Thirteen mountaineers, most of them foreigners except for two Pakistani nationals, on Sunday morning scaled Gasherbrum-II (8032 metres), which is situated in the Karakoram Range and also known as K-4.

The climbers belonged to two expedition teams – Seven Summits Treks and Karakoram Summit. According to the tour organiser, 11 members of Seven Summits Treks scaled Gasherbrum-II on Sunday morning.

In a statement, the Seven Summits Treks said: “We are proud to announce the successful ascent of Gasherbrum-II (8034m) by our incredible Seven Summit Treks team members and Sherpas on Sunday! Our team made it to the top while fixing the rope and opening the trail.” The statement congratulated every member for their dedicated teamwork, extraordinary perseverance, and strength.

Alina Pekova from Russia, Dorota Lidia Rasinska-Samocko from Poland, Josette Valloton from Switzerland, Marco Camandona from Italy, Pasang Tenje Sherpa, Dawa Nurbu Sherpa, Chhangba Sherpa, Phurbu Kusang Sherpa, Pasang Dukpa Sherpa from Nepal, Shahida Jamil Afridi, and Rana Hassan Javaid from Pakistan were part of the expedition. The mountaineers started their summit push on Saturday evening despite the uncertain weather conditions and managed to scale the peak by Sunday.

Climbers abandon attempts to conquer Nanga Parbat after summit season ends

The two-strong team of the Summit Karakoram included renowned Nepalese climber Sanu Sherpa and Kosovan climber Uta Ibrahimi, who scaled Gasherbrum-II on Sunday at 7am. They also started their summit push from Camp 3 on Saturday evening.

According to Iqbal Qadiri, who organised the tour, Gasherbrum-II, also known as K-4, is a formidable mountain, and conquering it requires skill, determination, and teamwork.

“The Karakoram range is one of the most spectacular and challenging mountain ranges in the world, and this accomplishment is a testament to the team’s expertise and perseverance,” he said while congratulating the members for their remarkable achievement.

Bad season for summits

Meanwhile, hundreds of foreigners and local mountaineers are waiting at the base camps of K-2, Gasherbrum-I, and Broad Peak to start their summit push due to the inclement weather that hampered the progress of climbers.

Mr Qadiri said climbers had established Camp 3 at K-2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum-I and completed their rotation and acclimatisation process to scale the peak. However, the weather continues to disrupt their efforts, with the summit season coming to a close.

The summit season ends in mid-August; if the weather continues to remain worse, there will be only a few summits as the season is about to end and climbers gathered at the base camps are frustrated, he said. There are also some radio communication issues at the base camps, which has irked the mountaineers.

On the other hand, the season at Nanga Parbat is already over and many climbers have returned due to the deteriorating weather.

The only climbers to reach the top were the 13 members of a foreign expedition team who scaled the peak on July 9 and 10. Pakistani national Jousaf Khawaja and his 15-year-old daughter Selena from Abbottabad along with high-altitude mountaineer Fazal Ali also abandoned their mission to scale the killer mountain.

Skiers Anny Tybor from Poland and Tom Lafaille from France intended to summit Nanga Parbat without supplementary oxygen and ski down the peak but they also called off the mission.

Published in Dawn, July 22nd, 2024