Hushe valley first ascent — unnamed 6,000 m objectives

A 26-day exploratory expedition to an unclimbed peak in the side valleys above Hushe — Charakusa, Nangma, Kondus — the granite country of the Karakoram. Maximum four climbers. The objective is chosen on the ground from a shortlist, and the climbing here is rock rather than snow.

Granite, not glacier

This is the difference between this trip and the Shimshal one. The Charakusa and Nangma valleys hold hundreds of granite towers and spires, many under 6,000 m and a great number of them unclimbed, on walls that have been compared to Yosemite and the Bugaboos. The objectives are short, steep and technical rather than high and long.

That changes who the trip suits. You need rock competence — trad leading on alpine granite, often with a load, at altitude — more than you need a high-altitude record.

How the objective gets chosen

We walk in with a shortlist drawn up with Hushe climbers and we look at it. Aspect, approach, how much of the line is actually visible, what the ice at the base is doing, how long a retreat would take. Then the team picks. Sometimes the best objective is not the most striking one, and the honest version of this trip involves walking away from a beautiful tower because the descent is unjustifiable.

Who we take

Alpine rock experience at D or above, confident leading on granite, self-sufficient, with references. Four maximum. We ask for a climbing CV at enquiry and we read it properly — this is not a trip where enthusiasm substitutes for the skill.

What success looks like

A summit if the line goes. A thorough reconnaissance, photographs and a written assessment if it does not, which is how the next party gets up it. We publish what we find rather than sitting on it, and we record any ascent with the Alpine Club of Pakistan.

Why Hushe

The village sits at the mouth of all three valleys, which makes it the only base in the Karakoram where this density of unclimbed rock is a day’s walk rather than a week’s. Hushe’s climbers have been on the great Karakoram expeditions for three generations and they are on this team as climbers, not as porters.

What is inside the price

Peak royalty and permits for the agreed objective, the visa file, all transport on our own vehicles to Hushe, the approach and base camp under our published porter charter, full camp with cook and mess, rack and rope, Hushe climbers on the team, oxygen held for emergency use, satellite comms with daily forecasting, and a written evacuation plan for base camp and every bivouac we expect to use.

You should have climbed to 6,000 m before and be competent on snow and moderate ice with a rope. The approach is short, so the altitude arrives sooner than it does on a Baltoro expedition and the acclimatisation profile is built accordingly.

The ground is unknown. Expect to look at an objective, decide against it, and walk to another one. Roughly speaking, a first-ascent trip that returns without a summit has still done what it set out to do.