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Reinhold Messner called K-2 the "Mountain of Mountains" after his ascent of K-2 in 1979. This pyramid of a mountain is right in the heart of the Karokoram Range and can be seen in its entirety from Concordia. It is at the head of the Godwin Austin Glacier which unites with a second glacier at Concordia to form the famous Baltoro Glacier. Four 8000m peaks sit within a radius of 13 miles from Concordia, making this the largest concentration of the highest peaks on earth.
K-2 is the second highest mountain in the world and is located on the border between China and Pakistan. It is said to be the ultimate climb, since many consider it to be much more technically challenging than Mount Everest. Many people try to climb K2, and many have died trying. As of June 2000,189 people have made the summit. The route through the Abruzzi Spur and up the Black Pyramid is said to be slightly easier climbing, more so than the North Ridge route. Eza adds the follwing information: The first climb to K2 was made by the Italian team led by Ardito Desio. The first climbers on top were Achille Compagnoni and Lino Lacedelli. Nevertheless, there were some earlier expeditions that made the first reconnaissances of the Abruzzi Spur: the Duke of Abruzzi in 1909 and the American teams led by C.Houston in 1939 and 1953.
jck adds: Many climbers consider K2 as the most difficult one of all 8000 meter peaks.
K2 has four ridges:
south-east:The Abruzzi Spur
south-west:to Negrotto Pass and Angel Peak
north-east:to Juncton Peak
north-west:to Savoia Pass
K2's north face towering over the Glacier K2 is one of the biggest walls on the world.The right side of the wall is enormous north pillar.Over the Godwin Austen Glacier rises beautiful east wall.In 2/3rd of the wall there's a big icy terrace called K2's Arm.West pillar divides west wall into two parts:one over the Negrotto Glacier and the main part over upper part of Savoia Glacier.On that part is big,over 1000 meters high,rocky part called "Barrel".On the south face there are two spurs: right one which reaches The Abruzzi Spur at the height of Arm and left which combines with south west pillar over the hanging glacier de Filippi.
If you are planning on climbing K-2 you will be part of an expedition and all preparations and logistics will be a part of the expedition. For this page, I am going to assume you are more interested in doing a trek to Concordia or K-2 Base camp.
K2 has four ridges:
south-east:The Abruzzi Spur
south-west:to Negrotto Pass and Angel Peak
north-east:to Juncton Peak
north-west:to Savoia Pass
K2's north face towering over the Glacier K2 is one of the biggest walls on the world.The right side of the wall is enormous north pillar.Over the Godwin Austen Glacier rises beautiful east wall.In 2/3rd of the wall there's a big icy terrace called K2's Arm.West pillar divides west wall into two parts:one over the Negrotto Glacier and the main part over upper part of Savoia Glacier.On that part is big,over 1000 meters high,rocky part called "Barrel".On the south face there are two spurs: right one which reaches The Abruzzi Spur at the height of Arm and left which combines with south west pillar over the hanging glacier de Filippi.
If you are planning on climbing K-2 you will be part of an expedition and all preparations and logistics will be a part of the expedition. For this page, I am going to assume you are more interested in doing a trek to Concordia or K-2 Base camp.
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Everything in Pakistan starts from the capitol of Islamabad. You will need to get trekking permits there. Then off to Skardu by plane if weather is good, or by the famous Karakoram highway ( the old silk route) if weather is bad. If you fly to Skardu you will also see the 9th highest mountain in the world- Nanga Parabat. If you go by land - it is a 2 day trip with a stopover usually near Gilgit ( the romantic area thought of as Shangri La and near Hunza- the people noted for living longer than any others in the world). Be prepared for delays here as this is a rather primitive area. This is one trip where I would feel more comfortable as part of a larger group, as stories of robbery abound all along this notorious highway.
Skardu is the gateway to the high peaks of northern Pakistan and will serve as a base of operations. From Skardu you will need to jeep as far as possible towards Askolie, the last village before reaching K-2. Beyond Askolie is complete wilderness and glaciers. From Askolie the normal route will take about 2-3 days to the Paiyu campsite (3666m) near the base of Paiyu Peak (6660m). The next day the trek is usually to Urdukas to cross Baltoro Glacier. Then next day trek to Gore, which is about an 8 hour trek. Then another 5 hour trek to Concordia. It is usually a 4-5 day trek to reach Concordia. Finally, trek to Broad Peak Base Camp and trek to K-2 Base Camp.
Skardu is the gateway to the high peaks of northern Pakistan and will serve as a base of operations. From Skardu you will need to jeep as far as possible towards Askolie, the last village before reaching K-2. Beyond Askolie is complete wilderness and glaciers. From Askolie the normal route will take about 2-3 days to the Paiyu campsite (3666m) near the base of Paiyu Peak (6660m). The next day the trek is usually to Urdukas to cross Baltoro Glacier. Then next day trek to Gore, which is about an 8 hour trek. Then another 5 hour trek to Concordia. It is usually a 4-5 day trek to reach Concordia. Finally, trek to Broad Peak Base Camp and trek to K-2 Base Camp.
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Yes, there is red tape. Lots of it. You will need to spend some time in Islamabad at the start of your trek to get your trekking permit. I would recommend being part of a group on this trek as weather and remoteness present conditions where support is crucial.
Mac9805b, who maintains Broad Peak , has provided these figures for Broad Peak and I would imagine they could be used as a guide for possible expenses on K-2: Climbing permits cost $9,000 for up to 7 climbers and are $1,500 for each additional member. In addition to the peak fee, you will need to put up a $6,000 rescue bond (refundable), and a $200 environmental fee. You will be required to travel with a Pakistani Army Liaison Officer, and will also be responsible for his fee, equipment, and expenses. A reasonable budget for a mid-size team is $10,000 per climber plus equipment. For trekking to Base Camp, a reasonable budget is $4,000 per trekker. All Permits must be secured by November of the previous year.
Starting in January 2002, the government of Pakistan has reduced the climbing fees by 50%. It now costs $4,500 for 7 climbers and $750 for each additional one. The rescue bond and environmental fees are unchanged, as are the Liason Officer requirements.
Here is the latest info on fees courtesy of mac9805b, along with some of his comments:
I found the exact permit fees for K2, they are actually slightly higher than Broad Peak. The rescue bond and enviornmental fee are the same, though. You can update the estimates for a climbing expedition based upon this. The site that I used as a reference when I initially put the Broad Peak page together didn't mention that K2's were actually higher. Sorry about that.
This has got to be one of the most beautiful mountain areas in the world. Not only are there high mountains, but also spectacular views of some of the best vertical needles in the world. The trek on the Baltoro Glacier provides awesome mountain scenery of Masherbrum (7750m),Uli Biaho Tower (6190m), Trango Towers (6300m) Grand Cathedral (5228m) and Mustagh Tower (7284). From Concordia you can see K-2 as well as Broad Peak (8044m), Gasherbrum Group, Golden Throne (7365m) and Chogolisa (7686m).
Mac9805b, who maintains Broad Peak , has provided these figures for Broad Peak and I would imagine they could be used as a guide for possible expenses on K-2: Climbing permits cost $9,000 for up to 7 climbers and are $1,500 for each additional member. In addition to the peak fee, you will need to put up a $6,000 rescue bond (refundable), and a $200 environmental fee. You will be required to travel with a Pakistani Army Liaison Officer, and will also be responsible for his fee, equipment, and expenses. A reasonable budget for a mid-size team is $10,000 per climber plus equipment. For trekking to Base Camp, a reasonable budget is $4,000 per trekker. All Permits must be secured by November of the previous year.
Starting in January 2002, the government of Pakistan has reduced the climbing fees by 50%. It now costs $4,500 for 7 climbers and $750 for each additional one. The rescue bond and environmental fees are unchanged, as are the Liason Officer requirements.
Here is the latest info on fees courtesy of mac9805b, along with some of his comments:
I found the exact permit fees for K2, they are actually slightly higher than Broad Peak. The rescue bond and enviornmental fee are the same, though. You can update the estimates for a climbing expedition based upon this. The site that I used as a reference when I initially put the Broad Peak page together didn't mention that K2's were actually higher. Sorry about that.
This has got to be one of the most beautiful mountain areas in the world. Not only are there high mountains, but also spectacular views of some of the best vertical needles in the world. The trek on the Baltoro Glacier provides awesome mountain scenery of Masherbrum (7750m),Uli Biaho Tower (6190m), Trango Towers (6300m) Grand Cathedral (5228m) and Mustagh Tower (7284). From Concordia you can see K-2 as well as Broad Peak (8044m), Gasherbrum Group, Golden Throne (7365m) and Chogolisa (7686m).
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In 1954, an Italian expedition came to Pakistan to try its luck on K2. It consisted of twelve climbers and four scientists and was led by veteran mountaineer, Professor Ardito Desio, who had come to these mountains with Italian expeditions before the World War II. Colonel M. Ataullah and Arshad Munir accompanied the expedition from Karakoram Club of Pakistan. Captain (later Lt. General) G.S. Butt was the liaison officer.
Poor weather hindered the progress of the party for a pretty long time. As soon as the weather cleared, the party made very good progress and set up camp II. It was at this camp that one of its members, Mario Puchoz, a 36-year old guide, died of pneumonia on the 21st June. It Is believed that he had contracted high altitude pulmonary edema (water on the lungs) which was not well known at the time and does not respond to antibiotics.
The party established six more camps on the south-east ridge. Camp IX was a bivouac. On the 31st of July, Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni started from the bivouac. They exhausted their oxygen supply 500 feet short of summit but could not resist the temptation to be the first to climb the mighty K2 peak. They, therefore, continued their assault and reached the summit at six in the evening. After staying for a while they started descending and reached Camp VIII round about eleven at night.
Courtesy of jck : In 1978 Americans Louis Riechartd and James Wickwire ascended new route on the north-east ridge.
In 1981 Eiho Ohtani and Nazir Sabir climbed the west pillar.In upper part they traversed to south pillar and reached the summit.
The first ascent from north side(by enourmous north pillar) was made in 1982 by Japanese expedition.
And the came the tragic year 1986: 27 climbers reached the summit but 13 died.Wanda Rutkiewicz reached the top as the first woman.She climbed the normal route via Abruzzi Spur.Jerzy Kukuczka and Tadeusz Piotrowski,Polish climbers,members of international expedition which was leading by Karl Maria Herrligkoffer climbed the central part of south wall.Unfortunately Piotrowski died during descent.
Also in 1986 two Poles Wojciech Wroz,Przemyslaw Piasecki and Slovak Peter Bozik reached the top via south pillar which Reinhold Messner called "Magic line".
There was also two winter attempts,both made by Polish expeditions: in 1987/88 and in 2003 but they were unsuccesful due tobad weather.So the top is still unclimbed in winter.Krzysztof Wielicki,the fifth man who reached all 14 8000 meters peak and who was a member of both winter expeditions said that problably in 2005 or 2006 they will try again to reach the summit during the winter season.
Poor weather hindered the progress of the party for a pretty long time. As soon as the weather cleared, the party made very good progress and set up camp II. It was at this camp that one of its members, Mario Puchoz, a 36-year old guide, died of pneumonia on the 21st June. It Is believed that he had contracted high altitude pulmonary edema (water on the lungs) which was not well known at the time and does not respond to antibiotics.
The party established six more camps on the south-east ridge. Camp IX was a bivouac. On the 31st of July, Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni started from the bivouac. They exhausted their oxygen supply 500 feet short of summit but could not resist the temptation to be the first to climb the mighty K2 peak. They, therefore, continued their assault and reached the summit at six in the evening. After staying for a while they started descending and reached Camp VIII round about eleven at night.
Courtesy of jck : In 1978 Americans Louis Riechartd and James Wickwire ascended new route on the north-east ridge.
In 1981 Eiho Ohtani and Nazir Sabir climbed the west pillar.In upper part they traversed to south pillar and reached the summit.
The first ascent from north side(by enourmous north pillar) was made in 1982 by Japanese expedition.
And the came the tragic year 1986: 27 climbers reached the summit but 13 died.Wanda Rutkiewicz reached the top as the first woman.She climbed the normal route via Abruzzi Spur.Jerzy Kukuczka and Tadeusz Piotrowski,Polish climbers,members of international expedition which was leading by Karl Maria Herrligkoffer climbed the central part of south wall.Unfortunately Piotrowski died during descent.
Also in 1986 two Poles Wojciech Wroz,Przemyslaw Piasecki and Slovak Peter Bozik reached the top via south pillar which Reinhold Messner called "Magic line".
There was also two winter attempts,both made by Polish expeditions: in 1987/88 and in 2003 but they were unsuccesful due tobad weather.So the top is still unclimbed in winter.Krzysztof Wielicki,the fifth man who reached all 14 8000 meters peak and who was a member of both winter expeditions said that problably in 2005 or 2006 they will try again to reach the summit during the winter season.
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