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Climbers from Shimshal valley ace Karakoram's Passu cones



Climbers from Shimshal valley ace Karakoram's Passu cones

https://nation.com.pk/NewsSource/web-desk
Web Desk
August 13, 2021


A group of climbers from Shimshal valley, on Friday, aced the unclimbed Passu Cones of Karakoram Mountain Ranges.
According to the details, this is the first time Passu Cones of the Karakoram ranges have been aced in Pakistan.

Under the leadership of renowned Pakistani mountaineer Abdul Joshi, a team comprising two female climbers, named Sultana Nasab and Shama Baqir climbed Passu Cones.

It is pertinent to state here that together they became the first ever team to climb the main Passu Cone peak. The summit was completed on early Friday morning with a total of 10 mountaineers reaching the 6,160m peak after a 10-day expedition.

The team celebrated the historic victory and an advance Independence Day by hoisting the flag of Pakistani homeland on the top of aced Karakoram ranges’ Passu Cones.



A group of climbers from Shimshal valley has successfully summited an unclimbed 6160m Passu Cones peak and hoisted Pakistan’s flag there.


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Aug 13, 2021·


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🗻
👉
K2 SUMMIT
👈
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Last steps towards summit of K2 8611m - King of the Mountains !!

On 27 July 2021 at 8:10 a.m., Shehroze Kashif made 2 unique World Records by becoming:

1- Youngest Mountaineer in the world to summit K2
2- Youngest and only teenager Mountaineer in the world to summit world’s top two tallest mountains Everest 8849m and K2 8611m in same year within 3 months.


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Samar Khan


She recently became the first woman to reach the K2 basecamp on a bike and she's not slowing down anytime soon.



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Samar Khan
is the first woman to reach the K2 basecamp on a bicycle. As an athlete, she has a lot of firsts under her belt — she's the first Pakistani to climb the 6,250-metre Burbucho peak in Shigar's Arandu and the first Pakistani to summit Mount Kilimanjaro.

Khan documented her journey to the basecamp on social media but her reasoning for doing so was more than sharing the news with her followers.


When Khan was learning about mountain biking (MTB), there was no one to teach her. One of the biggest hurdles I faced was having no MTB expert or coach in Pakistan, so I learned from the internet or international athletes I had befriended, she told Images.

"Freedom of travelling on two wheels was the biggest push for me," she said. "On a bicycle, you can explore the mountains. I'm from a mountainous area myself so I really love the mountains," Khan explained. Biking has groomed her, transformed her life and helped her become a better version of herself.

She won't become a coach just yet, because according to her, she's not at the level where she can teach anyone yet. "If you want coaching and sports in Pakistan, you need to invest in the individuals already in the sport and get them to that level. If they’re at this level without any support imagine what they would be able to do with government support," she said, echoing calls made by many people for the government to support its athletes.
"If we are brought to this level and are able to represent our country abroad, we can come back and give something to our community," she said. Right now we're facing hurdles and hardships, Khan explained. "We face criticism and harassment without any support."
How can we think of grooming the future generation and the growth of sports in the country yet, she asked. "You need to invest in one generation at least."
Promoting sports is a big reason why she's so active on social media. "I am trying my best to post on social media platforms and post videos, what I have learnt, what my experiences have been and where I have been able to travel to," she explained.
Khan said that adventure sports is directly related to tourism. She had one request for people wanting to collaborate on work in the northern areas of Pakistan — please pick up people who have real on-ground experiences.
 
Naila Kiani on what made her summit an 8,000m peak in her first attempt at mountaineering

MADEEHA SYED
DAWN

“How did this happen? I couldn’t believe that I could’ve reached the top," she says of her experience.


Naila Kiani with Ali Raza Sadpara and Sirbaz Khan at the summit of G2


Naila Kiani with Ali Raza Sadpara and Sirbaz Khan at the summit of G2

In 2018, a video went viral on social media showing a woman in a wedding jorra in front of the mighty K2, deep in the mountains of Gilgit Baltistan, surrounded by porters singing wedding songs. That woman was Naila Kiani. And this was her first major trek.

Fast forward three years, and Naila is now the first Pakistani woman to summit an 8,000m peak in Pakistan — Gasherbrum II (8,035m). She did her summit along with Sirbaz Khan, for whom it was his eighth 8,000m peak, and Ali Raza Sadpara, a local legend who has now officially climbed 8,000m peaks a whopping 16 times — more than any Pakistani living or deceased.

“A year after that [K2 base camp trek], I started thinking seriously about climbing,” she says to me over the phone. Naila has been anxiously hoping to get a successful flight back to Dubai, where she is currently based.

Naila is an avid sportsperson — she is a trained boxer, rock climber and runs for fun. But her transition into a big mountain climber happened rather quickly and against all expectations.
“I researched for two years,” she says about her obsession with mountains and mountaineering. “I was training but … then I got pregnant. It was okay, it was the Covid-19 year. Nothing much happened. I rested for two months after my delivery and then trained for four months.” And then it was time to go. Just like that.
Naila Kiani has become the first Pakistani woman to summit an 8,000m mountain in Pakistan. Incredibly, this was the first big mountain she’s ever climbed. She shares her experience with Eos
Right after having a baby, I ask incredulously. “Yes,” laughs Naila. “My daughter was six months old when I left for base camp and 7.5 months old when I summited Gasherbrum II.”
But the shocks don’t end there. Most mountaineers spend their time conquering smaller peaks before attempting the biggest ones but, according to Naila, “This is the first mountain I ever climbed.”


What made her so confident she could summit an 8,000er in her first attempt at mountaineering? “I did the Gondogoro La Pass [en route the return from the K2 base camp trek] which was at an altitude of 5,850m. I can sense how my body is doing and my body worked well near 6,000m.”

So, understandably, she first decided to aim for a 7,000m peak. But the time it took to summit a 7,000m peak was the same as an 8,000m one — four to six weeks. Plus, it was only 1,000m more. But that’s a thousand metres into the death zone (when the air has such less oxygen your cells literally start dying) I remind her. “That’s the biggest challenge I can give myself!” she laughs.

Although she was training for an 8,000m peak, Naila didn’t really believe she would summit. “I was only thinking of pushing myself as far as I could go,” she says. “Mentally, I knew I wouldn’t give up quickly because in boxing I wouldn’t give up. I lost badly in one of the fights, but I didn’t give up and kept going until the last round. I knew that about myself. I would give it my all until the end. So, I knew I’m mentally strong from boxing. I was conditioning myself physically.”


Naila Kiani in front of K2 in 2018 | Instagram

Naila Kiani in front of K2 in 2018 | Instagram

Normally, when trying to pick an ‘easy’ (still incredibly difficult to do) 8,000m peak in Pakistan, mountaineers opt for Broak Peak (8,047m). Why did she go for Gasherbrum II (G2)?

“[Because] Sirbaz [Khan] was doing G2,” she says. “I’m not a professional mountaineer, and I didn’t know what the other teams would be like. So, I decided to go with someone I knew. Sirbaz had a great team with him.”

Having the right team helped; Sirbaz would have more than his share of work cut out for him on Gasherbrum II. “The ropes hadn’t been fixed on G2,” relates Naila. “Normally Nepali Sherpas [along with local guides] fix the ropes on the mountains for expeditions. But we didn’t have any on G2. So, Sirbaz Khan and Ali Raza Sadpara were fixing the ropes as well.”

Smiling summit photos hide the insurmountable effort it takes just to reach the top and return safely. You’re pushed to your very limits — physically and emotionally — and on a hostile terrain, where you’re constantly at risk of dying. “The longest day was the summit day,” relates Naila. “[We climbed for] 17 hours.”

At very high altitudes, because of the thin air and low oxygen, it’s hard to eat and it’s even harder to sleep. When the time came for their summit push, Naila and the team hadn’t slept or eaten properly for three days.

“We only had three hours to sleep, but couldn’t,” she says. “We left at 2am and it took us 17 hours to go from Camp 3 to the summit and back. The next day, getting down from Camp 3 was also very exhausting. We were almost dead when we got to the base camp.”

As a first-time mountaineer, Naila observed first-hand how the altitude affected other climbers. “After around 8,000m, the death zone starts,” she says, “There wasn’t much distance [35m] left. But I saw the other climbers. Some were crawling. Others gave up 100m before the summit. I couldn’t understand that, they were so close.”

Their summit was also with added risk: there were no fixed ropes after approximately 7,536m.

“It was my first summit, so I didn’t know this was not normal,” says Naila. “We had to use safety ropes strapped to each other, and we had to move very fast. This was very risky. If one fell, the others would too… it wasn’t easy.

“A lot of other climbers were shocked. This never happened in Nepal [where the ropes are fixed all the way to the summit]. Our team fixed most of the ropes. And the foreigners didn’t help much. Sirbaz said he felt this was harder than Everest. Because [in addition to climbing] he had to fix the ropes for everyone else.”

At the summit, Naila was faced with incredible views only a chosen few get to see — high above the clouds, in one of the 14 highest spots on Earth, being able to see both China and India. “I was very light-headed,” Naila says. “How did this happen? I’m the most inexperienced person here. I couldn’t believe that I could’ve reached the top. It felt like a dream.”

That high was not unadulterated, however. “I was so exhausted. I didn’t actually enjoy it. Plus, it was too windy. The team was very uncomfortable. We wanted to get down very quickly.”

While she was summiting G2, there were at least five other women from Pakistan attempting other 8,000m peaks at the same time. They were not successful. When Naila finally got to base camp, she found out that she’d set a record: she had become the first Pakistani woman to summit an 8,000m mountain in Pakistan.

“I never even thought of making a record or anything,” she says. “I don’t really care about that. I just wanted to test my body.”

And what does she have planned for the future? “When I left for this expedition, I thought I’d try to climb one 8,000m and then dekha jaey ga [we’ll see],” says Naila. “I definitely wasn’t thinking I would go for another peak, but now I am!”

Here’s wishing her luck in conquering more peaks and beyond.


The writer is a member of staff She tweets @madeehasyed
 
Pakistan is proud of having K-2 (28,250 feet high) in Baltistan, the world's second highest mountain.
Baltistan, houses more than forty five (45) peaks of over 20,000 feet high and is indeed a mountainous paradise.


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Shigar family scales Khusar Gang Peak

September 5, 2021


The three-member family expedition team. — Baltistan Tour Operators Association Facebook


The three-member family expedition team. — Baltistan Tour Operators Association Facebook


GILGIT: A three-member family expedition team, including a teenage girl, has scaled the 6,400-meter Khusar Gang Peak in Shigar district of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Fifteen-year-old female mountaineer Amina Shigri along with her father, Sharafat Ali Khawaja, and brother, Ahmed Ali, had started the adventure without any sponsors on August 27.

According to Baltistan Tour Operators Association, the family team raised the Pakistani flag atop the peak on Thursday.

Ms Amina has become the first female mountaineer from Shigar to climb the peak.

According to family sources, Ms Amina and her brother had climbed any peak first time in their lives, but their father was an experienced climber as a high altitude porter he had summited many peaks in the past.

Ms Amina and her brother had got training from their father for the summit.

After successful summit, the family arrived back in Shigar on Saturday to the warm welcome by the residents. The family was then taken to their native Hyderabad village in a rally.

Amina Shigri said she had dedicated the feat to national hero Mohammad Ali Sadpara.

She said she intended to raise the Pakistani flag atop the world’s second highest peak K2 in near future.


Published in Dawn, September 5th, 2021
 
Sirbaz Khan becomes first Pakistani to scale 9 of world's 14 highest peaks

Jamil Nagri
October 1, 2021


This file photo shows mountaineer Sirbaz Khan raising Pakistan's national flag. — Photo by author/File


This file photo shows mountaineer Sirbaz Khan raising Pakistan's national flag. — Photo by author/File


Mountaineer Sirbaz Khan became the first Pakistani on Friday to climb nine of the world's highest 14 peaks
— each of which has a height of more than 8,000 metres — after he scaled the 8,167-metre-high Dhaulagiri mountain in Nepal, said Alpine Club of Pakistan Secretary Karrar Haidri.

Sirbaz was part of the 19-member 'SST-Dhaulagiri I Expd. 2021 Autumn' expedition organised by trekking company Seven Summits Trek.

According to Seven Summit Trek officials, the climbers summited the world's seventh highest peak on Friday morning, with Sirbaz raising Pakistan's national flag upon reaching the mountain's top.

In his recent communication with Dawn from Dhaulagiri on Thursday, Sirbaz had said he was determined to summit the peak on Friday morning.

Dhaulagiri, which forms part of the Himalayas mountain range, is widely known as one of the hardest peaks to climb due to its steep sides and bitterly cold climate.

As Sirbaz achieved the feat, congratulations poured in for him.

Sajid Ali Sadpara, the son of legendary mountaineer late Mohammad Ali Sadpara and a climber himself, tweeted: "Lots of congratulations to Sirbaz Khan to climb Dhaulagiri . After climbing Daulaghiri he is first Pakistani to summit nine 8000 mountains."


Sirbaz, 32, hails from the Aliabad area of Hunza in Gilgit-Baltistan and began his climbing career in 2016.
In 2019, he became the first Pakistani to summit Mount Lhotse, the world’s fourth-highest mountain at 8,516m in Nepal, without the use of supplementary oxygen.

Moreover, he summited the 8,125-metre-high Nanga Parbat in 2017, 8,611-metre-high K-2 in 2018 and Broad Peak, which has a height of 8,163 metres in 2019. Earlier this year, he climbed the 8,091-metre-high Anapurna mountain, 8,848-metre-high Everest and 8,035-metre-high Gasherbrum II.

On four of these expeditions, he had been accompanied by late Muhammad Ali Sadpara.

Sirbaz is aiming to become the first Pakistani to climb all 14 of the world's highest peaks.

Before setting on the mission to summit Dhaulagiri earlier this month, he had said: "I am looking forward to his expedition and reaching closer to the dream of my mentor Ali Sadpara, who had the similar dream of scaling the 14 highest peaks, but tragically lost his life earlier this year during a winter expedition on K-2.”
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Pakistan's Seven highest peaks; a diagrammatic representation.
No country has as many high mountains as Pakistan,
40 of the world's 50 highest peaks ,including 7 of the 10 highest(including the 2nd and 3rd highest) are located in Pakistani territory, mostly in the Gilgit-Baltistan Region, an area the size of Switzerland or Austria.




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Rajab Shah “The Crown of Karakorum"

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Pakistan's forgotten mountaineer, not many in Pakistan know of Rajab Shah other than those who are connected to the mountains.

He was the first Pakistani to summit all five 8,000 metre peaks in the country and was the winner of the President’s Pride of Performance Award for mountaineering.

Rajab Shah [Born in early 1950s] was a mountaineer from Shimshal, Hunza-Nagar, Pakistan. He started his mountaineering career as a High Altitude Porter (HAP). In 1998, he became first Pakistani to climb all eight-thousanders [5x8000er] in Pakistan. He achieved this feat without using supplemental Oxygen during climbs.

He was honored with President's Pride of Performance Award in the field of Sports in 1993. Shah also appeared in 1991 Mountaineering movie 'K2' as a Balti Porter.

Rajab Shah is regarded as a modest, humble and down to earth person. Despite of unparalleled achievements, he was barely known outside Mountaineering circle in Pakistan. He lived in his native town Shimshal and can be reached without appointment. Shimshal is home to several mountaineers and High Altitude Porters (HAP).

Shah was employed as porter on various European or Asiatic expeditions. His prime role was establishment of Camp-I and Camp-II. Out of pleasure, he started climbing above and reached summits. Rajab's first 8000er ascent came in 1989, when he summited Nanga Parbat as a part of German-Pakistani Expedition lead by Ekke Gundelach and Sher Khan. He used a variant of Kinshofer route to reach the top. Later Rajab topped Gasherbrum I twice in 1990 and 1992.

In 1992, he reached summit as a porter though his Japanese Mountaineers were unable to top.

He stood on top of K2, highest peak in Pakistan, in summer of 1995. Rajab Shah was also a member of 1997 Sino-Pakistan Expedition to Mount Everest. Team remained 200m short of summit, which remains a 'real regret' for Shah. Next year he summited Gasherbrum_II to become first Pakistani to climb all five eight thousanders(K2, Nanga Parbat, G-I, Broad Peak, G-II) in Pakistan.

Rajab summited Mustagh Ata (7546m) as Sirdar (leader of porters) in 2002.

8000er Profile:

1989: Nanga Parbat (8125m)
1990: Gasherbrum I (8068m)
1992: Gasherbrum I (8068m)
1993: Broad Peak (8047m)
1995: K-2 (8611m)
1998: Gasherbrum II (8035m)
 
Pakistani climber Sirbaz Khan aims to scale all of world's 8,000-meter peaks


Pakistani climber Sirbaz Khan aims to scale all of world's 8,000-meter peaks

https://nation.com.pk/NewsSource/haber
Anadolu
10:44 PM | December 12, 2021


From starting as a porter in his teens, Sirbaz Khan has since scaled the heights of mountaineering, becoming the only Pakistani to climb nine peaks over 8,000 meters (26,247 feet) tall, including the world’s two tallest mountains, Everest and the mighty K2.

Hailing from the picturesque Hunza Valley of the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, near the China border, Khan hopes to summit all of the world's 14 mountains with an altitude of over 8,000 meters by the end of 2023 to join a small club of mountaineers who have achieved the feat.

The 33-year-old climber, who began his professional climbing career mere five years ago in 2016, has developed a taste for only the highest mountains.

"I’ve never tried to touch mountains below 8,000 meters in my professional career. My aim is to scale all the 14 peaks that are over 8,000 meters," Khan said in an interview with Anadolu Agency on the eve of International Mountains Day, which falls on Saturday.

"Below 8,000 meters isn't my taste," Khan, also known as "8,000-meter boy," said with a smile.

In 2019, he became the first Pakistani to summit Mount Lhotse in Nepal, which stands at 8,516 meters (27,939 feet) and is the world's fourth-highest mountain.

Nanga Parbat, Broad Peak, Manaslu, Anapurna, and Gasherbrum-II are among his other 8,000-meter expeditions.

Out of five peaks in Pakistan over the 8,000 mark, Khan has already scaled four mountains, leaving only Gasherbrum-I, which he plans to summit next year.

Khan accompanied iconic mountaineer Pakistan Muhammad Ali Sadpara on four of his 8,000-meter peaks expeditions. Sadly, Sadpara died this February while attempting to ascend K2 without supplementary oxygen.

It was 2004 when mountaineers from across the world gathered in Gilgit-Baltistan to celebrate the 50th anniversary of K2's conquest, that gave Khan an opportunity to join an Italian team planning to scale the world's second-tallest peak.

"I never looked back after that,” he said. “It was just the beginning of my passion to climb all 8,000-meter tall mountains in the world," Khan said.

That same year, together with Mohamad Ali Sadpara, he tried to scale the daunting K2, his first-ever mission as a professional climber, but he failed.

But the following year, Khan scaled Nanga Parbat, known as the "killer mountain" due to its highly treacherous terrain.

"Mountaineering wasn’t something new to me, although none of my family members has ever joined this adventure sport. But it’s in the blood of the Hunza people,” he added.

Scenic Hunza has produced several world-class climbers, including Nazir Sabir, the first Pakistani to summit Mount Everest, Ashraf Aman, the first Pakistani to reach the summit of K2, and Samina Baig, the first Pakistani woman to scale Everest and then all seven tallest peaks in all the continents.

"God willing, the time is near when I will achieve my lifetime target," said Khan, who is also a volleyball player.”

Formerly known as the Northern Area and once part of the erstwhile Pakistan-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir, the region at the confluence of the world's greatest mountain ranges – Karakoram, Himalaya, Hindukush, and Pamir – is witnessing a brain gain as people return to invest in the region.

It is home to five peaks of over 8,000 meters and 120 mountains higher than 7,000 meters (22,966 ft.).

However, local climbers have long been forced to work as mere porters to carry loads with foreign climbers due to financial constraints and a lack of training.

"The first and foremost hurdle I faced was lack of proper training. It's not a normal sport like cricket, hockey, or football. While mountaineering your first day could be your last,” Khan said.

"Apart from being highly dangerous, mountaineering is also a very expensive sport that the majority of local people cannot afford,” he said, adding that a single climber's kit alone costs over 200,000 Pakistani rupees (about $1,200).

He said he believes, however, that with a proper strategy and marketing, 40% of the region's population can take part in mountaineering and tourism.

"This region has the potential to become a tourist magnet. All that's missing is a good strategy and marketing," he observed.

Khan credits his success to his mentor, Ali Raza Sadpara, an iconic high-altitude porter, and climber, and his senior Mohammad Ali Sadpara, who scaled eight peaks measuring over 8,000 meters before he died while attempting to ascend K2.

"I'll never forget these two people who encouraged, mentored, and shaped me into the person I am today," he added.
 
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The Winter expedition for K2 lead by a women mountaineer from China left from K2 Base Camp from Askoli ,Shigar. GB


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Pakistan’s Shehroze Kashif becomes youngest ever to scale world’s third highest peak​


Web Desk
5 May, 2022

Pakistan’s Shehroze Kashif becomes youngest ever to scale world’s third highest peak

Source: @thebroadboy (Instagram)

Pakistan's youngest mountaineer Shehroze Kashif on Thursday added another feather to his cap, as he became the youngest mountaineer to reach the summit of the 8,586-meter Kangchenjunga peak.

Kashif, who hails from Lahore, also achieved another feat as he is the first Pakistani to scale the world’s third-highest peak, which is situated in the eastern Himalayas.
Young Pakistani climber, who had become the youngest Pakistani to scale Mount Everest, used supplemental oxygen on his climbs to Broad Peak and Everest.

With the latest feat, the Pakistani teen who is known as ‘The Broad Boy’ becomes the youngest mountaineer to summit the top peaks including Everest 8849m, K2 8611m, and Kanchenjunga 8586m.

Meanwhile, sports enthusiasts, activists, and social media users congratulated Kashif on his success and prayed for his safe return from the peak.

Pakistani ace climber reportedly started hiking at the tender age of 11. He started his journey with the Makra peak and then climbed Musa Ka Massalah peak (4,080m), and Chembra peak (4,600m) at age 12.

Later, he summited Minglik Sar Shimshal (6,050m), K2 Gondogoro La K2 Base Camp, Khurdopin Pass (5,890m), Broad Peak (8,047m), Khusar Gang-Alpine Style, and Mount Everest (8,849m) at age of 19. His expedition to the Broad Peak (8,047m) earned him the title “The Broad Boy”.

Alhamdulillah !! Shehroze Kashif has summited Kanchenjunga 8586m in Nepal today..


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