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K2 climbers are back home, and some are writing detailed reports on their experience. One that caught my eye was from American Eric Gilbertson as he described his no O’s, unsupported summits on K2 and Broad Peak with Danish climber Andreas Ritzau Frydensberg.

Meanwhile, there have been a few more summits in the Karakorum, but the mountain conditions are getting dangerous each day as the temperatures warm and moisture moves in. But, somehow, climbers continue to roll the dice. I hope their luck keeps up.

Big Picture

One of the topics from this summer’s Karakorum season has been the number of support the client climbers have needed, given their experience, and now about trash left on K2 allegedly from the large commercial teams. With somewhere around 200 summits on K2 and many on the other Pakistani 8000ers, 2022 was a season of excess: permits, inexperience, trash, and, yes, summits.

I’ve written for years about inexperienced clients, but, honestly, I never thought I’d be writing about them en mass on K2. But as I keep saying, times are a changn’.

Summits continue but mostly for the record seekers. The mainstream press has picked up on the K2 crowds. It’s Everest all over again. Let the hand wringing begin!

Big Picture

Without a doubt, the summer of 2022 will go down as when things changed in Pakistan’s Karakorum. Thus far, there are around 200 summits on K2, dwarfing the previous record year in 2018 of 62. Also, we saw at least ten women summit, also smashing any pretense of a “female curse” on K2. I estimate somewhere between 25 and 30 women have now summited K2.

We also saw multiple commercial teams use extensive Pakistan and Nepai support resources to fix lines, establish and stock camps with supplemental oxygen that allowed climbers, who in previous years would never have considered K2, not only to attempt it but summit, some without O’s.

I’m seeing many articles in the press about K2, quoting expedition leaders who talk about crowds, rockfall, dangerous conditions, too many people on the route at one time, and some now marketing other routes on K2 as safer. There is a reason the Abruzzi is the most used route on K2. But this generation of operators has a risk tolerance, they would say they are better climbers, which is different than the old timers, and in some cases, they have been correct. As I’ve said many times this season, times are a changin.

With decent weather, climbers continue to summit K2, GII, and Broad Peak; some are Sherpa races while others are nice old-school with no Os and no support. Some of the early summiteers talk about the problems of so many people on K2.

The rope team reached K2’s summit opening the door for the first team from Madison Mountaineering to summit supported by Mashabrum Expeditions for logistics. Over 100 others are in various high camps for their respective summit bids as of 4:00 am on Friday, July 22, 2022.

Big Picture – The Summit Push and A Death

It looks like the winds picked back up across the four 8000ers over the last 24 hours, but teams remained focused and summited GII, and K2. It will be a big next 24 to 48 hours across the 8000ers as the weather is predicted to ease. Look for multiple summits from many teams. We will see a record on K2, to be sure.

Jenn Drummond reported death but no names or details. There was a death near C3 of an Afghanistan climber with Mirza Ali team Karakorum expedition team, but Ali has not mentioned it in his communications.