Attempt on the Unclimbed Peak

The Madison Mountaineering Unclimbed Peak expedition team is now safely back in their camp after attempting to climb a previously unclimbed peak in the Karakoram. The team emerged from their tents and set off on the route under the cover of darkness, climbing through the night and reaching the summit ridge as the sun was rising. Difficult, unclimbed terrain separated the team from the summit. After a valiant effort and hours of assessing the route, the team made the decision to turn back. We’re so proud of the team for the hard work they put in: exploring unclimbed terrain and the patience it took to make the right call. A lot was learned and our team hopes to return should other route options open up! This one stays unclimbed—for now. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Karakoram:

Today we attempted to summit the objective of our unclimbed peak expedition. We left ABC at the foot of the peak at 12:45 a.m., and by 5 o’clock we were standing on a col on the peak’s summit ridge at about 6,200m. We gingerly negotiated cornices overhanging the peak’s steep east face until the cornices ended, and a long series of precipitous, chossy gendarmes lay between us and the summit. That terrain was unsafe for our team. So we descended to ABC, arriving before the afternoon sun began sending volleys of stones down the peak. All in an all, it was a spectacular foray into unclimbed terrain. We hope to return when an alternate route, directly up the peak’s face to its summit is in better shape. Until more snow falls, that option is too icy as a result of the very dry conditions this season. We’re looking forward to dropping back down to the comforts of K2 Base Camp (4968m/16,300ft) tomorrow!

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

• Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“

– Instagram:

• @MadisonMtng
• @GarrettMadison1
• @terray_s