Winter assault on K2 planned

Press, 23 February 1987, Page 14

Winter assault on K2 planned

NZPA-AP Islamabad Polish, Canadian and British climbers plan to make the first winter assault on Mount Godwin Austen or K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, even though they will face temperatures of - 50 deg. and winds of up to 200km/h.

Andrzej Zawada, who will lead the expedition, told a news conference that a winter assault on the mountain in northern Pakistan is one of the great remaining challenges facing mountaineers. Zawada has just completed an inspection trip for the attempt

planned for January and February, 1988.

“It will be in the middle of winter, in the most difficult period,” he said.

Zawada, who led the first expedition to climb Mount Everest in winter, said K2 presented many more challenges because of the isolation of the 8561 m peak.

It would take 14 days of tramping and climbing to reach the base camp at the foot of K2 before the climb could even begin. Mount Everest can be scaled within four days of arriving at the nearest airport. Twenty mountaineers

will take part and so far. 10 Polish, four Canadian and four British climbers have been selected with two spots yet to be filled, Zawada said. About 30 other people will make up the expedition, including medical specialists, filmmakers and base camp personnel.

Up to 600 porters will be needed to get 12 tonnes of supplies to the base of K2 for the assault, which will cost about SUSSOO,OOO ($925,000).

Asked about the conditions the climbers would face, Zawada said the temperature would not be a big problem except

when heavy winds made the windchill factor very low. “The temperature is not very dangerous if there is no wind,” he said. Winter climbing is the great challenge facing mountaineers, Zawada said. A good mountaineer can now climb at least half a dozen of the world’s highest peaks in a single summer with little effort, he said. “In the summertime K2 is crowded.”

Every precaution will be taken to minimise danger, and oxygen tanks will be stockpiled along the assault route to assist the climbers if they get into trouble.

The expedition was determined to avoid the accidents that cost the lives of at least 12 climbers on K2 during the summer of 1986, he said.

Zawada said one of the aims of the expedition was to make mountaineering more popular by introducing more people to its feats. A live television broadcast might be attempted from K2’s summit to that end, he said. “It’s almost the end of the twentieth century and it is time to show this playground (of mountaineers) to people on television sets in their homes,” Zawada said.