Gasherbrum II expedition
Overview
A 48-day expedition to Gasherbrum II at 8,035 m, reached from the South Gasherbrum glacier beyond Concordia. It is widely regarded as the most straightforward eight-thousander in the Karakoram, which makes it the right first one for a climber with a strong 7,000 m record — the difficulty is the icefall, not the summit.
The approach and the icefall
You trek the Baltoro to Concordia, then branch up the Abruzzi and South Gasherbrum glaciers to base camp at around 5,000 m. The route to Camp 1 crosses an icefall that moves through the season and has to be reassessed and re-fixed rather than assumed. That is the most hazardous ground on the trip, and we cross it early in the day and as few times as the rotation plan allows.
Above the icefall the mountain gives reasonable snow slopes through Camp 1 at about 5,900 m and Camp 2 near 6,500 m, then the shoulder and Camp 3 around 7,000 m. The summit day climbs the north-west ridge on snow and moderate mixed ground.
Why climbers pair it with Gasherbrum I
The two share an approach and a base camp area, and a combined permit is possible. If you want both in one season, say so at enquiry — it changes the length, the royalty and the oxygen plan, and it is a far better trip planned from the start than bolted on at base camp.
Who we take
A 7,000 m summit or two solid 6,000 m peaks, competence on glacier and fixed rope, and references. Many of our GII climbers have no 8,000 m experience and that is fine; what we need is somebody who has spent real time above 6,000 m and knows how they respond to it.
What is inside the price
Peak royalty and liaison officer, permits, park fees and the visa file, all transport from Islamabad, the Baltoro and Gasherbrum approach under our published porter charter, base camp with cook and mess for the full 48 days, icefall and route fixing by our own crew, bottled oxygen above 8,000 m, a high-altitude guide per two climbers, satellite comms, daily forecasting and a written evacuation plan with a named drive-out for every stage.
- Duration
- 45 – 55 days
- Maximum altitude
- 8,035 m
- Grade
- Very hard
- Group size
- Max 10
- Guides
- 2 certified, 1 WFR
- Season
- June – August
- Starts / ends
- Islamabad / Islamabad
- A full Karakoram season with a realistic summit window.
Fixed departures
These prices are per person on a fixed departure, and they are the price — we do not discount a published figure. Deposit is 25%; the payment schedule and cancellation terms are published and sent with every quote. For your own dates, see the private pricing below.
Private departures and group pricing
Your party, your dates. The per-person figure falls as the party grows, because the guides, the vehicles and the camp cost the same split more ways. Everything in the inclusions list applies, and the safety standard is the one published above.
| Party size | Price per person | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | [PRICE] | Private guide and vehicle for the two of you |
| 3 – 4 | [PRICE] | |
| 5 – 8 | [PRICE] | Second guide joins at six |
| 9 – 12 | [PRICE] | By arrangement, season permitting |
Deposit is 25% of the trip price. The payment schedule and the cancellation terms are published and sent with every quote, before you pay anything.
Day by day
Buffer days are built in, not padding. If the weather takes them, nothing downstream collapses and you are not charged twice.
01 Arrive Islamabad Hotel · 540 m
Met inside the terminal. Briefing, SIM and cash.
02 Islamabad — gear check and permit formalities Hotel · 540 m
Full kit inspection and the ministry briefing. Liaison officer joins here.
03 Fly to Skardu, or drive Hotel · 2,230 m
Weather-dependent flight, or the Karakoram Highway.
04 Skardu — loads, crew and final checks Hotel · 2,230 m
Loads weighed and split. You meet the high-altitude crew.
05 Skardu to Askole Camp · 3,050 m
Rough road to the last roadhead.
06 Askole to Jhola Camp · 3,180 m
Along the Braldu. Long, hot and dusty.
07 Jhola to Paiju Camp · 3,420 m
The last trees before the glacier.
08 Paiju — rest and glacier briefing Camp · 3,420 m
Scheduled rest. Crampons, spacing, and what the guides watch for.
09 Paiju to Khoburtse Camp · 3,790 m
Onto the Baltoro.
10 Khoburtse to Urdukas Camp · 4,050 m
The meadow above the glacier, Trango group opposite.
11 Urdukas to Goro II Camp · 4,290 m
Long day entirely on moraine and ice.
12 Goro II to Concordia Camp · 4,600 m
The confluence, with the 8,000ers around it.
13 Concordia to Gasherbrum base camp Base camp · 5,150 m
Into base camp. Camp built and the plan walked through on the ground.
14 Base camp — rest and acclimatisation Base camp · 5,150 m
Camp built, icefall route inspected.
15 Rotation one — Camp 1 above the icefall Base camp · 5,150 m
Through the icefall and back. Timing matters more than speed.
16 Rest at base camp Base camp · 5,150 m
Recovery and checks.
17 Rotation two — Camp 2 with a night out Base camp · 5,150 m
Higher and sleeping on the mountain.
18 Rest and weather window Base camp · 5,150 m
Waiting.
19 Rotation three — Camp 3 Base camp · 5,150 m
Last rotation, conditions allowing.
20 Rest before the push Base camp · 5,150 m
Eat and sleep.
21 Summit push — Camp 1 Camp 1
Icefall crossed early, before the sun gets on it.
22 Push — Camp 2 Camp 2
Up the spur.
23 Push — Camp 3 Camp 3
Short night, early start.
24 Summit day, or turn back Camp 3
The summit ridge and down. Turn-back time holds.
25 Descent to base camp Base camp · 5,150 m
Icefall crossed early again.
26 Weather reserve Base camp · 5,150 m
Held for a second window.
27 Weather reserve Base camp · 5,150 m
Held for a second window.
28 Return to Concordia Camp · 4,600 m
Off the mountain and back down the glacier.
29 Concordia to Goro II Camp · 4,290 m
Loads lighter, legs tired.
30 Goro II to Urdukas Camp · 4,050 m
Back onto grass.
31 Urdukas to Paiju Camp · 3,420 m
Off the glacier.
32 Paiju to Askole Camp · 3,050 m
Out to the roadhead.
33 Askole to Skardu Hotel · 2,230 m
By 4x4. Kit return and debrief.
34 Buffer day Hotel · 2,230 m
Held against the Skardu flight.
35 Skardu to Islamabad Hotel · 540 m
Flight or road.
36 Islamabad, and home —
Debrief and airport transfer.
What is included
- Visa sponsor letter
- All permits, park fees and NOCs
- Met inside the terminal, all transfers
- Our own 4x4s and drivers
- Certified guides and insured crew
- Camp equipment, cook and all meals on trek
- Medical kit, oxygen where the route calls for it
- Satellite comms and a daily message home
- International flights
- Visa fee itself
- Travel insurance covering evacuation and repatriation
- Personal equipment
- Tips
If our price is wrong for you we will move you to a lower tier or remove a named inclusion. We do not discount a published price, and we do not cut the crew.
Fitness and difficulty — read this honestly
[WRITE THE HONEST FITNESS NOTE FOR THIS ROUTE BEFORE PUBLISHING.]
Kit list
The full list with quantities is sent with your quote. Rental is available in Skardu for most of it, priced separately. Your kit is checked item by item in Islamabad, not the night before the trek.
Group — we provide
- Sleeping, mess, kitchen and toilet tents
- Group first aid and the medical kit
- Satellite phone and messenger
- All cooking and camp equipment
Personal — yours
- Sleeping bag rated to −20 °C or better
- Insulated jacket and waterproof shell
- Walking boots, worn in before you arrive
- Trekking poles
- Sun hat, glacier glasses and high-factor sunscreen
- Headtorch with spare batteries
- Water bottles or bladder, two litres minimum
- Personal medication and a declared medical history
Technical — yours, rentable in Skardu with notice
- Mountaineering boots, crampon-compatible
- Crampons and ice axe
- Harness, belay device, two locking carabiners, prusik
- Helmet
Safety, evacuation and insurance
Helicopter rescue in the Karakoram is not guaranteed. Weather, altitude, daylight and clearance all decide whether a helicopter flies, so every stage carries a named drive-out or walk-out plan. Your insurance must cover helicopter evacuation and repatriation to the maximum altitude on your itinerary, and we verify the certificate before the trip starts.
A graded medical kit sized to the trip, oxygen, a portable altitude chamber, a satellite phone and a messenger, and a wilderness first responder in the crew.
The lead guide’s decision to turn back is final. Not a guest, not an agent, not this office — whatever has been paid.
Getting there
Islamabad
Met inside the terminal by a member of our team, not a driver with a sign outside it. Briefing the same evening, local SIM and cash sorted.
Islamabad to Skardu
A short flight that is weather-dependent, or a long road that is not. We build a buffer day either way and quote both.
On the ground
Our own 4x4s and our own drivers from Skardu onward.
Questions people actually ask
Can I attempt Gasherbrum I as well?
Sometimes, in the same season from the same base camp. It needs a separate permit and it changes the length and the price. Ask at enquiry and we will quote both rather than assume.
How dangerous is the icefall?
It is the objective hazard of this mountain and it is crossed many times on rotations. We cross early, before the sun loosens it, and the guides decide the timing. That is not negotiable on the day.
What experience do I need before you will take me?
Previous experience at the altitude band below this one, and we check it rather than take your word for it. If the experience is not there we say no. That is not a sales tactic — it is the difference between an expedition and an accident.
How long will I actually be on the mountain?
Most of the trip. The approach and the walk out are a fortnight between them; the rest is rotations, waiting for weather, and one summit push if the mountain gives you one.
What are the chances of summiting?
Weather decides most of it and we do not publish a success rate, because we have not run enough departures on this peak to quote one honestly. Anybody quoting you a percentage is quoting somebody else's season.
Who decides when to go up?
The lead guide, on the forecast and on what the mountain is doing. That decision is final and cannot be overruled by a climber, an agent or this office. It is written into your contract.
What happens if I have to go down early?
Someone qualified goes down with you — that is what the guide ratio is for. The expedition continues. There is no refund for an unused portion, which is in the payment and refunds page before you pay.
Is there a summit bonus?
If you choose to pay one it is yours to arrange and it is not in our price. We pay our crew their published wage whether or not anybody summits, and we would rather that were not confused with a bonus.
If this one is not quite right
The commonest reason a trip is wrong is that it is too hard or too easy, not that it is in the wrong place.
- A step easier Spantik — the Golden Peak
- A step harder K2 expedition, south-east ridge
You have already chosen the region, which is the harder decision. These run from the same roadhead.
- Baltoro & Concordia · Trek K2 Base Camp via Concordia
- Baltoro & Concordia · Trek Gondogoro La crossing
If this one is not right
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