Winter K2 – Teams Heading for the Heights

Nims Purja was posting from Nepal before he left, already training and acclimatizing there, so little wonder that he arrives at K2 Base Camp one day, and is setting off almost immediately for the mountain. Today he posted:

Gear and equipment checked ! Heading out to the higher camps with my brothers @mingma_david_sherpa @dawatemba @sherpapemchhiri @gelje_sherpa_ @mt.sherpa @sandro.g.h

Will update as the team progresses in the next few days. 🙏🏼🙌🏼

Nims will have a very strong team along with him, and as I know and have climbed with @sherpapemhhiri on Everest, where he has summited almost too many times to count, would expect their team to make very good progress, weather allowing.

Looking up from Concordia on the afternoon clouds building on K2.

John Snorri and team are also headed up today:

The 27th we will start our ascent to camp 1, we plan to do work in the mountain and do acclimatization next days, I will post an updated in the end of the day.

Please follow us I will use the Mini garmin in the mountain.

Mini garmin
share.garmin.com/8OR9H

Mingma G. updated on what will undoubtably be day–to-day conditions it seems with:

Last night, We had terrible night. We woke up whole the night watching at the tents. Wind didn’t stop whole night and still continus….Having good rest here.Lol

A little LOL is certainly called for. When a Sherpa says it was a ‘terrible night’ it is undoubtably pretty horrific.

And the ever effusive Colin O’Brady, headed up the Baltoro with Seven Summits Treks is just at the beginning of their journey, in the lower reaches of the glacier. This is an area that in summer is normally sweltering hot and we pray for rain and clouds – while their pictures from the winter on instagram tell a very different story.

Just a small caution as one starts up the Baltoro Glacier – perhaps doubly prescient in winter.

Timings for these expeditions has been interesting varied. Nims approach of acclimatizing early and perhaps avoiding some of the cold a good approach for minimizing the debilitating effects of altitude and weather.

Assuming a team or two is successful, the question of what dates constitute a winter ascent will again rise to the fore. And does starting the approach constitute starting the climb?

Wandering up the Baltoro, perhaps one of the most scenic walks in the world. Surrounded by mountains and where a quick spin around reveals more peaks upon peaks than anywhere in the world.