Asia, Pakistan, K2 Attempt

Publication Year: 1984.

K2 Attempt. The Navarra K2 Expedition was composed of Mari Abrego, Dr. Javier Garayoa, José Manuel Casimiro, José María Donazar, Juan María Equillor, Jesús Moreno, Javier Muru, Agustín Setuain and me as leader. We started from Dassu with 300 porters on May 14 and got to Base Camp at the confluence of the Savoia and Godwin Austen Glaciers on May 25. We continued up the Godwin Austen to Advance Base at 17,225 feet at the foot of the Abruzzi ridge on May 27. We established Camp I at 19,750 feet on May 31. Though the weather was not good, on June 7 we placed Camp II at 21,850 feet above House’s Chimney, which was well equipped with a steel and aluminum ladder. Bad weather then kept us in Base Camp until June 20 but by June 27 we had established Camp II and the head group had got to 25,250 feet before bad weather drove us back again to Base Camp. For twenty days heavy snows and wind kept us from climbing but on July 21 it cleared. We again got to Camp III but the weather worsened and on July 25 we decided to withdraw. Mari Abrego stayed on with Englishman Roger Baxter-Jones after we left. Encouraged by fine weather in early August, this pair pushed up to Camp III in two days and the next day placed their tent at 26,575 feet below the bottleneck. They climbed the day after to 27,100 feet, but they had to descend because of clouds and bad weather.

Gregorio Ariz, Federatión Vasca de Montaña, Spain