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In July 2016, I embarked on an incredibly memorable, yet challenging, 11-day trek to the base camp of K2 — the highest mountain in Pakistan — with three other Dutch hikers in tow.
Arranged by Snowland Treks and Tours, our trip started from Islamabad where we stayed for a day. The next morning, we took a short, but a very scenic, flight to Skardu. We acquired a great deal of interesting information about our destination from the plane's captain, which naturally got us pumped for the journey ahead.
Following a brief stay in Skardu, we left for the town of Askole, which is only 115km away but the rocky roads, not to mention the landslides and floods that we encountered on our way stretched our journey an additional five hours.
The picturesque drive through hanging wooden bridges, however, made it worth it.
Arriving in Askole, we stopped for some garam parathas, and washed them down with wonderful milky tea before starting our first trek to the Jhula campsite.
We walked through a small lane in the town of Askole that widened as we exited the village. Then, we entered Shigar Valley, where I saw jagged mountain peaks and views that quite literally took my breath away.
Situated at a distance of 18kms from Askole, we reached Jhula just before sunset. We parked our camp next to the river, which afforded us an ethereal view of the Barkhudas mountain peak.
The next morning, we trekked from Jhula to Payu campsite, which is 22kms away, at 200 metres of elevation gain; the route that we took was close to the river bank with many uninhabited houses.
From Payu, we made our way to the Baltoro glacier, the focal point of our trek. The journey to our next campsite Khoburshe was 15km away, with 500 metres elevation gain.
The long distance and the formidable gain of elevation, coupled with our first, tentative steps on a glacier, was taxing but also proved rewarding as we got a glimpse of the spectacular Trango and Lobsang mountain spires as well as the starting point of the serene Baltoro River from here.
Near the Khoburshe campsite, a lake has sprung up due to a glacier melt, which required us to take a detour, adding about another two kilometres to the trek; we retired at the camp for the night.
The next morning, we trekked from Khoburshe to Urdukas, which is situated at a relatively short distance of 6km, with 200m of elevation gain.
The journey was, by far, the most wonderful part of the trek as we crossed two glaciers and glacial streams to reach Urdukas, surrounded by tall imposing mountains. It is a wonderful campsite that sits atop huge rocks.
As we set up our tents and settled into them, we heard the sound of music. Venturing outside, we saw porters from different teams who had gathered around a big boulder and were dancing and celebrating as it was Eid!
Close to Urdukas, there is a Pakistan Army checkpost and some military men also joined in the heartfelt celebrations.
Our next stop was the Goro II. It was another long trek of 15kms, with 270 metres of elevation gain. We were ecstatic when we saw our first views of the incredible Masherbrum (7821m) and Gasherbrum-4 (7925m) mountains.
Traversing along the route, we saw large protruding chunks of snow, known as snow capsules. These capsules vary in size and are sparsely found along the trek.
Our campsite at Goro II was the coldest on the trek. When I woke up in the middle of the night, my tent was covered in frost.
The morning that greeted me was equally cold, if not more. But the day was special. Crossing Gora II, we finally saw the magnificent K2 mountain, and other stunning peaks such as Muztagh Tower (7273 metres) and Mitre Peak (6010m).
Our next camp on Concordia glacier was next to Mitre Peak. With that as our reference, we walked about 12kms to reach Concordia.
Near Concordia, we had to negotiate many complicated crevasses. We also heard loud songs of the glacier cracking up.
After what seemed like an eternity, we arrived at our camp on Concordia. Situated at 4,600 metres of elevation, the high altitude made us easily breathless, even if the movement was something as small as getting up.
Most expeditions end on Concordia after which trekkers head back to Askole. One can also take an alternative route by hiking to Ali Camp and then crossing the Gondogoro Pass to enter Hushe Valley and return from there. It, however, requires expert technical climbing skills.
In our case, we decided to visit the K2 base camp, which is approximately 11kms away from Concordia, save for one team member who ended up going to the Gilkey Memorial.
The three of us, including myself, stayed back at the K2 base camp for about an hour, and had lunch with an international expedition team before returning to Concordia.
The return journey from Concordia to Askole was 90kms and took us three whole days to return to Askole from where we returned to Skardu the same evening; thus ending our intense, adrenaline-filled trek, one we are bound to remember for the rest of our lives.
—Photos and videos by the author
Imad Brohi is an engineer from Hyderabad, Sindh living in Saudi Arabia. He can be reached at facebook.com/brohi
The views expressed by this writer and commenters below do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.
Comments (85) Closed
Amazing pictures.
I need vacation, RIGHT NOW !
thanks for sharing these amazing pictures. wish to go there someday and see all this for myself.
Simply beautiful ...
breath taking photos!
That plane ride in PIA must be scary!
i always wanna go to gilgit and wake up in the middle of night to see MILKY WAY, but its too expensive for me to visit northern areas now as i am broke right now
Lovely pictures.
It was my dream to do this Concordia trek. Hope I'll make it one day
Did you go through a tour company ?
awesome experience...especially the pic of K2 "like a halo on an angel" is simply mesmerizing
very well captured
Its awesome! Its one of my dream to go there...InshAllah I will please send me your email add. I want to know the details or send to my email address. Thanks
Love Pakistan, SubhanAllah.
Amazing! Northern areas are the best!
Wow! Amazing environment
Wish to be there, again!
awesome clixs !
Can you share which camera you used?
Cheers Mishra
Well-written, well-photographed. I strongly urge you to enrol the second Milky Way photo in Sony World Photography Contest.
Amazing night shots of sky
Amazing pictures! Been there in 2014 but we had the 5th supper moon of the year when we reached Concordia. Love the Milky way
Amazing.... Sir kindly tell me whole expenses of your trip???
Lovely pictures and very well written article. You should do trips to other parts of Pakistan and write about them as well.
Amazingly brilliant & beautiful pictures of Pakistan...Pakistan never ceases to amaze me.
Ammmaaazinggg!!! I could travel till skardu and far to another axis. But this journey is awe-inspiring! Loved those mountains looking like the chocolate lava cake with white ice-cream topping! And seeing K2? ahh it is one an only unique experience one can ever have! Imagine Burj ul Khalifa at dubai having merely less than a km height. Whilst mighty K2 stands with a sheer face of more than 3 to 4 kms like a powerful king!
@jawad Being broke myself, I know how that feels bro!
Fantastically articulated both with words and photos!!!
Great job Dawn thumbs UP!
Awesome
Beautiful, Stunning, Amazing, Majestic K2. Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful! I wish I could travel there. :(
goes on my bucket list this.
Allah SWT has blessed Pakistan with the natural resources and beauty.
K2 is one of the most beautiful peaks in 8 thousanders and considered to be toughest to conquer. If you passed through Gondogoro LA, you would have seen more beauty.
I did it back in 2014.
Absolutely beautiful photographs and videos, and great travelogue. Thanks.
The Beauty of pakistan .
i visited concordia around 45 years ago, it was pristine, landlocked enclave, no passageways, nowhere to stay, just camp out where you can. Years have rolled on, things have changed, looks hundred times organised. Godwin-austin, gasherbrum complex, masherbrum remain unchanged, although concordia basecamp looks dirty. Trango still stands as it was then. These areas should be STRICTLY RESTRICTED ACCESS areas, away from human activity, otherwise god knows what would local commercial activity do to the land of giants.
Leave it, as it was please.
Oh ya stunning beauty
We should invite malik riyaz to build here and also build a jangla bus service in the area to facilitate development - at moment the place looks empty and too clean.
Wonderful and very informative. I wish I could have the resources to travel to these area and see for myself what I have seen in photographs. We Pakistanis must be proud of our beautiful country. May God Save our country. With love to Pakistan.
Great Journey Imad. I am also planning to be there. Last year when I climbed Kiliminjaro I asked myself, why do people climb these mountains? Why they put themselves in so much pain? Answer is: they don't climb mountains, they climb themselves!! It's always a challenge and a very rewarding one. Happy adventures.
Wow ....your pictures virtually took me to this awesome place.
Great; Majestic; Thanks for the most beautiful photographs. Grateful for introducing Pakistan and its Giant peaks in very effective way.
it's awesome,beautifull,the most beautifull land on earth.
Amazing pics. Hats off to photographer.
wowowowowow its amazing journey... king of north K2 we love you
it surely is beautiful.. but plz dont go without necessary training.. i lost my brother while descending down from concordia
I am not a a very outgoing person but after reading expedition articles like yours, I feel like trying it out. Keep it up and keep going Imad.
Breathtaking pics. Hope I ll do this trek one day. Could you please share some details on how to plan this kind of trip and how much money is involved. Thank you.
It is a beautiful place, full of challenges, and adventures waiting for climbers of the world to test their courage and stamina. But alas, this happened to be a job of our government. :>)
unbelievable...
Amazing
Very well written article. Amazing pictures. Well done Imad :)
In my college days (mid-90s) we went to murree and one of the hotel agent promissed to give us a room from where we can see K-2.. lol.. we were young but didnt have money so declined.. but that was awesome marketing by that agent.. pl. bear in mind at that time there was no google map etc... back to this article I am amazed by milky ways..just breath taking.
Good hike. I have been on a similar one in India, a lot of fun but a lot of walking too. Cheers.
Truly amazing pictures and exceptionally well written and informative article. I would love to do this journey with my two sons Inshallah.
Let us know how much money required for such trip from Islamabad?
how much did this trip cost,I want to make it.
Truly wonderful and wish the neighbors become friends so many people from India will visit them and enrich their lives...and benefit local people...
Keep posting photo articles like this...
Congratulations once again. Loved the high resolution photos and your travelogue.
For all those people asking about how much would it cost and how to plan it, read below.
Find a tour operator. There are many operating out of Skardu. Our tour was arranged by Snowland Treks and Tours (www.snowland.com.pk). It is mentioned in the second paragraph.
Unless you live in Skardu or the nearby areas, the tour will most likely start in Islamabad. The tour operator will make arrangements for your transport to Skardu and then Askole, from where you will begin the trek.
You need to bring good hiking boots, rain jacket, snow jacket, a backpack and all the stuff you need in a duffel bag. You will carry your water and other lighter necessary items in your backpack while all the other stuff goes into your duffel bag which is carried over by mules.
The cost varies by operator to operator and will take into account how luxurious you want it to be. Some operators charge from Rs. 110-120,000 and there are some over $2500. Again, talk to the tour operator for the cost.
AMAZING AND BEST PHOTOGRAPHY OF THR JOURNEY
Awesome Pakistan. These mountains embody the spirit of Pakistan and all kashmir. Beautiful, majestic, unyielding, unbreakable, unsuppressable, memorable.
@jawad its all about time... u will travel to gilgit in the near future...
Awestruck!
Thanks for sharing photos..wonderful and thanks for telling how beautiful is our Pakistan!
Heaven......Will Pakistan grant me the Visa to Trek this beauty.....Ever ?
simply beautifull
Amzing! Equally enthralling is Ladakh, Nanda Devi trek and Kanchanjengha in India!
I myself belong to Gilgit-Baltistan, one of the most beautiful cities of the world. I invite all my national as well as international tourists to come and visit this charming city and see the incredible beauty of the nature.
beautiful !
I feel proud I'm from Gilgit Baltistan, one of the most beautiful cities of the world. Let me tell you that the people over here are very loving and peaceful. The literacy rate of GB is 99 per cent and there has been no any polio case found so far. On behalf of people of GB, I invite all national and international tourists to come to this incredible valley and see the real beauty of the nature :)
@ARSHAD ALI I second you on the loving nature of the people of GB. The hospitality is wonderful and anyone you talk to is polite and pleasant.
@Imad : My pleasure bro. And thank a million to you for showing the true face of Gilgit Baltistan.
Thank you Imad for such a well described both verbally and in pictures, story of your travels to the K2 base camp. For those of us who can only dream of such a journey, reading your article has been a delight! Thank you again!!!
@Imad please let us know which DSLR did u use?
I had experienced this trek some 15 years back. No words can describe the experience, you need to be there to feel the goodness. All those, who can undertake this adventure( monetarily and physically) jump on the next flight( I personally will recommend road journey to Skardu) and see the heaven on earth
I have seen this mountain K2 in my dreams and want to see it live one day..
This is the beauty of my Pakistan.
What was the cost?
It is real natural beauty, Pakistan is the home of highest mountains!!
Fantastic article! I've just done this very trek and it was really quite challenging and mind blowing . Was a pleasure reading the article , looking at the pictures and going down memory lane. One thing I feel that needs to be added and people made aware off is that by no means is this an easy trek and it should it no point be attemptempted if one is not physically annd mentally fit and ready to face these extreme conditions . Thanks for sharing you experience
Excellent adventures journey.
Beautiful Pakistan :)
Is it safe ?
@SSA It is absolutely safe. Throughout the trek we met many foreigners, men and women. Some of them had stayed in the base camps for months for summit attempts. There are military posts established throughout the route. No problems with that.
Great read
I loved every bit of it.
Beautiful Pakistan Zindabad.
By profession I am Banker and Auditor love to travel. By qualification I am proud to be sociologist...... After watching theses amazing pictures, made me to visits up to Concordia K-2 base camp.
It's my dream now to visit.... Beautiful Pakistan