Jan and Krystian Kostecki and Sebastian Wolski (Poland) set up base camp in early July 2018 at 4,600m (approximately 36°34'21.86"N, 75°33'23.78"E), between the two streams coming down from the First and Second Gunj-e-Dur glaciers. Their porters refused to go any higher, so the three had to establish an advance base on the 9th at 5,165m, directly opposite Peak 5,913m (Peak 177 on Jerzy Wala’s map of the Shuijerab mountain group). On the 12th, Camp 1 was established at 5,440m near Gunj-e-Pir West Pass (5,622m). (This pass was first reached by Poles in 2013; in 2017, a U.K.-USA party traversed it from the Gunj-e-Pir to the Ghidims Valley). The next day the three Poles attempted the south ridge of Peak 6,047m (Peak 211 on the Wala map) via the west flank, but failed due to high temperatures and soft snow conditions.

On the 14th the three made the first ascent of Peak 5,880m (GPS) to the west of Gunj-e-Pir Pass (Peak 180 on the map) via the northeast ridge. They named it Petr Koh. On the 19th they had another go at Peak 6,047m but found conditions to be even worse, so they dismantled camp and returned to advanced base. On July 23 they tried Peak 5,913m, reaching the south ridge via an east-facing couloir directly above advanced base, but once the sun hit the conditions became dangerous and they retreated quickly, worried about a later descent of east couloir.

There are many interesting unclimbed peaks in the Gunj-e-Dur Valley, particularly the main peak of Gunj-e-Sar (6,376m), but the middle of summer is not a favorable time for attempting them.

– Jerzy Wala, Poland, translated by Monika Hartman and supplied by Janusz Majer

Earlier Polish Gunj-e-dar Expeditions: In 2013 a Polish expedition from the Wrotnia Club placed a base camp at the entrance to the First East Gunj-e-Dur Glacier and from there climbed to the Gunj-e-Pir East Col, then south to a summit they named Snow Peak (5,730m). In 2016 a team from the same club established a base camp lower down the main valley at 4,550m, and an advanced base at 5,157m a little way up the Northwest Gunj-e-Dur Glacier. From, there Andrzej Makaran, Grzegorz Mołczan, Agnieszka Garus-Saramak, and Mariusz Saramak climbed to Buspur Pass (5,642m) and continued north up the ridge make the first ascent of Mai Dur Sar (6,017m GPS).