General Mountain climbing

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Pakistan Army commandos successfully rescued climbers from Holland, Singapore, and Ecuador who fell ill due to severe weather while attempting to summit K2. The climbers praised the swift response and medical aid provided by the Pakistan Army, crediting them with saving their lives. “We are grateful to the Pakistan Army for rescuing us in such dire circumstances,” one climber stated.




8:26 AM · Jul 25, 2024

 

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Three young climbers scale 6,050m Thalo Zom Peak in Swat​

Our Correspondent
July 27, 2024

the mountaineers on their way to scale Thalo Zom Peak in Swat. — Dawn

SWAT: Three young mountaineers successfully climbed the 6,050-meter-high Thalo Zom peak on the Swat-Chitral border, marking the first time the local climbers having accomplished the feat.
Thalo Zom in the Pamir Hindukush region was first climbed on August 12, 1971, by a team from Graz, Austria, led by Herbert Zeffer.

It was then climbed in 2019 by a team comprising Koki Gassiot (Catalonia-Spain), Massimo Marconi and Andrea Bollati (both Italian), and Samiullah Ghaznavi, Sadam Hussain and Abrar Saeed, three young local mountaineers under Mountain Wilderness International’s Asian Desk.

The three-member Swati mountaineers’ team led by Zeeshan Umar and comprising Seth Noman and Mian Syed Ali successfully summited the peak using their own resources and guidance. They said they grew up amid snow-covered high mountains in Swat and wanted to climb them since childhood.

 

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Two Japanese climbers go missing while trying to summit K2: official​

Jamil Nagri
July 27, 2024

Two Japanese climbers went missing while attempting to scale the 8,611-metre-tall K2 peak, the second-highest mountain in the world, on Saturday morning.

Shigar Deputy Commissioner (DC) Waliullah Falahi told Dawn.com that Japanese climbers Kazuya Hirade and Kenro Nakajima fell down from a height of 7,500m, west of K2.

He said Pakistan Army helicopters conducted a search operation in the area, adding that two military helicopters flew from Skardu and searched for the climbers at the peak.

He said they spotted the fallen climbers below the 100m mark but it was observed that the men had no movement.
The DC said the helicopters could not land or hover at the altitude, adding that a ground rescue team would be prepared to retrieve the two men.

He said it was not known if either of them was alive or dead.

Meanwhile, 12 Pakistanis, one Russian and two Nepalese climbers summited Broad Peak (8,051m) on Saturday morning in a short window with good weather.

During summit pushes at K2 and Gasherbrum-I, climbers reached a decisive stage days before the end of climbing season at the Karakoram range, aiming to reach the summits on Sunday.

The K2 expedition team pushes for the summit on July 27. — Summit Karakoram

More than 2,000 local and foreign mountaineers are attempting to scale mountains in Gilgit-Baltistan this year, including eight-thousanders (mountains exceeding 8,000m in height) K2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum-I, Gasherbrum-II and Nanga Parbat.

According to Karakoram Expeditions, led by renowned climber Mirza Ali, nine members of the expedition Ahmed Baig, Arshad Karim, Rizwan Dad, Waqar Ali, Daulat Muhammad, Afreen Shah, Zaman Karim from Shimshal Valley of Gilgit-Baltistan, Murad Ali from Balochistan and Iya Pershina from Russia summited Broad peak at 7:15am today.

“We are excited to announce that Team Karakorum Expeditions has successfully summited Broad Peak and fixed ropes all the way to the summit this morning! Braving waist-deep snow, our team worked tirelessly through challenging conditions all night long,” the company posted on its Facebook page.

The post adds that the team departed from Camp 2 at 5:30am and continued from Camp 3 at 11am, “ploughing through deep snow and navigating new exposed crevasses”.

Mirza, whose sister is renowned mountaineer Samina Baig, expressed his pride: “I am overjoyed by the courage and tenacity of my team. Their ability to navigate through waist-deep snow and install fixed ropes all the way to the summit exemplifies the spirit of mountaineering.”

Another four-member expedition from the Pakistani Broadboy Adventures team, led by Shehroze Kashif — the youngest Pakistani climber to summit K2 — successfully scaled Broad Peak at 11:30am, raising the green flag high.

In a statement, Kashif said the challenging expedition had a narrow window but was worth every effort.

The summiteers included Aamar Butt, a resident of the USA; Anum Uzair from Lahore and Ali Akbar and Ali, both from GB’s Houshe.
“We are eagerly waiting and praying for their safe descent to Basecamp,” Kashif added.

Meanwhile, Sunu Sherpa from Nepal set a world record for climbing the peak a third time with Summit Karakoram.

Summit Karakoram CEO Iqbal Qadri told Dawn that Sunu was climbing in Alpine style. Sunu has summited the world’s 14 eight-thousanders twice.
“Sunu Sherpa now attempting to scale 14 eight-thousanders for the third time, he is going to set a world record,” he said.

He congratulated Sunu on successfully climbing Broad Peak. “Your determination, skill, and perseverance have paid off, and this achievement is a testament to your exceptional mountaineering abilities. Well done!” he said.

Imagine Nepal expedition member Pasang Namgyal Sherpa also conquered Broad Peak on Saturday morning.

A statement from the organiser read, “Our esteemed senior climbing guide, Pasang Namgyal Sherpa, has successfully summited Broad Peak this morning, on Saturday.

“We are profoundly proud of his extraordinary feats and eagerly anticipate his future pursuits in high-altitude climbing. Heartiest congratulations, Pasang Namgyal Sherpa, on this historic triumph!” the post concluded

Climbers waited at K2 base camp for good weather for one month, before pushing for the summit on Friday.

On Saturday, the foreign and local climbers were able to reach Camp 4. Mingma G, the owner of Imagine Nepal and one of the climbers, said on Facebook that a rope-fixing team was at work to help the expedition reach the summit.

“We didn’t expect this much snow on K2 this time after weeks and weeks of high wind. I am another Instagram finger activists reporting from camp3,” Mingma wrote.
“Hopefully write here again
from K2 summit tomorrow morning.”

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She conquered Everest 10 times - and escaped an abusive marriage​

Helen Bushby
Culture reporter

Getty Images
Lhakpa Sherpa says: "I want to show my two girls how to be brave, how not to give up"

This article contains descriptions of domestic violence which some readers may find distressing.
Lhakpa Sherpa has a startling life story - to the outside world she holds the record for climbing Mount Everest a staggering 10 times, the most of any woman.

But behind the scenes, her personal life has been dangerous and fearful.
While conquering the world's highest mountain, she says she was enduring domestic abuse from her husband - including during their 2004 descent from Everest.

Now based in America, she has raised three children, supporting them by working in a grocery store and as a cleaner.
Her life - on and off the mountain - has been made into a Netflix documentary, Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa, directed by Lucy Walker.
Sherpa is proud of the film.


Eyes blazing, she tells the BBC: "I want to show people women can do it."

Netflix
Sherpa can climb the world's highest mountain with minimal training

What is perhaps surprising about her record-breaking climbs is that she does so with little training.

Climbing Everest can be fatal - there have been more than 300 deaths in the region since records of mountain climbing there began a century ago.

So it's vital to be in peak condition.

In the film, we see Sherpa keep fit by walking in the Connecticut mountains. But she also carries on with her normal working life, out of necessity.

"You're an exceptional athlete," Walker tells Sherpa during our interview. "Very tall. Very strong.

"People underestimate it. It's an unbelievable accomplishment that you can climb Everest from doing your day job."
Sherpa responds: "I'm not good with being educated, but I'm very good with the mountains."

Netflix

Working in a US grocery store is one of the ways Sherpa supports her family

Born in 1973 to yak farmers in the Nepalese Himalayas, she was one of 11 children.

Crucially, she was raised in an area where education for girls wasn't a priority - she carried her brother to school for hours through the hills, but wasn't allowed inside.

Things are now improving in Nepal - women's literacy rocketed from 10% in 1981 to 70% by 2021.

But Sherpa's lack of education left lasting consequences - she's still unable to read.

Things people take for granted, like using a TV remote control, are difficult for her.

Her son Nima, born in the late 90s, and daughters Sunny, 22, and Shiny, 17, help bridge the gaps.

Netflix
Sherpa's skills and passion are focused on climbing

With no schooling, by the time she was 15, Sherpa was working as a porter on mountain expeditions - often as the only girl.

 

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French climber Benjamin Vedrines summits K2 in record 11 hours​

AFP | Dawn.com
July 29, 2024

French climber Benjamin Vedrines.

French climber Benjamin Vedrines summited the 8,611-metre-tall K2 peak in record time a day ago, his team told AFP on Monday, reaching the top of the world’s second-highest mountain in just under 11 hours.

The 32-year-old specialist in high-speed ascents — made without the aid of oxygen — left K2 base camp just after midnight on Saturday and reached the summit 10 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds later.

Vedrines attempted the summit in 2022 but was forced to turn back after suffering from hypoxia, a lack of oxygen in the blood caused by thin air at high altitudes.

“I took my revenge on this mountain,” Vedrines said in a voice message shared with AFP. “But above all I wanted to reconcile with it by doing things with maturity.”

“It was very symbolic for me because I was returning in my footsteps to where I experienced those very unique moments,” he said. “I really enjoyed seeing the same sections again, but with lucidity this time.”

On Saturday, two Japanese climbers had gone missing while attempting to scale K2. Army aviation helicopters had spotted the two during an aerial search operation but observed that the men had no movement.

Earlier this month, harsh weather had delayed progress on K2 for both alpine-style and commercial teams. Vedrines, after multiple attempts, had successfully paraglided from just below Camp 3 on the peak and was back at Base Camp again.

Standing at 8,611m on the Pakistan-China border, K2 is 238m shorter than Everest but is considered more technically challenging — earning it the nickname “Savage Mountain”.

Vedrines is considered one of France’s pre-eminent climbers and set a speed record climbing Pakistan’s Broad Peak in 2022 before descending by paraglider.

He had reached the top of the 8,051-metre mountain — a short distance from K2 — in seven hours and 28 minutes.

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One foreign climber ‘killed’, two stranded on Gasherbrum IV​

Jamil Nagri
August 19, 2024

GILGIT: Pakistan Army helicopters airlifted two stranded Russian climbers on Gasherbrum IV (7,925m) a day after an avalanche hit a group of five mountaineers who were trying to scale the sixth-highest mountain in Pakistan alpine style.

Out of the five, one was reportedly killed while two received injuries and awaited rescue in critical condition.

Shigar Deputy Commissioner Waliullah Falahi told Dawn that five Russian climbers Sergei Nilov, Mikhail Mironov, Alexy Bautin, Sergei Mironov and Evgenii Lablokov had started their mission to ascend the peak on August 4. On Saturday, a snow avalanche hit the climbers in the morning at a height of 6,400 metres.

As a result, Sergei Nilov went missing while Mikhail Mironov and Sergei Mironov were injured. Alexy Bautin and Evgeni Lablokov remained unhurt and were later rescued by the army and airlifted to Skardu.

Army rescues two mountaineers a day after avalanche hit Russian climbers on peak

Mr Bautin told Dawn they were hit by an avalanche, which started at 7,000m. He said Sergei Nilov lost his life whereas Mikhail Mironov and Sergei Mironov were injured, adding that he was in touch with his colleagues through satellite phone. According to Mr Bautin, his stranded comrades, though in a stable condition, needed immediate rescue.

Tour operator Ghulam Muhammad said helicopters couldn’t be operated on Sunday after the first sortie – which rescued the two climbers – due to poor weather conditions at the mountain. He said the climbers were stranded at an altitude of over 6,400m and helicopters could not land or hover in that area.

According to the operator, the helicopters will drop four local high-altitude climbers at 6,000 metres to rescue the stranded mountaineers. “The rescue team will attempt to bring down the injured Russian climbers from above 6,400m, and the army helicopters will airlift the climbers to Skardu, he added.

According to a press release issued by Karrar Haideri, secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, a dedicated team of five Russian climbers set out on a mission to Gasherbrum IV, driven by a solemn commitment to retrieve the body of their fellow climber, Dmitry Golovchenko, who went missing on the same mountain in 2023. He said their expedition, marked by determination and camaraderie, was meant to bring closure to a tragic loss.

The statement said Sergei Nilov was missing, with no information available about his status whereas two of the climbers sustained severe injuries in the incident. “Their condition is critical, and there is little hope that they will survive beyond the next day, casting a further shadow over the already grim situation,” the statement added.

The alpine club secretary said the army helicopters would launch another rescue effort to locate the three missing climbers, including Sergei Nilov.

“The situation on Gasherbrum IV remains dire, with the outlook for the remaining team members growing increasingly bleak. This tragedy underscores the harsh and unpredictable dangers of high-altitude mountaineering, where even the best-prepared expeditions can face life-threatening challenges,” the statement said.

Published in Dawn, August 19th, 2024