There are a number of routes, but there is no easy way to climb this spectacular mountain. The easier two are perhaps the south-southeast ridge or the north face; all the other routes are more difficult. The south-southeast ridge and the north face are rated TD-, the south buttress is TD, the southwest face is ED1 and the east buttress is ED1/ED2.
The east buttress on the southwest face, known also as Fowler-Watts route was climbed on the 26 May 1982 and since has defeated many competent parties. It is a serious undertaking on mixed ground, steep sections of rock (difficulty UIAA V+) with key passages at A3+ and vertical rotten ice. A variation of the Fowler-Watts route is the Sykes-Clay, climbed on 10 July 1989 and rarely repeated since.
The 1-km long west ridge was climbed on the 26 June 2016 by a New Zealand team comprising Pearson, McDowell, Fortune and Measures. The route took five days round-trip from the base camp with three bivvys on the ridge, and involved difficulties up to M5, WI4 and UIAA VI-.
^Ana Arias Torre, Toponimia de Ticabamba, in LETRAS, Órgano de la Facultad de Letras y Ciencias Humanas , Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima 2002: tawlli - Tipo de legumbre, muy parecido al chocho
