Copyright © 2024 Tracee Matcalfe, All Rights Reserved. Site by iGuate.com
Day 7
Concordia to K2 Basecamp
Today, I woke up before sunrise, anticipation coursing through my veins as K2 Basecamp was now within grasp and the excitement made it difficult to sleep. As the first one in the dining tent, an uncontainable delight filled me. Devouring my breakfast with haste, I rushed over to the Lela Peaks camp where our Gasherbrum teammates were preparing to depart. Concordia represented our crucial crossroad—a juncture where we headed northwest as the Gasherbrum team set their sights southwest. After sharing a warm cup of coffee, we bid our farewells and embarked on separate paths.
The outset of our trek was a tad perplexing as we backtracked to find the faint path leading to Broad Peak and, ultimately, K2 Base Camp. After an hour’s walk, we reached a significant landmark—a military outpost housing the Ali Sadpara memorial cell phone tower. Named after Ali Sadpara, a legendary Pakistani climber who tragically passed away while attempting a winter ascent of K2 in 2021, the tower operates on solar energy, only active during fair weather. Fortunately, the tower was operational on this splendid day, granting us the opportunity to send heartfelt messages to loved ones back home.
Our journey swiftly progressed as we engaged in conversations with fellow trekkers along the trail. Before long, we arrived at Broad Peak Base Camp. Here, we were treated to a sumptuous hot lunch prepared by Mingma G’s first head cook in Pakistan. An exquisite experience unraveled as we sat in the kitchen, witnessing the meal’s preparation—a rare privilege as cooks often prefer their workspace undisturbed. Additionally, the air was abuzz with teams summiting Broad Peak, and the radio chatter about their successful ascent added to the exhilarating atmosphere.
After lunch, we continued the final hour or so to K2 base camp. The trail was hard to follow in places, and we kept crossing a river trying to find the best path. Finally, we crested a hill and K2 base camp came into view. I sat down for about 20 minutes to simply take in the view and the fact that I was finally arriving at K2, something I had been preparing for since I first started climbing big mountains over a decade ago.
Upon arriving at base camp, I was taken aback to see a woman walking around in a sports bra and pants. Deeply respectful of local customs, I had remained conscientious about my attire, ensuring not to expose even my arm’s skin, let alone my midriff. Imagine Nepal’s camp, located highest of all the camps at K2, took us about 20 minutes to reach. I later learned that Mingma G had chosen this location both because it was one of the best places to get cell phone reception and because it would mean a shorter day once we started climbing. I thoroughly enjoyed walking through the camps and looking at all the different team’s sites.
Once we arrived at our camp, we were treated to the traditional welcome beverage of warm Tang and a second lunch. The rest of our K2 team, who had arrived about a week ahead of us, were up on the mountain doing their first acclimatization rotation, so our camp was relatively empty. After a satisfying meal, I settled into my tent, relishing the thought that this would be my sanctuary for the next few weeks, sparing me the chore of packing my duffle each morning.
