K2 Update: Lessons From The Mountain and A Summit Bid Still On!

We’ve got two interesting updates from K2Climb.net today.

First up, there is news that Serguey Samoilov and Denis Urubko have resumed their efforts to open a new route on the North Side of K2. The last we heard was that the expedition was in jeopardy because Serguey had come down with a bad case of bronchitis, and they weren’t sure if they would be able to continue. But some rest in BC and time to heal up, has done him some good, and they reported in from Camp 2 today, saying they are feeling strong, and continuing their efforts to acclimatize. Even thought most of the other teams have gone home, these two Kazakhs haven’t given up yet.

Meanwhile, we get a climb debrief from the other Kazakh team on the North West Ridge. You’ll recall that climbing aces Maxut and Vassily were turned back from the summit after spending five days in the Death Zone trying to find an alternate route to the top by free climbing a rock face. The typical route up was blocked with dangerous snows and prone to avalanche. One of the team members, Serguey Bogomolov, noted that they did everything they could, but it just wasn’t their time. The article looks at the lessons you learn in mountaineering, and knowing when to be safe and turn back.

Even though the focus is now shifting back to the Himalaya, and the Karakorum is growing quiet, it’s good to see that we still have some news from K2. We’ll keep a close eye on Serguey and Denis’ climb, and hopefully they’ll pull of that new route before the season closes completely.

Kraig Becker

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