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BROAD PEAK WINTER 2008

THE GEOGRAPHY: Broad Peak is part of the Gasherbrum massif on the border of Pakistan-China. It is located about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from K2. Broad Peak was originally named K3 right after the naming of K2 but on closer inspection by a later party, it was discovered that the summit was over 1½ kilometers (1 mile) long, thus "Broad Peak".

THE HISTORY: In spite of several attempts, none of Pakistan’s 8000ers have been summited in winter. On Broad Peak in Particular, Italian Simone Moro and Pakistani climbers Shaheen Baig and Qudrat Ali have been rejected by loads of snow, bitter cold and bad conditions for the past two years.
Dr. Robert Szymczak has been in expeditions to Kyrgyzstan, Nepal and Pakistan. He is a medical doctor specializing in high altitude medicine. He is also a member of the International Society for Mountain Medicine. More... 2008 marks Don Bowie's 4th season climbing in the Himalayas, with previous expeditions to Broad Peak, Cho Oyu, K2, and the South Face/East Ridge of Annapurna in 2006 and 2008. More... Artur Hajzer has summited five eight-thousanders: three of them via new routes. He also achieved the first winter climb on Annapurna. More...
The approach to Annapurna basecamp

This photo-dispatch was sent by Dan Stensland, who took some great shots of the trek to the Annapurna basecamp. Dan made a point to note that both he and Don made the entire approach in flip-flops. Enjoy these images, and expect more to come (click on images to enlarge).


Annapurna basecamp approach. Photo Dan Stensland Annapurna basecamp approach. Photo Dan Stensland Annapurna basecamp approach. Photo Dan Stensland Annapurna basecamp approach. Photo Dan Stensland Approaching advanced base camp on Annapurna. Photo Dan Stensland
 
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