Alex Txikon and three of his team, together with Pakistani climber Ramat Ullah Baig, finally made it by helicopter to Nanga Parbat Base Camp, in the hope of finding traces of Daniele Nardi and Tom Ballard, missing on the mountain for over a week.
Txikon’s team has set up an operational base between Camp 1 and Camp 2. While the expedition’s engineer, Ignacio de Zuloaga, is preparing the drones to scout the Mummery Spur, Txikon and another team member set off on foot up the mountain’s lower sections. According to the latest report, the two had reached Camp 2 at 4,850m and intended to climb up to Camp 3, before returning to Base Camp.
Daniele Nardi and Tom Ballard
As for Ramat Ullah Bahig, he had been a member of Nardi and Ballard’s team but abandoned the expedition at the end of January due to what he considered excessive risk of avalanches and bad conditions on the peak. Earlier today, he was picked from his home village of Jaglot by one of the two Pakistani Air Force helicopters involved in the operation.
Before the foot search, one of the helicopters scouted the wall up to 7,100m on a 50-minute reconnaissance flight, with both Txikon and Ramat on board. Ramat’s indications were essential, because he knows exactly the route followed by the missing climbers on their way toward the Mummery Spur.
Related stories:
Alex Txikon & Co. en Route from K2 to Nanga Parbat
No Sign of Climbers, Avalanche Risk Too High for Searchers
Wrecked Tent and Avalanche Debris Spotted on Nanga Parbat
Nardi and Ballard Missing on Nanga Parbat
