Nine more climbers scale Nanga Parbat

GILGIT: A day after a four-member Nepal-Pakistan team achieved the season’s first summit of Nanga Parbat, another team of nine mountaineers reached the top of the Killer Mountain in Gilgit-Baltistan on Wednesday.

“Huge congratulations to our team members and Sherpa who reached the pinnacle of Nanga Parbat on 10 July 2024,” announced Nepal-based mountaineering company Seven Summit Treks (SST) in a social media post. SST, which organized the expedition, highlighted the determination and teamwork that fueled the ascent against all odds.

The climbers who reached the summit include Al Harthy Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah from Oman, Vibeke Andrea Sefland from Norway, Thomas Ntavarinos from Greece, Israfil Ashurli from Azerbaijan, Vadim Pirmin Druelle from France, and four climbers from Nepal – Pasang Sherpa, Ngima Wangdak Sherpa, Ngima Dorchi Sherpa, and Phubadhile Sherpa.

Notably, Israfil Ashurli and Vadim Pirmin Druelle achieved the summit without the use of supplementary bottled oxygen, a testament to their extraordinary endurance and skill.

Season’s first: Pakistan-Nepal team scales Nanga Parbat

The successful climb marks the second ascent of the world’s ninth-tallest peak this season. The first summit occurred on Tuesday when a team of four climbers from Pakistan and Nepal reached the top. This group included Lhakpa Temba Sherpa and Pemba Sherpa from Nepal, and Dilawar Sadpara and Fida Ali from Gilgit-Baltistan, making it the first 8000-meter peak ascent of the season.

Nanga Parbat, standing as the ninth-highest mountain globally, has a notorious reputation due to its steep faces and challenging weather conditions. The mountain’s fearsome reputation has earned it the moniker “Killer Mountain.” The first successful ascent of Nanga Parbat was achieved on July 3, 1953, by Austrian climber Hermann Buhl, who made the daring climb solo and without supplemental oxygen. Tragically, the mountain has claimed the lives of many climbers over the years. To date, over 80 climbers have perished while attempting to conquer its treacherous slopes.