201 meters above sea level. The first ascents were made in 1954 by Herbert Trichy, Joseph Jochler, and Sherpa Pasang Dawa Lama.

Cho Oyu
Photo by JESUS GARCIA COLLADO via Flickr

7. Dhaulagiri

This Nepalese mountain is at an elevation of 8,167 meters. Dhaulagiri was ascended for the first time in 1960 by a team of Austrian and Swiss climbers. The Dhaulagiri Himalaya range includes this peak. Dhaulagiri II, Dhaulagiri III, Dhaulagiri IV, and Dhaulagiri V are among the highest peaks in Nepal.

Dhaulagiri
Photo by Rachel via Flickr

8. Manaslu

This is the world’s eighth tallest mountain, standing at 8,156 meters above sea level in the Mansiri Himalaya in Nepal’s west-central region. The Japanese team ascended this peak for the first time on May 9, 1956. This mountain has been climbed 297 times, with 53 people dying in the process.

Monaslu
Photo by John Rossall via Flickr

9. Nanga Parbat

Nanga Parbat is located in Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan, in the Himalayan range at a height of 8,126 meters. This is one of the most hazardous summits for climbers. Hermann Buhl made the first ascent in 1953. It also reaches a height of 4,600 meters above the ground.

10. Annapurna I

The Annapurna Mountain lies in the Annapurna massif, the highest one at 8,091 meters, is the highest peak in Nepal. It is located in the Himalayas range in the central part of the country. In 1950, Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal made the first ascent of this mountain. It is one of the 8,000-meter peaks on the list of the Eight-thousanders.

11. Gasherbrum I

Gasherbrum I, the tallest peak in the Gasherbrum massif, is located on the Pakistan-China border in the Karakoram area of the Himalaya. With an elevation of 8,080 meters, this mountain was first climbed by an American team in 1958.

12. Broad Peak

Broad Peak is the 12th highest mountain on Earth, at the height of 8,051 meters, It is part of the Gasherbrum massif and is located on the border of China and Pakistan. K2 is just 8 Km away from Broad Peak. The Australian Team is the first ascent of this peak in 1957.

13. Gasherbrum II

This peak is located in the Karakoram Range of the Himalayas, near the Pakistan-China border. It is one of the summits of the Gasherbrum massif. The entire height is roughly 8,035 meters, and Moravec, Larch, and Willienpart were the first to climb it in 1957.

14. Shishapangma

With a height of 8,013 meters, this mountain is located in Nyalam County, Tibet, China, in the Jugal Himalaya range. The first climb was made by Xu Jing et al in 1964. Because this mountain is totally within Tibet, foreigners are not permitted to visit.

15. Gyaching Kang

On the Mahalangur Himalaya, Gyachung Kang is located on the China-Nepal border. This mountain is 7,952 feet tall. This mountain was climbed by a Japanese team in 1964.

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