[Stefan]

Good on you. Its amazing how long it takes to get there.

[GaliWalker]

[Stefan]

Did Concordia still smell like diesel?

[GaliWalker]

No, quite clean actually.

[GaliWalker]

Added this here as well as the start of the topic to keep the comments sequence intact. Part II: Hiking in July 13: Askole to Jola Excitement! The long drive was over and I was chomping at the bit to get started with the hiking. Since I've been a solo hiker for a long time there were some nerves on my part, regarding how my fitness level and hiking speed would compare to the others in my party, all strangers to me. The day began with a 6:00am breakfast. As we ate, our tents were packed up by the support staff of porters and cooks, numbering more than twenty! Each of us had been assigned a personal porter, who would carry most of our gear, leaving us free to hike with a daypack. Mine was loaded with camera gear. It was 6:30am when we started. Quite rapidly, we all spread out and I was soon hiking by myself. The trail paralleled the northern bank of the Braldu River and was mostly flat. However, just when I’d become comfortable a steep vertiginous path would appear to lead me up and over headlands, with the roaring Braldu an uncomfortable presence below. Bakhor Das Peak was a jagged spear to my right, on the far side of the Braldu, but other than that there was no hint of the big mountains to come. As the sun rose higher it started to become uncomfortably hot, but I did not let my pace flag.

11

After crossing a side stream on a swaying rope bridge I jogged left, away from the Braldu River and towards the mouth of the Biafo Glacier. Magnificent treks lead up this valley, which is deeper than the Grand Canyon and full of wondrous peaks, but this was not part of my itinerary. I continued to follow the main trail as it skirted the mouth of the Biafo Glacier. This was just a jumble of rocks and dirt, with no visible ice, except in the distance further up the valley.

12

13

Once done with the Biafo moraine crossing the trail sidled back up to the Braldu River and began to traverse some steep cliffs, to get to the Dumordo River side-valley. The Dumordo River, in early season, can be waded, but this is impossible in mid-summer when the Panmah Glacier fills it full of snow-melt water. The solution is a one mile detour up the sandy Durmodo River valley, where I expected to find a pulley bridge. I had used such bridges before, so wasn't really worried, but was still pleasantly surprised to find a 'proper' rope bridge instead of a precarious pulley bridge. (Upon inquiring, I found that the new bridge had only been set up 2yrs ago.)

14

Just on the other side of the bridge, 15min away, was the campsite of Jola (elevation 10,500ft), our home for the night. It had taken me 5hrs to get here; I'd soon realize that such short days would be the norm, in order to give us time to get acclimatized. The rest of the day was spent lounging and watching shadows march up the mountains that were ringing us, as the sun went down. July 14: Jola to Paiyu I rose early to watch the sunrise, before joining the others for breakfast. We were all on the trail by 6:15am, walking in the shallows of early morning. Similar to the day before, we soon spread out and I was once again hiking by myself. It was fun watching the shadows lift tantalizingly from the valley floor, like watching a particularly artistic striptease act. Too soon however, I hit the sun and immediately started to get hot. I think that day the temperature exceeded 90F...just energy sapping heat. In compensation, the scenery was quite magnificent.

15

16

17- Bakhor Das Peak

18

19- Braided Braldu

Once again the going was relatively easy. 'Lunch' was taken at 9:30am (!), at the Bardumal campsite, where we were hosted by two genial caretakers. A rudimentary stone hut with three rooms allowed us to take shelter from the heat during lunch, but then it was back out into the blazing sun.

20- Our host at Bardumal

21- Mohammad Yasin, our assistant cook

22

23

24- Lunchtime for the trekkers

The post-Bardumal section was harder going. The route took me down to the river bank where sandy sections made for tiresome walking. Periodically, I'd have to scuttle along the rocks lining the river bank to stay above water. The final section before Paiyu was a cruel up-down-up sequence, which was just brutal in the heat.

25

26

Paiyu (elevation 11,100ft) was one of the more established campsites on our trek. It was situated at the base of 21,883ft Paiyu Peak, though this was not visible from the campsite. Trees lent welcome shade and soothing greenery to our surroundings. Best of all though were the awesome views of the Cathedral group and Lobsang Spire. Finally, we were getting into the thick of it! The next day, we would make our way onto the Baltoro Glacier and walk amongst the big peaks.

27

28- Paiyu Peak shadows

29- Cathedral and Lobsang Spire

30- Cathedral

31- Lobsang Spire

[Ski]

awesome landscapes there, but you've outdone yourself with the character study of Mr. Yasin. bk

[the Zachster]

Beautiful, rich portraits. Gorgeous landscapes. Delightfully written report. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this...it's fantastic. The BEST nwhikers sequel EVER!!! Can't wait for the rest! PS GW, you have an amazing affinity for capturing water wherever you go. Love the braided river shot with gold water.

[seattlenativemike]

Absolutely epic....love the people shots

[puzzlr]

The scenery there is mind boggling. Thanks for posting it here, otherwise I wouldn't get the chance to see it. Keep adventuring!

[GaliWalker]

Added this here as well as the start of the topic to keep the comments sequence intact. Part III: On the Baltoro July 15: Paiyu to Kho-Burse The problem with the trek to Concordia is that it takes seemingly forever before you get to see the really big peaks; an exercise in patience and perseverance. Thankfully, after the first two days, by which point you've only got tantalizing glimpses of some of the lesser Karakoram luminaries, on Day-3 all is rectified, as you climb atop the Baltoro Glacier and reach rock climbers' nirvana. This was the day I got to hike on the Baltoro, so it was with a real sense of anticipation that I got ready. We took off from Paiyu at 6:30am and motored along the still mostly flat trail. An hour and a half later was the end of all flatness for the next week as we hit the towering wall that was the face of the Baltoro Glacier. The Braldu River gushed out of a mud encrusted fissure in the ice. The entire glacier was covered with rocks, with almost no white ice showing. As we started to work our way up the steep route that led to the top of the glacier it was mostly just hiking on a really rocky trail, with the occasional talus scramble/rock-hop. We had been told that this day we should stick close to our porters, since the route can be dangerous, especially if you get off track. However, it was a simple matter to stick to one's own pace, since there was almost always a porter in sight ahead of you.

32- Paiyu Peak spires

33

34

As I crested the face of the glacier I got greeted with a fantastic view of the entire Trango Towers group. For me, seeing and photographing Trango Towers was one of my major goals, second only to seeing K2. The granite spires were magnificent, more than worth the price of admission. Even the intriguingly alien surface of the Baltoro was momentarily forgotten in my excitement.

35

36

37

Eventually, I calmed down and headed off in the direction of the last group of porters I had spotted. Various towers and spires rose up around me on all sides, so that it felt like traversing the maw of a shark with excellent dental work. The route took me from the northern edge of the glacier to its southern end. The going was mostly straight forward, except for one section of exposed ice: a knifelike ridge, only a hand's width wide, with steep drops to god knows where, on either side. The ridge angled downwards, but traction was good (little pieces of gravel were embedded in the ice). I was thankful to make it down safely, under the watchful eye of a couple of our porters.

38

39

The rest of the traverse to the far end of the glacier went off without a hitch. At this point we actually left the glacier and picked up a trail on the hillside. More efficient travel took us to the campsite of Liligo, where we had our customary 9:30am 'lunch'. At this time I was able to take in the Baltoro Glacier. God, that thing was monstrous! It stretched off eastwards, as far as the eye could see, a seething tempest of ice and rocks. Nothing was flat: rounded hills and fissures raised and lowered the deck, giving the impression of a troubled sea, frozen in time. Walking that thing was going to be exhausting.

40

After lunch a short 90min walk along the hillside deposited me at the established campsite of Kho-Burse (12,300ft). It was all straightforward, until the very end. With the campsite in view a pesky maze of a side glacier had to be navigated. We all hurried through this section – as much as we could – since there was much exposed ice, some glacial streams (water flowing in ice channels) and a few crevasses.

41- Paiyu Peak, still cloudy

42

43

44

45

Kho-Burse was an island of greenery in the otherwise desolate landscape. Waterfalls and streams shimmered down the hillside. The views were magnificent in almost every direction. The only fly in the ointment was the numerous flies that crawled over everything. I have never encountered such disgusting flies – they were not satisfied to just sit on my head, they crawled on my scalp, through my hair! Ugh. Eventually, I gave up and dug out my sleeping bag's mesh storage cover, and wore it over my head.

46- Hasan, our guide

47- Uli Biaho Tower

48- Lobsang Spire

July 16: Kho-Burse to Urdukas A short but extremely tough day for me. I woke up with chills and knew that the cold I'd been taking a strong line with the past two days had finally got the better of me. Drugged up, I packed my gear, stuffed something down my throat, hoping it would stay there, and started to put one foot in front of the other. I know I walked mostly along the crest of a lateral moraine, I know that I crossed three difficult side glaciers and I know that somehow three hours elapsed. Then I was at Urdukas (13,300ft), where I could rest.

49

50

51

52

53

54

55

56

Due to the short day, we all kind of lounged around. Some people seemed to be feeling the effects of altitude (a telltale lack of appetite) but I was too sick to know if I was being affected or not. Around this time I met up with two captains from the Pakistan army, who were also headed to Concordia. One of them was the liaison officer of a climbing group headed for Gasherbrum II, while the other was headed to K2 base camp, where he would be posted for the next month. Both of them dragged me over to their permanent army camp nearby, where I was made to consult a doctor. Antibiotics were doled out.

57- Tired porters

58

59- Dwelling above Urdukas

60

July 17: Urdukas to Goro Two Hopped up on antibiotics and brimming with bravado, camp chores out of the way, I headed off into the Baltoro, a lifeless desert of ice and rock, ebbing and flowing in ice-dune after dune. From now on we would remain on the glacier until our return to Urdukas.

61

62

63

64

65

66

67

68

69- Breaking camp

The start was difficult. There were a few crevasses to hurdle and some glacial streams to cross. We relied on our porters to get us through this section. As we got nearer the middle of the Baltoro and things got easier I was comfortable walking my own pace. There was a bit more exposed ice now, but little bits of gravel embedded in the surface made for easy traction.

70

71

The views were superb. Now that I was out in the middle of the glacier Urdukas peak stood out in all its glory. Dead ahead, and still a long way away, was Gasherbrum IV, the world's 17th tallest peak at 26,013ft. The most gorgeous of the peaks though, and becoming ever more prominent the further east I hiked, was 25,660ft tall Masherbrum, the world's 24th highest peak.

72- Urdukas Peak

Our lunch spot at Goro One was the best viewpoint we'd had so far. It was located right across from Masherbrum and the Yermanendu glacier. The intersection of the Yermanendu and Baltoro Glaciers had resulted in fascinating house-sized seracs. It was incredibly cool walking amongst them as we finished off the day a little further up the Baltoro, at Goro Two (elevation 13,950ft).

73- Masherbrum

74

75

76

77

78

79

80

81

82

83- Gasherbrum IV

84

Concordia was now within touching distance, so close I could taste it.

[Matt]

The subsequent parts of your story have certainly been worth the wait. Gorgeous photos of all those amazing peaks.

[bobbi]

Way to make YOUR DREAM COME TRUE! I am totally impressed and enjoyed reading your fabulous prose! Your photos are most excellent as always! What an adventure!

[GaliWalker]

Thanks, bobbi and Matt. bobbi, as you say a dream trip; if I never do another big trip I'd still be happy that I at least got this one in.

[Ski]

had somebody take a look through the photos in the last set above. she was quite impressed with the shot of the two tired porters. yet another quite excellent character study. bk

[GaliWalker]

Thanks Ski. Your comment is especially welcome: someone I know complained that my hiking photos don't have enough (any!) people, so I made sure to include a few this time.