Page Type: | Mountain/Rock |
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Lat/Lon: | 35.71670°N / 76.70000°E |
Activities: | Mountaineering |
Elevation: | 26469 ft / 8068 m |
Contrary to general belief Gasherbrum doesn't mean "shining wall". The name comes from the Balti words rgasha, which means beautiful and brum which means mountain. There are six Gasherbrum Peaks. Gasherbrum I, also known as K5 and Hidden Peak, a name given by William Martin Conway in 1892 in reference to its extreme remoteness. It is the highest peak among them. It is also the 11th highest peak in the world and is the second highest in the Karakoram Range. It is one of the four 8,000m peaks located in a tight cluster on the upper reaches of the Baltoro glacier, the main access route to the mountains which cuts through the center of the Karakoram Range.
The Karakoram is the second tallest mountain range on earth. It lies about a thousand miles west of Nepal's Himalaya mountain range. The range is bordered by Tajikistan, China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India. It is a condensed cluster of high peaks with 60 mountains over 6900 meters. Of the world's fourteen highest mountains, four are located within the Karakoram Range: K2, Gasherbrum I and II, and Broad Peak.
Gasherbrum is a remote group of high peaks in the Karakoram, located at the northeast end of the 36-mile Baltoro glacier. The group forms a semi-circle around its own South Gasherbrum Glacier. A French Expedition led by H. De Segogne made first attempt in 1936, but they could not climb beyond Camp V at a height of 6797 meters. However, in 1958 an American Expedition led by Nich Clinch made the first ascent of Gasherbrum I. Pete Schoening and Andy Kaufman were first to reach the summit.
The peak was also the venue of the world’s first 8,000 meter climb in pure Alpine Style. This means that the start of the climb is done from the bottom of the mountain and all gears are carried on the way, if any bivouacs, they will be found on the way. No route preparation is done. Supplemental oxygen is not used. Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler achieved this unprecedented feat in August, 1975. On 8 August 1975, they began their climb. They had no rope with them, no supplemental oxygen, just personal climbing gears. On August 10th they summitted the peak and thus introduced pure Alpine style climbing to the Karokaram.
Gasherbrum I is one to the "least popular" of the 8000 meter peaks. It still has less than 200 ascents and is in tenth spot on the ascent-list for the 8000 meter peaks. It is also one of the peaks with least deaths, but this probably has to do with the fact that only really experienced mountaineers try a peak as difficult at Gasherbrum I.
The most common way to climb the peak is to attack on the western side and all routes here leads to "The Japanese Couloir", which is located on top of the north-west face. The first ascent (1958) was made via Spur Peak and then via the long south east ridge to the summit.
Date | Team/Country | Notable Event |
1889-1929 | Italian and British. | Surveyors document, photograph and survey the Gasherbrum-group. British explorer William Martin Conway introduced the names 'Hidden Peak' and Gasherbrum II. |
1934 | Swiss Expedition organized by G.O. Dyhrenfurth. | The large international expedition explores Gasherbrum I and II peaks. Two climbers able to reach the height of 6300 meters. Caught in an extremely violent storm, the same as killed Merkl, Welzenbach aand Wieland on Nanga Parbat. |
1936 | French Expedition. Leader Henri de Ségogne. | Route of choice - south spur. Team reaches 6900 meters and had to give up after ten days of snowfall. A massive expedition which included 35 Sherpas from Darjeeling. |
1958 | American Expedition headed by Nick Clinch and sponsored by the American Alpine Club. | First ascent. Andy Kaufman and Pete Schoening. Interesting detail 1: The summit pair went along with makeshift snow-shoes made from crampons and plywood from food-boxes. Interesting detail 2: They used mirrors on the summit to tell their friends that they had reached the summit. |
1975 | Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler.
Schnell, Schauer and Zefferer. |
2nd ascent. Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler reach the summit via a new route which came to be known as the northwest route. First alpine ascent, inspired by the Austrian four men team success on Broad Peak. Only 200kg of gear in total and 13kg on the first day of climbing. Messner’s 3’rd 8000er.
The Germans led by Schnell summited one day after Messner and Habeler on the same route. |
1977 | Yugoslavian Team. Stremelj and Zaplotnik. | Fourth successful ascent by two Yugoslavs, again on a new route. A team member who tried a solo repetition (Drago Bregar) dies. South west ridge. |
1980 | French Expedition. Barrard and Norbaud. | Fifth Ascent. A French expedition summits via the south ridge for the first time, which included summiting Gasherbrum I Sud. |
1981 | Japanese Team. Azuma and Shimotori. | Japanese team makes the 6th successful ascent. |
1982 | German expedition headed by G. Sturm. | Team summits the peak via a new route on the north face. The same year, the first woman, Marie-José Valencout summits. First Pakistani to ascend (Mohammad Ali). |
1982 | Sylvan Saudan. | This magnificent mountain was host to the very first ski descent from the top of an 8000 meter peak. |
1984
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Messner and Kammerlander. | The first traverse of two 8000ers. They first climbed Gasherbrum II, then went down to Gasherbrum Pass/La and continued to Gasherbrum I by a variant of the north- west face. Messner stated “only one out of 30 alpinists would’ve survived this climb”. Critics have pointed out that the pair descended to the place of C1 where they rested and also got support from a Balti HAP named "Little Karim" who, was with them for almost the whole climb. |
1985 | Escoffier.
Di Federico. |
Escoffier an impressive speed ascent. 21 hours, base-summit-base.
Di Federico made the first solo ascent. |
The first ever winter ascent took place in the winter of 2011/2012. Poles Bielecki and Golab reached the summit via the normal route in early March 2012. The expedition was lead by Polish legend Artur Hajzer.
Here's one brief report about the climb:
Poles climb Gasherbrum I in winter
Gasherbrum I is a long way into the wilderness in one of the most remote parts of Pakistan. Sooner or later you have to pass Islamabad as this is the town where you get the permits for the peak. If an organizer has taken care of the arrangements for you, you can just relax and follow your guide through the country. If you want to arrange everything yourself, the following may be of help.
From Islamabad to The Northern Areas. Local buses serve Islamabad with Skardu (the normal starting point for the trekking) well. Catch a bus from NATCO or Masherbrum Tours from Pirwadai i Rawalpindi (twin city of Islamabad, 15 km away). The cost for the 22-30h journey is about 12 US$. A taxi from central Islamabad will cost you 200-300 Rps. Some buses stop overnight in Besham, some go straight through to Skardu. If you have booked a ticket on a direct bus, don't be surprised if you have to wait in Besham for some time. Usually this wait is for other buses to gather and also for the police/military to ready a convoy. There are almost always some minor unrest in Indus Kohistan and to play it safe, the authorities arrange a convoy for the night traffic. It's nothing to worry about, it's standard procedure in this area.
From Skardu to Gasherbrum I. There are two routes to the peak from Skardu - via Askole or via Gondogoro Pass. The former is to recommend if you're not acclimatized. Gondogoro Pass is a mighty 5600m, so most trekkers and climbers use this route for the way back.
To Askole. A jeep ride takes 6-8h on partly miserable roads and the going price in the summer of 2005 was 3500-4000 Rps. In Askole you can either camp out in the wild or use the one of the camping places, which will cost you 100 Rps. Facilities includes toilets, running water and a grassy, walled camping area.
The first camp site along the route is Jhula. It takes anywhere between 4 and 8 hours to reach Jhula from Askole and the trek is very straight forward. Most of the time you walk on good paths along a river. An early start is recommended as it gets very hot in this area. Two bridges where you have to pay a small fee have to be crossed. Jhula has shower cabins, running water, toilets and camp platforms. 100 Rps./night.
Normally, there is not a problem to reach Paiju the second day. The trek is harder as you sometimes walk in sand along the rivers and there are some ups and downs en route. Paiju has the same facilities as Jhula and the cost to camp there is also 100 Rps./night. The place can be very crowded in the high season and if you don't like that, just continue for another 20 minutes to the first stream or to where the glacier start, where a very good place to camp is situated. Fresh water available here.
The next camping place is Urdukas, which has very good views of the Trango group. The camp site is situated on a hillside with good camp spots. Facilities and price is the same as Jhula and Paiju. If you want to go further or a part of the way to Urdukas, remember you'll be camping on the actual glacier. Campspots can easily be found there as well, but in some parts there are half an hour in between good or/and safe ones.
From here on the lenght of a normal day trip varies a lot depending on how the persons in the group feel. There are some camps along the way, but they are all very basic, consisting of shelters built of rocks. Most groups stop at Goro II, some stop an hour before this camp, Goro I and some go all the way to Concordia.
Concordia, the amazing glacial ampitheatre with four of the world's fourteen 8000+ peaks within a radius of 20 km. The place could be one of the most beautiful places on earth is sadly full of garbage and human waste. To the left you can see Broad Peak and K2. Ahead of you Gasherbrum IV is looming and to your right is the impressive Mitre. No fees and no facilities in Concordia.
Continue up along the upper Baltoro glacier. When heading out of Concordia, ask for directions as the route through some smaller serac fields aren't obvious. Ladders over some large crevasses here. Follow the glacier until you're at the southern reach of Baltoro Kangri and head north towards Sia Kangri. From here you see Gasherbrum I for the first time. If you're tired, there are some smaller camps along the way, notably Camp Moorr. No facilities here, but good shelter. There's also an army post along the way. Don't flash your camera here, it will be confiscated! About 4-7 hours of out Concordia, you'll hit the Gasherbrum I base camp, which is very spread out on a glacier ridge.
Gasherbrum I from the Chinese side Very few expeditions have tried to summit from the Chinese side. The base to start from is the oasis city of Kashgar on the brink of the Taklamakan desert. 270km of good asphalt road takes you to Yecheng. A junction is located 6 km out of the city at the little settlement of A-Ba. The road starting here is the famous Xinjiang Highway, which takes you all the way to Lhasa. The desert transforms into lower hills, which gets taller and taller and after half a day's travel you're surrounded by real peaks. The first pass at Aqmeqit is 3300m and is a very spectactular experience thanks to the ridiculous amounts of switchbacks. Pass Kudie and the start of the long climb to Chiragsaldi Pass begins. The pass is infamous for its rough and quick changing weather and is the place where you cross the Kunlun mountain range. From here, at 5000m, you'll have your first views of the Karakorams. A long steep descent takes you to Mazar, a ramshackle settlement on the banks of a huge river. This is where the roads towards Gasherbrum I ends and the trek begins.
Gondogoro Pass (or La in the local language) is sometimes stated to be the highest pass in the world and the altitude given on many maps is over 5900m. It's not that high, but at 5600m it's still a very impressive pass. Many teams choose to walk out this way because of the outstanding views from the pass-summit. Masherbrum (7821m) is very close and to your NW you see the whole Gasherbrum group (see photo above), Chogolisa (7665m), Baltoro Kangri (7800m) and a lot of other high beautiful peaks. To the north K2 and Broad Peak are visible. In the south the extraordinary Laila Peak can be seen.
From Concordia it's a long day's walk to Ali Camp. First you walk past Mitre Peak and head up the next valley/glacier on your right hand side. Coming from Gasherbrum I's base camp, there's an even longer day's walk. Try to get over the rivers early on the walk down the valley. Watch out for rock falls when entering the valley and try to gain access to the icy part of the glacier as soon as possible. Better to walk up there then down in the scree. When approaching Ali Camp, watch out for crevasses. The "security team" of Ali Camp will scream at you, where and where not to walk. Ali Camp has a 100 Rps./night fee. Ridiculous prices for "nature preservation" (there's loads of garbage all oer the place), "guiding services" (I never saw any guides when I walked over the pass) and "security" (some bad plastic ropes, attached in extremely bad way is to be seen close to the summit of Gondogoro Pass) has to be paid. For 1-3 persons it's 2500 Rps. For 4-8 persons it's 4500 Rps. The pass is privately owned. That is probably why this scam can go on as it does. My advice is to bugger the "guides" staying in Ali Camp about the garbage and not trusting the ropes at all.
I was told the it would take 5-7 hours to reach the pass from Ali Camp. It took me 2.45. For an acclimatized mountaineer, this is probably normal. It can be very windy on top of the pass, as it is a lot of elevation drop on the SW side. Don't trust the ropes on this side either. It's quite steep on this side (40-45 degrees). Stay up high on the right hand side if no tracks. There are glaciers in the middle of the glacier further down. The path gets really good before the little camp site of Xhuspang/Shispang, where you also can get very basic meals.
The glacier gets more difficult to travel after the camp and when you have passed the first rocky part and entered the main valley, stay to the left all the time. Doing so makes you avoid all the large crevasses and the left hand side is also the side you leave the valley on. When at the bottom of the first valley, take a left and enter some very nice meadows with yaks. Excellent views of sharp peaks. Some tricky, slide sections have to be passed. The walk gets easier again when heading down the lower part of the Gondogoro glacier towards Shaishcho. In this little settlement you can eat and pitch your tent under nice-smelling wild roses. 100 Rps./night per tent. From here it's a very easy 3 hour walk to Hushe. The Hushe - Skardu road is of awful condition for the first couple of hours. In the summer of 2005 the road had been badly cut away by a big river and all travellers had to walk over a wild river on small logs. Other jeeps were waiting on the other side. Lots of apricot orchards followed. From close to Khaplu the road is asphalt all the way into Askole. Count on 5-8 hours from Hushe to Askole.
Visas:
Visas are required for nationals from most European and English-speaking countries. Validity period and cost varies a lot depending on which passport you carry and where you apply for the visa.
Some Pakistani Embassies around the world
Visa extensions are available in most major cities in Pakistan, but should be avoided in the really large cities as it can be a long and nerve-wrecking experience. For Gasherbrum I climbers, Skardu is a recommended place for extensions. See also the Skardu section
Permits for Gasherbrum I - From the south side/Pakistan
You need a permit to climb the peak, which you can get hold either via the Ministry of Tourism or via an expedition agent. The fees were dropped to half of the old price some years back and the going prices for 2005 are as follow:
Damien Gildea - Mar 17, 2006 7:39 pm - Hasn't voted
Red Tape / LOJust to clarify a bit: - all expeds to peaks over 6500m need an LO - if you have an LO, he joins you in Islamabad and goes to and from the mountain with you, whichever way you walk in. - it is illegal for the leader of an exped to leave the exped before it is over. ie. before he has gone back to Islamabad with the LO for the debriefing. - all expeds to peaks over 6500m require the US$6000 deposit for helo rescue. This has been the case for many years. A rescue insurance policy is not enough and nearly all embassies will NOT guarantee payment for you. Askari Aviation take your money and hang on to it while you are in the mountains. If you don't need rescuing, you just come back and get it. There's never been a problem getting money back if there was no rescue. - the deposit is usually taken care of by guiding companies and agents, which is why some climbers get a shock when they try to organise something themselves. - if you are just trekking in a restricted area, like the Baltoro, you only need a registered guide, no LO - same with climbing on sub-6500m peaks - the Hushe area used to be un-restricted, but as of a few years ago it is now restricted, so you officially need either a guide or LO to go beyond Hushe village, over to the Baltoro or elsewhere D
Corax - Mar 20, 2006 8:19 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Red Tape / LOThanks for the input. Comments on the above post. Just to clarify a bit: - all expeds to peaks over 6500m need an LO Yes. - if you have an LO, he joins you in Islamabad and goes to and from the mountain with you, whichever way you walk in. The LO may join you in I-bad, but you can also hook up with him in the place from where you "need" him, for example in Skardu. You can also walk out via a restricted, but "non-LO-necessary area". A guide is then with you. - it is illegal for the leader of an exped to leave the exped before it is over. ie. before he has gone back to Islamabad with the LO for the debriefing. True. The only exception is in case of illness and in that case the leadership of the expedition has to be transferred to another person in the group. - all expeds to peaks over 6500m require the US$6000 deposit for helo rescue. This has been the case for many years. A rescue insurance policy is not enough and nearly all embassies will NOT guarantee payment for you. Askari Aviation take your money and hang on to it while you are in the mountains. If you don't need rescuing, you just come back and get it. There's never been a problem getting money back if there was no rescue. This issue was never even mentioned to me. I heard about other expeditions being asked for the deposit, but to my knowledge, no one in the team I joined put down the deposit. I was told I may be asked for an insurance that covered heli rescue, but that never happened either. - the deposit is usually taken care of by guiding companies and agents, which is why some climbers get a shock when they try to organise something themselves. True. One gang had never heard about the issue and didn't have the money for the deposit. They had to change target. - if you are just trekking in a restricted area, like the Baltoro, you only need a registered guide, no LO Yep. - same with climbing on sub-6500m peaks Yes. - the Hushe area used to be un-restricted, but as of a few years ago it is now restricted, so you officially need either a guide or LO to go beyond Hushe village, over to the Baltoro or elsewhere A guide is enough. The rules are according to two LOs very unclear about this. They said you officially don't need either a guide or an LO for this route. The "rescue team" based closed to the Gondogoro La may stop you though, even if the don't have the right to do so according to "the military book of law". Last year the LOs in the Baltoro area were very upset about the fact that the commercial organizers (specifically one of them) left a lot of responsibillities to the LOs. They sent guides up with the group, but in order to use this guide for other tasks, he left after arrival. Sometimes LOs had to "guide" a group out of the area on trails he had never visited. The bottom line is of course to double check all issues and rather expect the hard line Damien posted than basing them on the comments I made. I just wanted to let you know about my experiences in 2005.
Damien Gildea - Feb 26, 2007 12:55 am - Hasn't voted
BaltiJ, Re: the Kammerlander/Messner traverse, it was the Balti porter 'Little Karim' who was with them, not a Sherpa. D
Corax - Feb 26, 2007 2:19 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: BaltiThanks for pointing this out. I will re-read the info in the climbing history table once more. Most of it isn't my info, but a rest from former maintainers. J.
Shahid Hussain - Apr 20, 2019 4:06 am - Hasn't voted
Updated informationThank you Corax for the great information about Gasherbrum I. I have noted that this article was written in 2003. There are so many changes took place during the last 19 years period. For 2019, Royalty fee for GI is, USD $5400 for 7 members group, USD $ 900 Per additional person. Environment Fee/Waste Management Fee will be 68 US$ for each member of mountaineering expedition. Currency: Pakistani Rupee. 141.60 Rps = 1 US$ in April 2019. Flight from Islamabad To Skardu is very frequent. Pakistan International Airline is operating an Airbus PK451on daily basis. From Islamabad To Skardu is now only 20-22 Hours drive via Babusar Pass or via Karakoram Highway. It would be wise to contact a local Tour Operator to organise the trip, Documentations and get up to date information. One of the oldest and Government licence Tour Operator from Skardu is Trango Adventure. they will be happy to provide the Latest and up to date informations. info@trangoadventure.com https://www.trangoadventure.com