Dispatch 37-43 – Avalanche in Camp III; Commercial Expeditions Give Up

My mountain family in K2 Base Camp.
My mountain family in K2 Base Camp.
Pakistan will always be my second home. <3
Pakistan will always be my second home.

These past days, I waited for the weather window to materialize but it never did. We received heavy snow when the Meteotest forecast said to expect 0cm precipitation, and high winds blasted the upper slopes. After the night of heavy snow that prevented me from leaving base camp for Camp II, Camp III was wiped out by an enormous avalanche while the majority of the commercial expeditions were waiting in Camp II. This resulted in what was claimed to be the loss of all of the oxygen that they had stashed in Camp III (approximately $200,000 dollars of oxygen between the three big commercial teams). This however, turned out not to be the case. Though the tents and the equipment they contained were in fact lost due to the avalanche, there remained a large cache of Kobler’s oxygen (at least 40 bottles) in Camp III, meaning that at least some if not all of his clients could have still made an attempt despite the loss of some gear (most of which could have been either borrowed or sent up from Skardu). This information was of course not conveyed to his clients so they willingly left base camp under the assumption that they could no longer attempt this mountain with supplemental oxygen. After the big teams threw in the towel, a number of us got together to discuss another attempt. Before we met, my liaison officer came to my tent to tell me that since some of my permit were leaving, that I must also leave in four days. This would completely eliminate my chance to try the mountain again. I argued with him for some time before he finally said that if a group of us decided to stay, he could call GB council to get new orders. This means that the entire conversation was completely unnecessary and that he simply wanted to cause unnecessary trouble. The attendees of the meeting to discuss another attempt included Rob (American), Vanessa (American) and her Sherpas, the Hungarian team, and the British Team, along with their two Sherpas. The first thing we discussed was the safety of the upper slopes. Many of us believed, myself included, that the upper mountain was safer now than it had been all of July thanks to the enormous avalanche that unloaded the excess snow from the upper slopes. However, the Sherpas were convinced that since the commercial expeditions had left, that the upper mountain was unsafe. A number of us pointed out that it was the fact that they had lost oxygen and gear and that they were already planning on leaving earlier in July that motivated their departure, not the conclusion that the mountain was unsafe. This did not put their worries to rest, and by the end of the meeting it became clear that the Sherpas were out. We then began considering an alpine attempt without the aid of Sherpas or High Altitude Porters. It was at this point that I assessed my condition. I had touched Camp III, but had not slept there, so I did not feel sufficiently prepared for a safe summit attempt without oxygen. The alpine attempt would also require us to carry more than usual, as we would need to bring along rope and some rock pitons and snow bars. My lack of acclimatization would surely slow me down. I made the decision to end my expedition, as I felt that it wouldn’t be safe to attempt the mountain without sufficient acclimatization. That afternoon, we called for the porters and began preparing for our departure. I plan on descending via Gondogoro La, a high pass that cuts the length of the trek considerably, and spares us another journey down the Baltoro. We will end the trek in the beautiful village of Hushe. I will spend a night in Kande with Akbar’s family, then make the four-hour jeep ride down the well-maintained road to Skardu. The road from Askole to Skardu (the road we would have to take were we not going via Gondogoro La) has three points where it is necessary to change jeeps. After my decision was made, I heard that everyone else had also decided to end their expeditions. The weather changed in the last few days and we received heavy snow in base camp. I will leave for Concordia tomorrow (July 29th), spend a day there so that Manzoor and the Liaison officer from Gasherbrum II can meet me, then continue on to Ali Camp (July 31st), wake up at 1am to climb over the pass, and camp one more night in Shaisho (August 1st) before trekking the remaining distance to Hushe (August 2nd). It’s always hard to walk away from two months of hard work on a mountain, but I got to enjoy my time here with my mountain family (pictured above). I am so grateful to have such amazing people to share this special experience with. Until the next expedition! Thank you for sharing this adventure with me!