American Gasherbrum 2006 Expedition

Wolf Göschl climbing near Gasherbrum La (G1, 6300m, 24. June) copyright Gerfried Goeschl

Timeline:
June 19- fly to Pakistan
July 3- arrive at Base Camp
August 8- depart Base Camp
August 16- return to USA

From June 21 through August 16, I will be in Pakistan attempting the world's 13th highest mountain, Gasherbrum II (8,031/26,348 ft).

Gasherbrum 2 is located along the Baltoro and Abruzzi Glaciers in northern Pakistan. Four of the world's 14 highest peaks are found within a few miles of each other, including K2 (the world's second highest peak).

I will be climbing completely self-supported, without supplemental oxygen, without guides, and without high-altitude porters.

Many folks have asked about the political situation in Pakistan. While there are areas of Pakistan that are totally bad news, the main climbing areas have continued to be as safe for Westerners as anywhere in the world. The local inhabitants rely on expeditions for much of their yearly income, which helps. For two years I have found almost Pakistanis to be almost uniformly friendly.

While this route is not technically difficult, the combination of weather and altitude mean that even for the world's best climbers there is no certainty of reaching the summit.

Safety: Climbing the high peaks is not safe; but neither is driving to work. An interesting analysis shows that since 1990, these high peaks have become much safer than they were in the past.

The main difficulty in climbing these peaks stems from the lack of oxygen in the air . However, many climbers are prevented from summitting by more mundane problems. Mike Farris

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