On July 4th, Bruce and Don finally reached the summit of P.6150, the key to accessing the basin and continuing the approach to the North Ridge of Distaghil Sar. On the summit, the pair set up camp and recorded elevation via GPS as 6247 meters (20,495ft). This is the second time the summit of this peak was reached since Bruce first ascended it in 1999. Don & Bruce reported that climbing conditions on the once (relatively) easy ridge have since become considerably more complex due to cornices, seracs, and crevasses.
Snow conditions during the ascent were deep and unstable after the previous week's snowfall, further complicating the climbing. According to Bruce, "...from the summit the outlook was grim. Clearly, serious transformations had taken place to the entire northern aspect of Distaghil Sar and the basin below Yazghil Domes." Despite these observations, on July 5th Bruce and Don descended into the heavily crevassed basin toward the ridge, while Ben and Pete climbed to P.6150 and set up camp on the summit. More to follow soon...
