Dispatch 30 – Camp III (7040m/23,100ft) to BROAD PEAK MAIN SUMMIT (8047m/26,401ft)

The view of the rocky summit (secondary summit) from the col
The view of the rocky summit (secondary summit) from the col
The view of the Gasherbrums from the steep route to the summit;
The view of the Gasherbrums from the steep route to the summit;
View of the summit ridge and the main summit;
View of the summit ridge and the main summit;
Nick on the main summit of Broad Peak on July 24th, 2014 at 1:00pm local time
Nick on the main summit of Broad Peak on July 24th, 2014 at 1:00pm local time

After maybe an hour of sleep, I woke up at 10:00pm, made 2 liters of water, packed up my things, put hand, foot, and toe warmers in my boots and gloves, and headed out into the moonless, pitch black night. About a half hour after beginning, I ran into Alex Gavan (Romania) who was descending from a successful summit attempt. I congratulated him and assured him that he was no more than 20 minutes from Camp III. We hugged and I continued toward Camp IV. I passed the Mexican tents in Camp IV, which were clearly empty and continued onward until I caught up with some Catalan climbers. A few of them were using oxygen, but their pace was erratic and it was very frustrating to be behind them, as their breaks were causing my extremities to get cold. To make matters worse, my headlamp died at around 2:00am, two and a half hours before sunrise. I had no choice but to stay behind the Catalans in order to use the ambient light from their headlamps to guide my steps. Finally, Oriol (a Catalan) and his Sherpa Nima passed the others and I took this opportunity to do the same, following Oriol and his Sherpa instead. Their pace was much better and a few hours later, we arrived at the col. My hands and feet were numb so I took the opportunity in the col (where the sun finally shined) to warm up and take a drink of my now icy water. I continued onward from the col, past a very rocky, exposed section, onto the rocky secondary summit. I met Lina and Pilar there and found out that Pilar was not feeling well and needed to descend. Lina had recruited a Sherpa to help them descend and they were departing any moment. I wished them luck, then continued on to the main summit. I bumped into Badia (Mexico) on my way to the corniced ridge and found out that she was returning from the main summit. Very few climbers actually made the additional hour and a half climb to the highest point. The winds picked up as I reached the ridge, making the journey evermore harrowing, and at 1:00pm, I reached the main summit (8047m/26,401ft) of Broad Peak along with Orial and his Sherpa. We took photos for each other, then quickly began descending toward Camp III. I arrived just before dusk and found Lina resting in the tent. She had some minor frostbite but besides that, was fine. Not long after I arrived, a Polish climber announced that a Taiwanese climber was dying and needed a rescue from Camp IV. I was completely destroyed from my summit bid and knew that I would be no help. Lina left the Camp III tent, armed with her first aid kit, and went out to help the climber. After taking off my crampons, I quickly passed out with my boots and harness still on, feet outside the tent.

3 thoughts on “Dispatch 30 – Camp III (7040m/23,100ft) to BROAD PEAK MAIN SUMMIT (8047m/26,401ft)”

  1. Nick – so happy that you made a successful summit. The photos are beautiful. Thanks for sharing.

  2. Just short question.
    During your climb down from summit to Camp 3 (or4), did you meet Japanese climber named Kuriki with red wear?
    Was he alone or with sherpa and other guys?

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