John Snorri’s team is back at Base Camp after high winds stopped their attempt. They intend to try again in early February. Several weather forecasts agree that winds will remain high.
Big Picture
Sadly, there are some taking advantage of the internet to spread false information (surprise!) Karrar Haidri, Secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, noted:
There are some people impersonating Ali Sadpara on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Please note that all of them are fake accounts.
Clearly, there is a “fog of climbing” element in reporting on these efforts. Last night was an excellent example for Snorri’s team. Their own home team posted on John’s account they were at C3 but their tracker showed C2. I noted both locations with caveats.
Apparently, there were reports of a helicopter rescue of one member of Snorri’s team (unnamed) on a “private” Pakastani TV channel. Obviously, that didn’t happen. If there was that would be an altitude first for Pakistan climbers. Also, the winds were too high. Karrar Haidri called it “fake news”
Snorri’s team has been at K2 Base Camp since mid-December, almost six weeks now, The SST team a bit less but still around four weeks. Boredom and the incessant sound of raging winds challenge each climber differently. Some will undoubtedly fold before too long, totally understandable. Others will hunker down and take what the mountain will give them.
This season has already had more good weather days than we’ve seen for a winter K2 attempt. Recall that the first effort in the 1980s enjoyed only ten days in three months!
Snorri – Back to BC
John Snorri Sigurjonsson told me directly “Back at BC. The wind was too high at 6800m. Straight in our faces”. He discussed their effort.
We are back in BC and all of us are safe and sound. After 17 hours ascent from BC to almost C3 we decided to stop and rest. At that time it was clear to us the strong winds came sooner then expected. This morning when we were packing our tent ALi’s backpack blew away and exploded. We manage to safe some of the things in the backpack but lost our summit mask. Still we are feeling well and already started to plan our next summit push. The window we are looking at is the 3rd to 5th of February. Ali and his son Sajid are amazing partners in the mountain, they are extremely strong and confident in there actions.
Their GPS tracker showed they reached 6,812.29 m/22,350-ft. This is about the middle of the Black Pyramid. It’s very unclear where they camped. Some reports suggest a “lower Camp 3” which would be in the Pyramid itself. This would be a new camp in my experience. I assume they retreated back to high C2 as was indicated by their GPS at one point. The team includes John Snorri Sigurjonsson with Muhammad Ali Sadpara and his son Sajid Ali.
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Seven Summits Treks – Climbing will continue with good weather
Seven Summits Trek’s has their team at base camp. By my count, there are 18 members (perhaps a few less) and about 20 Sherpas still left. Tamara Lunger gives us an update:
Waiting without doing anything at base camp isn’t always pleasant, but right now I really feel like I’m not ready to meet the goddess of K2. It’s not just the fact that I’m not really acclimatized, but there’s more to it than that. I’ve felt the call of K2 for a long time and I know there’s a WHY I’m here, but I also know now that the hardest thing on this expedition for me is to restrain myself from getting into the competition for the summit! I need to go hand in hand with my soul. One thing I have already discovered, JP is a very special partner! And for that, again, I am grateful!
Manaslu – Waiting at Base Camp
Simone Moro, Alex Txikon, and Iñaki Alvarez are at Manaslu Base Camp. Tenji Sherpa and Vinayak Jaya Malla are also at Manaslu Base Camp ready to move higher when winds allow. Alex gave this update about holding at base for the winds:
Waiting for the wind to give us a respite to make a new rotation in altitude. Winter begins to show its face, it gets colder every day. So we have to wait (in many cases without getting out of the sleeping bag)
Climb On!
Alan
Memories are Everything
Resources:
- Share your opinion on the reader polls
- A 30-minute documentary of Alan’s 2014 K2 Summit
- Known GPS Trackers:
- The traditional K2 Camp locations are:
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- Base Camp: 17,500ft/5334m
- Advanced Base Camp: 18,650ft/5650m
- Camp 1: 19,965’/6050m
- Camp 2: 22,110’/6700m
- Camp 3: 23,760’/7200m
- Camp 4: 25,080’/7600m
- Summit: 28,251”/8611
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2 thoughts on “Winter K2 Update: Snorri & Team Back to Base”
Thanks for the update. Good to know they are safe.
What do you personally think of repeated attempts on K2? Will they be getting physically weaker or will they get stronger based on their experience and learning the state of the mountain? I’ve watched your ascent of K2 a few times on YouTube – it seems so incredibly difficult. I just wonder about the effort of going up and down repeatedly after facing terrible conditions. But maybe there are psychological benefits?
Hi Sharon. With adequate rest, hydration, and nutrition between climbs, there is a huge benefit. The body will respond by making more red blood cells and other adaptations to the lack of available oxygen. But you are right at some point, there are diminishing returns. Also living at 16000′ will eventually take its toll. As for the psychological impact, yes the more times you climb a route, the more familiar and confident you become. Thanks.
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