ISLAMABAD, Dec 22: If everyone who applied for permits to climb mountains in Pakistan showed up, then the country’s northern areas would be packed with tourists, this winter season.
Five expeditions have applied for permits this winter season starting from December and carrying on into January – the two months that offer opportunities to summit the peaks at a height of more than 8, 000 metres.
Out of the five, four expeditions would attempt to ascend 8, 126 metres high Nanga Parbat and one for Broad Peak, which stands at 8, 051 metres.
The expeditions include mostly European climbers from Italy, Poland, Romania, Hungary and some from the USA.
According to the Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP), Italian climber Simone Moro, climber-photographer Cory Richards and Denis Urubko from Kazakhstan were the only mountaineers to have conquered eight thousand metre peaks in Pakistan, in the winter season.
“Most expeditions tackle the peaks around summers, when the weather is favourable. Even then, success is a long shot. So the odds are stacked against the climbers planning to summit in winter, when blizzards top 80kms, temperatures drop below 30C and the snow becomes so hard that ice axes cannot hook into it,” Member Alpine Club of Pakistan Karrar Haidri said while explaining some of the extremes involved in winter climbing seasons.
Also the cost of winter climbing is almost double. “The costs of porters, their allowances, and food are double,” said Karrar Haidri.
However, to attract more climbers to these massive peaks the government offered special discount packages on permit fees for expeditions made up of seven members.
This season no royalty fee would be charged for peaks up to 6, 500 metres.
While only five per cent on other peaks would be charged, during the winter season (December – February).
The Nanga Parbat is the only mountain in the open zone and does not require a liaison officer from the Pakistan army or the air force.
The remaining four 8,000 metre plus peaks were situated in the closed zone area that require military liaison to accompany foreign climbers due to security reasons.