Makalu is the fifth highest mountain in the world at 8,485 metres. It is located in the Mahalangur Himalayas 19 km southeast of Mount Everest, on the border between Nepal and Tibet Autonomous Region, China. Makalu means the Great Black One, so called due to its dark brooding appearance. The first attempt on Makalu was made by an American team in 1954, but it was first climbed by a French Team in 1955.

The base camp is normally set at around 5,600m, and then four camps follow before reaching the top.The first camp is at 6,100m, camp 2 is at 6500m, the third camp is at 7400m and the last camp is at 7800m.