8000m peaks - Everest - K2 - Kangchenjunga - Lhotse - Makalu - Cho-Oyu - Dhaulagiri - Manaslu - Nanga Parbat - Annapurna - Gasherbrum I - Broad Peak - Gasherbrum II - Shishapangma

Annapurna is located on the 55 km long Annapurna massif in north-central Nepal east of a great gorge cut through the Himalaya by the Kali Gandaki river. This gorge separates it from the Dhaulagiri massif. Annapurna is the tenth highest mountain in the world. Annapurna is translated as " Goddess of the Harvests" or "the Provider". Of Annapurna's many high peaks, five are labeled using some variation of the name Annapurna. Of these, the two highest (Annapurna I and II), stand like bookends at the western and eastern ends of the massif.

Annapurna Range

The entire massif and surrounding area are protected within the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), the first and largest conservation area in Nepal, established in 1986 by the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation. The Annapurna Convervation Area is home to several world-class treks, including the Annapurna Circuit.

Annapurna I was the first 8000 m peak to be climbed. Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal, of a French expedition (including Lionel Terray, Gaston Rébuffat, Marcel Ichac, Jean Couzy, Marcel Schatz, Jacques Oudot, Francis de Noyelle), reached the summit on June 3, 1950. The expedition is described in one of the most famous mountaineering books "Annapurna" by Maurice Herzog.

The south face of Annapurna was first climbed in 1970 by Don Whillans and Dougal Haston, members of a British expedition led by Chris Bonington which included the alpinist Ian Clough, who was killed by a falling ice-pillar during the descent.

In 1978, The American Women's Annapurna Expedition, a team led by Arlene Blum, became the first American team to climb Annapurna I. The expedition was also remarkable for being composed entirely of women. Sadly, Alison Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz and Vera Watson died during this climb. By proving that women had the skill, strength, and courage necessary to make this difficult and dangerous climb, the 1978 Women's Himalayan Expedition's accomplishment had a positive impact around the world, changing perceptions about women's abilities in sports and other arenas. Arlene Blum documented the personal triumphs and tragedies of these women in "Annapurna: A Woman's Place".

On 3 February 1987, Polish climbers Jerzy Kukuczka and Artur Hajzer made the first winter ascent of Annapurna I.