K2 2015 Coverage: Summit Dreams

K2 routes
K2 Routes: Abruzzi and Česen

The teams that are already at K2, s Broad Peak and the Gasherbrums are making excellent progress on their acclimatization programs. Some have already slept a night at Camp 1, drugstore which is normally around 19,500 feet or about 6,000 meters. The next step is to retrace those steps and continue to Camp 2 around 21,500 feet or 6500 meters. From there they return to Base Camp, await a week of good weather and start up to the summit.

For those used to following Everest climbs, this may seem fast. And in comparison it is, but for K2 and the lower 8000 meter mountains two acclimatization rotations are the standard for those using supplemental oxygen. For those climbing without, they make make at least two more rotations and spend at least one night around 7000 meters.

Nick Rice, over on G1, reports a good rotation to C1. Visit his site for some nice pictures

The route to Camp I felt longer than I remember from 2006 and veered west to avoid some large crevasses before correcting east to arrive to Camp I. Since this was my first climb to Camp I, I was loaded down with 30kg of equipment, and the climb took close to seven hours (I arrived at 10:30am). Camp I is around 900m higher than base camp, so we were all quite exhausted when arriving. The camp is situated on a glacier in a valley surrounded on all sides by massive snowy peaks. This limits the amount of wind that arrives and also magnifies the intensity of the sun. Inside the tent was miserably hot, however, after climbing all morning in the sun, I was far too sunburned to spend any more time outside.

A report from Lance Fox, a friend of Alec Turner with Himex noted:

Alec Turner: had a rest day after tagging Camp 1 on K2. Headed up to Camp 2 @22,000′ for 2 nights, after which they will be ready for a summit push, hopefully sometime in the next 8 days.

Garrett Madison’s team is still two days from reaching K2 Base Camp but report the trek has eased a bit as have the temps.

But the big news is a rumor of an impending summit window from July 20 – 26, which is similar to what we experienced last year. If that forecast holds true, and we all know anything can happen in the high mountains, teams need to get their acclimatization programs completed, rest up and push hard when it appears.

On Everest there was always several summit windows that seemed to materialize in the second half of May, but on K2 it seems that there are only one or two and that’s it for the seasons, so when it appears, the teams that are ready are rewarded.

Climb On!

Alan

Memories are Everything

 

 

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