Climbers are either on their way to Pakistan or tucked in their Base Camp tents, waiting out a serious stormy spell.
On Nanga Parbat, the Spanish team barely managed to fix the route to Camp 1 on Monday before a blizzard forced them back, according to leader Lolo Gonzalez. Constant snow is loading the couloir that the climbers must climb. It leads to a saddle by a rock pinnacle at 5,100m. Here they will pitch their Camp 1 as soon as the weather improves.
The Andalusian team’s Base Camp at the foot of Nanga Parbat’s Diamir side. Photo: Lolo González
In the Karakorum, Ralf Dujmovits and Nancy Hansen are enduring similar difficulties on Biarchedi I (6,810m). In a whiteout they pushed to a col at 5,600m, then returned to BC yesterday.
Over and out!
Tom Livingstone and Mathieu Maynadier are in Pakistan, but we won’t expect daily updates on their progress up Pumari Chhish: “So far so good, and tomorrow we head into the big hills. See you in six weeks. Over and out!”
Pakistani 5x8000er summiter Qudrat Ali has just turned 50. To prove that age is just a number, he is launching his Golden 50s Adventure Quest. First up: He will climb a new route on the north face of Lupgar Sar (7,266m). Shaheen Baig and Akram Ali Shah of Pakistan and Hiroshi Kawasaki of Japan are with him.
Qudrat Ali (left) and team. Photo: Qudrat Ali
A Swiss team led by Beni Bühler will attempt K7 (6,942m), Carlos Garranzo reports. Garranzo is already in Pakistan to climb K2. Other teams bound for K2 are en route to Base Camp. Marco Confortola and the Altitude Team are in Skardu. Samina Baig reached Goro 2 camp yesterday and expects to be in Base Camp tomorrow.
Samina Baig on the approach trek to K2. Photo: Samina Baig/Twitter
