K2 Base Camp and Gondogoro La

You arrive in Skardu, the gateway to Baltistan, and spend the afternoon with your guide going through gear, permits and the route ahead. The office roof looks out over the wide Indus plain and the sand dunes beyond. It is an easy, unhurried first evening before the mountains begin.

Night at Hotel, 2,228 m.

A full day of jeep track follows the Braldu river deep into the Karakoram, with the valley walls closing in around the road. Askole is the last village in the valley, and the road ends here, as it always has. You meet the porter team and the cook crew, and the whole trek starts to feel real.

Night at Askole, 3,048 m.

The first walking day follows the wide stony bed of the Braldu river with the Biafo and Panmah ranges overhead. The terrain is gentle and the pace is easy, a good way to find your rhythm. Korophon camp sits on a green bench with the first real mountain views of the trek.

6 hours on foot. Night at Korophon, 3,090 m.

Today you cross the Dumordo river by the cable bridge, a small adventure the porters have been doing for generations, then follow an easy traverse along the Braldu to Jhola. The valley is stark and enormous, with granite walls on both sides. Camp is beside the river, and the sound of the water lulls you to sleep.

6 hours on foot. Night at Jhola, 3,200 m.

A longer walk brings you to Paiju, the last greenery before the ice, with a grove of trees and a clear stream. The snout of the Baltoro glacier rises ahead, and the Trango Towers show for the first time on the skyline. Tonight the cook crew make the most of the last fresh food.

6 hours on foot. Night at Paiju, 3,450 m.

A restful day at Paiju lets the group settle at altitude before the glacier. The porters bake bread for the stages ahead, and you can take an easy acclimatisation walk up onto the moraine for the first view along the Baltoro. It is a day to wash, read, and enjoy the green while it lasts.

Night at Paiju, 3,450 m.

You step onto the Baltoro glacier and follow its crest, with the Trango Towers filling the sky on the left. Khoburtse is a camp on the moraine with big views up and down the ice. The walking is long but absorbing, and every hour reveals another named peak.

7 hours on foot. Night at Khoburtse, 3,795 m.

A shorter stage brings you to Urdukas, a grassy ledge on the edge of the glacier and one of the best camps on the whole route. Masherbrum, Mustagh Tower and the Trango group stand around you, and the evening light on the granite is something you remember for years. Early arrival means a long afternoon to take it in.

5 hours on foot. Night at Urdukas, 4,050 m.

Today is pure glacier travel through ablation valleys, past ice towers and turquoise pools, with Gasherbrum IV pulling you forward all day. Goro II is the camp where the valley bends toward Concordia. The scale of the ice here is hard to describe until you are standing on it.

7 hours on foot. Night at Goro II, 4,380 m.

The day ends at Concordia, the great junction of glaciers where K2, Broad Peak and Gasherbrum I and II all stand in one panorama. Mitre Peak and Marble Peak complete the amphitheatre. You spend the evening watching the light move across four of the fourteen eight thousanders from your tent door.

5 hours on foot. Night at Concordia, 4,600 m.

You walk up the Godwin Austen glacier to K2 Base Camp, with the pyramid of the mountain growing larger at every step, and pay respects at the Gilkey Memorial. Climbers from many expeditions share this ground in summer, and there is often tea and conversation to be found. In the afternoon you return to Concordia for another night with the big peaks.

9 hours on foot. Night at Concordia, 5,150 m.

You turn south up the Vigne glacier beneath Chogolisa, away from the main Baltoro and into quieter country. Ali Camp is the staging point for the pass, with a clear view up toward the col. The day is short, the camp is calm, and an early night prepares the group for tomorrow.

6 hours on foot. Night at Ali Camp, 4,950 m.

A midnight start on the fixed ropes brings you up to Gondogoro La at 5,585 metres in time for sunrise. From the col the Karakoram opens in every direction, with K2, Broad Peak and the Gasherbrum group behind you and Laila Peak ahead. The descent leads down to Khuispang, a long and memorable day with a well earned rest at the end.

12 hours on foot. Night at Khuispang, 5,585 m.

The route drops through scree and grass and into the first juniper and birch, with running water and flowers underfoot. Saicho is a pasture camp where the valley feels soft after the weeks of ice and rock. Herders keep their flocks nearby, and the air smells of green again.

6 hours on foot. Night at Saicho, 3,350 m.

A final walk takes you down into Hushe, the last village in the valley, with its stone houses and terraced barley and a view back to Masherbrum. From there jeeps take the road along the Shyok river to Khaplu, a town of old Balti wooden architecture. You arrive for a proper meal, a hot shower and a soft bed.

4 hours on foot. Night at Khaplu, 2,500 m.

Khaplu Palace, the old home of the local rajas, is the morning visit, with its carved wooden balconies and gardens. The afternoon road follows the Shyok and then the Indus back to Skardu. It is a relaxed day and a chance to look back on what you have walked.

Night at Hotel, 2,228 m.

This day is kept in reserve in case the weather on the col needs a day of margin. When it is not needed, you can enjoy Skardu at leisure, with the bazaar, the Kharpocho fort ruins and the lakes nearby. Most groups find a day to rest and share stories is a pleasure of its own.

Night at Hotel, 2,228 m.

You travel back to Islamabad, by air on the clear flight past Nanga Parbat when the weather allows or by the Karakoram Highway if not. Either way gives a memorable view of the mountains you have just been among. The evening is relaxed in the capital.

Night at Hotel, 540 m.

A rest day in Islamabad for equipment return, laundry and a debrief with your guide. In the evening the group gathers for a long farewell dinner, with plenty of local dishes and a lot to talk about.

Night at Hotel, 540 m.

This second reserve day is a buffer against the flight from Skardu. If it is not needed, you can spend it in Islamabad, visiting the Faisal Mosque, Saidpur village and the bazaars at your own pace.

Night at Hotel, 540 m.

After a final breakfast, the team transfers you to the airport for your flight home. You leave with the Baltoro behind you and a place in the mountains that few people ever see.

540 m.