Gasherbrum II Route
Disclaimer: The above displayed route leading to the Banana Ridge can deviate depending on the different conditions each season.
The climbing begins with the route heading through the icefall. The route will be identified with bamboo maker wands and fixed rope will be in place on the steeper sections. As the icefall ends, we rope up for safety on the heavily crevassed cwm. The cwm is not steep but the intense heat makes it hard work so we make this climb in the early hours of the morning. The trip from base camp to camp one should take 7-8 hours but improves after further acclimatization.
Camp one sits on the Gasherbrum Glacier at the foot of the Southwest Ridge. The route continues with climbers roped up on the glacier until reaching the start of the fixed ropes that are in place on the Southwest Ridge. Steep snow and ice slopes that weave between crevasses and small ice-cliffs will be climbed using the fixed ropes and the route will alternate between the ridge and the snow face. The climb from camp one to camp two is consistently steep and takes 3-4 hours.
Camp two sits on a sheltered ledge and the route continues on less steeper slopes than the climb from camp one to camp two. There will be fixed ropes in place from the foot of the Southwest Ridge all the way to the site of camp three. The climb from camp two to camp three takes 3-4 hours.
Camp three is located on a shoulder on the Southwest Ridge and below the summit pyramid. The route continues up the Southwest Ridge and depending on the weather conditions and the strength of our team we may place a camp four at 7,400m (24,280ft) if needed. The climb from camp three to camp four takes 2-4 hours.
Camp four (rarely used) is located immediately below the summit pyramid and on some previous expeditions we have used camp three as the high camp and not needed to establish a camp four.
Summit day will start early and the route continues with a long diagonal snow traverse below the summit pyramid and joins the East Ridge at 7,750m (24,280ft). The East Ridge is followed to the summit with the last steep 50m section having fixed ropes in place. The climb from camp three to the summit takes between 8-10 hours and the climb from camp four to the summit takes 6-8 hours with 4-6 hours for the descent to camp three.
Photo credit: Mark Horrell - Gasherbrum II from camp one.
www.markhorrell.com
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