Miquel Mas and Marc Subirana set off on Tuesday night Pakistan time to complete the new route they started last year on Latok II in Pakistan’s central Karakoram.
So far this summer, bad weather has limited the climbers to just two days on the face. On one of those days, they reached a gear depot that they had left last year at 5,700m. On another day last week, they reached their previous highest point (6,000m) and replaced two damaged ropes, they told the Alpymon blog.
Beyond that lay the crux of the climb: a technical, overhanging section. At that time, the pair decided to rest and wait before setting off on their final push, which is finally underway.
The face that Mas and Subirana are climbing leads to a secondary point of Latok II, some 6,400m high. Latok II’s main summit is 7,108m. They have to climb 400 to 500m to complete their roughly 1,000m-long route.
