Marek Holecek and Tomas Petrecek of the Czech Republic have reached their base camp on Nanga Parbat. They aim to open a new route on the massive Rupal Face in pure alpine style.
The team has settled in and is preparing for the climb. Yesterday, they started their acclimatization with a trek up to 4,800m. Petrecek reports that a small avalanche sent ice spray and rain all the way down to their base camp at 3,500m.
Commercial teams notched several summits in the last couple of days via the standard Kinshofer Route on the Diamir side, where the season is about to end. Among the summiters was Canadian-Belarusian Liliya Ianovskaia, 67, who became the oldest woman to summit Nanga Parbat. This was her 11th 8,000’er. She climbed with 8K Expeditions and guide Dawa Ongju Sherpa.
Pakistan’s Nanga Parbat is the westernmost major peak of the Himalaya.
Left: The Czech base camp, with the Rupal Face in the background. Right: A close-up of the Rupal Face. Photos: Tomas Petrecek/Facebook
K2
Most teams are now established at K2 Base Camp. Rope fixing has reached Camp 2 on the Abruzzi Spur, although recent rain, snow, and wind have slowed progress higher up. The main summit window on K2 remains late July to early August.
Scott Lehmann and Shayna Unger reported that after six consecutive days of blue skies and sunshine last week, the weather turned bad. The sun finally came out again yesterday, and they will start their rotations in a couple of days.
K2 Base Camp. Photo: Scott Lehmann and Shayna Unger/Facebook
Gasherbrum II
No-O2 climber Horia Colibasanu of Romania reached Camp 1 after an eight-hour push. “It was hard, but easier than the last time,” he wrote.
He rested early, slept well despite the altitude, and noted only a mild headache with good recovery. The team plans to head for Camp 2 tomorrow.
Ignacio Barrio from the Spanish team on Gasherbrum II called ExplorersWeb from his InReach with updated news from the mountain. According to Barrio, they are currently at Base Camp, after ascending to Camp 1. Tomorrow, they will head back up and establish Camp 2.
From there, they want to ascend to 7,000m to complete their acclimatization. Barrios points out that the weather is not stable; sometimes it’s raining or snowing, but conditions on the glacier are good.
Horia Colibasanu on Gasherbrum II. Photo: Horia Colibasanu
Broad Peak
The Karakoram Expeditions rope-fixing team had completed all necessary preparations for a summit push on Broad Peak. Today’s strong winds and fresh snow prompted them to postpone their attempt for safety reasons. They have opted to wait for the next weather window.
In the interim, the expedition announced an ambitious new plan to pioneer a more direct route from Camp 4 to the subsummit known as the Rocky Summit. The proposed line streamlines the final ascent while highlighting the technical expertise of the Pakistani high-altitude guides.
Broad Peak. Photo: Karakorum Expeditions
Uncertain forecast
David Klein of Hungary reports that his team completed a second acclimatization rotation and is now monitoring the weather for a potential summit bid. Klein and American partner Ian Overton are climbing without supplemental oxygen.
According to Klein, forecasts remain uncertain and fluctuating. The potential summit window around July 7 is narrowing, but a new window may form around July 10, with another possible opportunity on July 13.
Klein also noted that Pakistani Mirza Ali, director of Karakorum Expeditions, has invited him and Overton to join their summit push. The two no-O2 alpinists feel their contribution has been minor, but the team appreciated the route-fixing work they did on the lower sections.
From left to right, David Klein, Mirza Ali, and Ian Overton. Photo: David Klein
Trango Towers
French IFMGA mountain guide Maud Vanpoulle and her climbing partner Guillaume Lagier have announced that they successfully summited 6,239m Nameless Tower in the Trango group of spires via the mythical Eternal Flame route.
An Italian team arrived at the Trango Towers two days ago. No further information is available on the climbers or their specific goals.
Maud Vanpoulle’s photos of the Eternal Flame climb. Photo: Maud Vanpoulle
This season, several small teams of elite alpinists have come to the Karakoram. Among them are Slovenian climber Ales Cesen and Austrian Lukas Woerle, who are targeting an ambitious, alpine-style traverse of Gasherbrum I from the west side. They acclimatized by summiting 6,400m Khosar Gang in the Shigar Valley.
Two teams are on Masherbrum. Czech climbers Zdenek Hak, Radoslav Groh, and Jaroslav Bansky are targeting a new route, possibly even the first ascent of the West Face. A Colombian team composed of Anibal Pineda, Julio Cardona, and Fernando Acosta will attempt Masherbrum from the Hushe side. They will fix ropes, establish high camps, and use a more traditional approach with alpine-style elements.
Renowned German climber Thomas Huber is heading back to the Choktoi area of Pakistan, home to the Latok group and Suma Brakk. At the moment, he has not revealed his plans. Huber has visited the area several times, often targeting major objectives such as the North Face of Latok I or lines on Latok III and the surrounding spires.
Masherbrum. Photo: Courtesy of Sebastian Alvaro for ExplorersWeb
