OXYGEN, DIFFICULTY & STRATEGY

SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN ONLY RECENTLY ARRIVED IN COMMON USE AT K2, DESPITE BEING COMMON ELSEWHERE FOR YEARS. OUR FIRST TRIP TO K2’S CESEN ROUTE IN 2010 HAD NO OXYGEN BEING USED BY ANY CLIMBER, WE ALL SIMPLY PLANNED MORE TIME ON ACCLIMATION, MORE TIME RESTING, MINIMAL RELIANCE ON FIXED ROPES & SMALL TEAMS ON THE MOUNTAIN.

UNLIKE EVEREST, ON K2 THE IDEA OF NO SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN HAS BEEN NORMAL, NOT WARNED AGAINST, WITH IT’S USE ON THE NORTH SIDE BEING A RARITY. EVEN THE HUGE JAPANESE TEAM THAT MADE THE FIRST ASCENT FROM THE NORTH HAD MULTIPLE MEMBERS SUMMIT WITHOUT IT. SINCE THEN, ASIDE FROM THE WILDERNESS ASPECT, THE NORTH SIDE HAS BEEN CONSIDERED A PLACE TO BE LEFT FREE OF THE SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN POLITICS.

CLIMBING 8000m PEAKS WITHOUT OXYGEN IS A DIFFERENT BEAST TO WHEN IT IS AVAILABLE. WHEN PRESENT, THE ENTIRE STRATEGY OF AN ASCENT SHIFTS TO BE ABOUT GETTING THE OXYGEN UP & DOWN THE MOUNTAIN, NOT THE CLIMBER. BOTTLES & SETS NEED TO BE CARRIED & PLACED AND MOVEMENT BETWEEN CAMPS NEEDS TO BE PLANNED AROUND BOTTLE CAPACITY WHILST SCHEDULES ARE PUNCTUATED BY STRATEGIES FOR USING IT. SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN MAY WELL MAKES THE CLIMBING ARTIFICIALLY EASIER, BUT IT ALSO MAKES THE PLANNING A LOT MORE COMPLEX. AND COMPLEX THINGS ARE MORE OPEN TO PROBLEMS. IF NOT EVERYONE WOULD SUMMIT…

SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGENS USE REVOLVES AROUND LARGE NUMBERS OF CLIMBERS ASCENDING TO HIGH ALTITUDE IN ALL STATES OF ACCLIMATION. ON CROWDED PEAKS WITH LIMITED SPACE AT CAMPS & COMPETITION ON THE FIXED LINES, SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN IS A NECESSARY PRECAUTION.

NONE OF THIS EXISTS ON THE NORTH SIDE AND CLIMBERS NEED TO CONSIDER THIS WHEN PLANNING.

IT’S NOT EASY, BUT IT’S DOABLE. THE THINGS THAT MAKE IT FEEL HARD ARE THE ABSENCE OF THE NOW-EXPECTED 8000m LUXURIES LIKE A LARGE SOCIAL ELEMENT, FREQUENT RESUPPLY & INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION.

YOU NEED TO BE PROFICIENT IN THE ACTUALITIES OF CLIMBING A MOUNTAIN. THE ACTUAL LEVEL OF CLIMBING IS NOT SUPER HIGH, BUT THE ALTITUDE & LOADS MAKE IT HARD. YES THERE ARE THE IN & OUTS OF ALPINE CLIMBING, BUT THERE THERE’S ALMOST NO INS & OUTS OF CLIMBERS CLUSTERED ON FIXED ROPES, CONGREGATED IN SMALL CAMPS, MOVING AROUND THOSE COMING THE OTHER WAY OR MOVING AT DIFFERENT RATES. NO ONE HAS THEIR TENT SPACE TAKEN, OR THEIR SLEEPING BAG MISLAID, OR DEBRIS KNOCKED DOWN ON THEM.

THE SKILLS YOU NEED ARE THE ABILITY TO CLIMB SEVERAL HUNDRED METERS OF STEEP MIXED GROUND A DAY AS PART OF A TEAM. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO COVER NON-TECHNICAL GROUND USING SIMU-STYLE, AND TO BE ABLE TO COVER VERY EASY GROUND BY YOUR SELF. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO ABSEIL INDEPENDENTLY ALL THE TIME.

PREVIOUS 8000m-STYLE EXPERIENCE IS AN ADVANTAGE, BUT A HISTORY OF TECHNICAL ALPINE CLIMBING ON SMALLER PEAKS MATTERS MORE.

CAMPS ON K2 CAN HAVE THEIR OWN DIFFICULTIES. IF YOU HAVEN’T CHOPPED A LEDGE IN THE DARK OR PUT UP A TENT IN THE WIND YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE COMING HERE. FOR MANY THE LONG DAYS IN SMALL CAMPS ARE HARDER THAN THE CLIMBING, SO LEARNING HOW TO MANAGE YOUR DOWN TIME IS AN IMPORTANT SKILL.

TAKING ON THIS ROUTE PUTS A CLIMBER AMONG A VERY SMALL COMMUNITY, MORE PEOPLE HAVING BEEN TO THE MOON THAN HAVING DONE THIS.

THE STRATEGY FOR THE NORTH RIDGE IS BASED ON ADVICE FROM THE LAST TEAM TO BE OUT THERE – “ARRIVE ACCLIMATED AND GET CLIMBING”. THIS MEANS WE PREACCLIMATE IN EASTERN TIBET, TRANSITION TO THE KARAKORAM, THEN MOVE RAPIDLY TO A MINIMAL CAMP DURING THE BEST WEATHER.

CHINAS UNIQUE INFRASTRUCTURE ALLOWS US TO OPTIMIZE ON THE LOGISTICS TO MOVE IN SMALL AND FAST TEAMS, AND WE CLIMB ‘CAPSULE STYLE’ WITH SMALL CAMPS AND MINIMAL ROTATIONS. WE USE EXTREMELY LIGHT AND EFFICIENT SUPPLIES, RELYING ON UNIQUE CONDITIONS PERFECTED ON OTHER NORTHERLY WINTER ASCENTS.