Nanga Parbat Expedition

Nanga Parbat is the world’s ninth highest mountain and Pakistan’s second highest after K2. It’s in Pakistan’s Gilgit Baltistan’s Diamer district. Nanga Parbat is the Himalaya’s westernmost point. The mighty Indus River separates it from the Karakoram range. 

It rises directly from the valley of the Indus. Protrek Adventure  runs a Nanga Parbat Expedition that lasts 42 days. We provide a full board until you arrive at base camp. Depending on the client’s experience and ability, the duration may be longer or shorter. 

There are several systems in Pakistan for obtaining expedition visas. Each climber must obtain a Pakistan visa from their home country or the nearest country with the assistance of Permit documents obtained through Protrek Adventure. As a result, we always need confirmation for participation in June, July, and August by the end of March. 

The journey to Nanga Parbat Expedition begins in Islamabad. Our representative will greet you at the Islamabad International Airport and take you to your hotel for a rest. In the afternoon, we’ll meet for a briefing on the Nanga Parbat Expedition. After a restful night’s sleep in Islamabad, you’ll travel to Chilas Town via the Karakoram Highway today. 

Staying the night in Chillas, then driving and trekking for 2-3 hours through quiet, lushly wooded scenery, winding up along the side of some kind of gorge, with nothing particularly spectacular to see. You’ll come around a corner where the view opens up the valley, and the blinding splendour of that vast face of ice-hung precipices and soaring ridges, sixteen thousand feet from top to toe, filling a quarter of the heavens at a distance of only a dozen miles, will almost knock you out. 

That’s Nanga Parbat, the world’s most beautiful and tough mountain. Mountaineers have attempted to ascend Nanga Parbat’s summit via various routes since the first disastrous British expedition led by A. F. Mummery in 1895, but only a few have succeeded. 

Nanga Parbat is made up of a 20-kilometer-long series of peaks and ridges that culminate in an ice crest (8125m). Its South Face, known as the Rupal Face, stands at 5000 metres, while the North Face, known as the Raikot Face, plunges over 7000 metres from the summit to the Indus, forming one of the world’s deepest gorges. 

A joint Austrian-German expedition climbed it for the first time in 1953. Hermann Buhl completed the ascent in a gruelling 41-hour solo effort without oxygen. In 1970, Italian mountaineer Reinhold Messner and his brother Gunther climbed the south face (Rupal Face) and descended via the Diamir Face. 

The south face, which stretches for four kilometres above base camp, is the world’s largest. Only five ascents have been made from the south to date. Because of Nanga Parbat’s isolation, all ascents must begin at a much lower elevation than other 8,000m peaks. 

Jerzy Kukuczka, a Polish climber, described it as the only mountain that can be climbed in all four seasons, from sweltering summer at the base to minus 40º at the summit. Most attempts nowadays are made via the Westerly Diamir face, which is widely regarded as the easiest and safest, with the Kinshofer Route serving as the standard route.

In February 2016, a team consisting of Ali Sadpara, Alex Txikon, and Simone Moro successfully climbed it in the winter. Tomasz Mackiewicz of Poland and Elisabeth Revol of France made the second winter ascent in January 2018.

Packing for Your Next Adventure: Everything You Need to Know
The key to having a good time in the mountains is to be organized and plan ahead. In addition to all of your training, ensuring that you have the appropriate equipment is an important aspect of preparing for your trip. Choosing the proper equipment will give you an extra comfort and safety boost, so you can be at your best while still enjoying yourself. It’s essential to have the right gear with you to get the most out of your trip. To help you better prepare for the mountain you will be climbing, we have provided a complete packing guide.

8000M EQUIPMENT LIST

Our training goal is to get you physically and mentally prepared to face the climb with more confidence. The climbing goal will be to perform consistently throughout the adventure. Fitness for mountaineering requires a high overall level of physical conditioning. Both cardiovascular and motor fitness are needed to climb at varying levels of intensity and to navigate challenging terrain, often while carrying a loaded pack and at high altitudes.

Training goals are critically important and allow you to perform better at higher altitudes and enjoy the entire adventure. We suggest that you examine the physical requirements of the climb you are approaching and work on your fitness in different levels. Click here to Learn more about Trip Grades and choose what’s best for you!

Establish a timeline for your training program and focus on specific conditioning for better results. Along with your workouts try and add hikes and climbs in the outdoors whenever possible to get more comfortable with different terrains. Sound fitness gained through a well-guided program is the only best way to ensure a safe and successful adventure.

Mountaineering Fitness and Training
It may also be helpful to break down your training timeline into a number of key phases. These are:

Phase 1 : Base physical fitness
The first phase of getting prepared for your climb is to focus on your base fitness. You should incorporate a fitness routine that focuses on both cardiovascular fitness and motor fitness training. For those who are not used to intense workouts this phase will help you to kickstart your training. Remember that consistency is the first most important factor in achieving any goal. Combine your basic fitness regimes along with running and stair climbing. You are now ready for outdoor adventures.

Phase 2 : Training specific for the climb
Once you have established your base physical fitness, you will need to train specifically for the climb. Depending on the difficulty and intensity of the climb, add advanced workout sessions combined with uphill training. Try and do the same fitness routines with some added loads. Strength training combined with cardiovascular and motor fitness will help with the overall conditioning. This will take your workouts to the next level and help gear up for the mountaineering challenge ahead.

Phase 3 : Outdoor Training
Nothing can replace training in the real outdoors. In the final phase of your training, you should be attempting climbs which are similar to the ones you are approaching. It is great to test your endurance outdoors. This gives you a great edge in preparing for conditions similar to the ones you will encounter during your expedition. It isn’t always possible to find similar terrains close to where you live, but it is best to find a hike as close to the climb as possible. This is the best way to test your climbing gears as well.
Training goals and timeline

Working out for at least 5 days in a week is the best way to get your body physically prepared for the climb ahead. Regular and consistent training always gives the best result and keeps you highly motivated. Make sure that you workout regularly and also give enough time for rest and recovery. Keep it balanced and have a properly planned fitness routine and never overdo exercises to the point of injury. While 2 to 3 months is a good amount of time to train, starting your training earlier allows more time to adjust and prepare.

Click here to learn more about Training for your Upcoming Climb and get ready for the adventure!