International Peace & Friendship expedition to Broad Peak 2003

17 June, 2003: We are in Skardu, reveling in the great atmosphere and food. The whole team is now together, 7 climbers from Field Touring, 3 Basques from Mendiak Etta, and 4 Greeks sharing our permit. Everybody is healthy and happy, but for a couple of minor bouts of loose bowels. Munich Symphony Orchestra violinist and hard-core technical climber Walter Koller joined us yesterday, much to the relief of the Pakistani authorities, and they have cleared us to depart tomorrow for the first leg to the village of Askole (3000m). Our LO is a Pakistan army office Major Waheed, and he is already enthusiastic and learning some basic Spanish, although this has been limited to "Hasta Manana and Hasta Luego" to date.

Expedition manager Mike Hale, from Field Touring office in North Perth, Australia, has had his patience and organizational skills tested a little already, dealing with some officialdom and the unattended bills from a night of dining and wining (albeit on tea and fanta) at the K2 Hotel! We also seem to be operating a full time translation service for our Basque comrades and our local staff, no mean feat when we only know about 50 Espanol words ourselves! We had a great day yesterday out at Satpara Lake above Skardu, we could have been at Lake Lousie in the Rockies save for the Shalwar clad Pakistani families sipping tea on the lake banks and enjoying the balmy weather. It was quite a day spent with boatloads of wealthy Pakistanis cruising the lake, sipping drinks, laughing and engaging us in fervent and inquisitive conversation. It was a wonderful experience.

We watched bemused on the way down from the lake as truckloads of laborers toiled to hand build a collapsed section of the trail by pick, sticks of gelignite, and the occasional well abused jackhammer. We have enjoyed our time in this lovely frontier town, but in a few hours we will be leaving to build our own path, by axe and by crampon, up the mighty breadth of Broad Peak.

The excitement is building and the anticipation is palpable. Our next dispatch will be our first via sat phone, and this time from the icy and desolate expanse of the Baltoro Glacier in 2 days. We are all thinking of our family and friends all the time, we miss you and send our love.

Stuart Remensnyder
Deputy Expedition Manager
K2 Hotel, Skardu, Pakistan

Dispatches

Photo copyright Dave Hancock

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