Home Australian Geographic Adventure Adventure First winter ascent of Gasherbrum II

First winter ascent of Gasherbrum II

The North Face team on G2

THREE THE NORTH FACE mountaineers have made history as the first team to complete a winter ascent of Gasherbrum II (G2), an 8035-m mountain in the Gilgit Baltistan province, Pakistan. Simone Moro, Denis Urubko and Cory Richards summitted G2 at 11:28 am on 2 February, after leaving base camp (5100 m) on Sunday 30 January at 7 am.

Denis making his way to the summit

GII, also known as K4, is the thirteenth highest mountain in the world and was first climbed on 8 July 1956 by an Austrian team.

This was Simone’s third 8000 m winter ascent, Denis’ second and Richards’ first. The team faced dismal conditions on G2, including extreme cold (at one point reaching -46 degrees), strong winds, avalanches, and heavy snow.

Calling from a satellite phone from the summit of G2, Simone stated “It has been very hard, but the three of us feel well.”

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You can read about the group’s progress and see more footage from the climb here.

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