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ExWeb Interview - K2 SSE ridge in Alpine style: Chris Warner, part 1
Mar 28, 2005 18: 41 EST
The Karakorum Range has not seen the last of Chris Warner. This summer, he’s back to take on a familiar doubleheader: K2 and Broad Peak. Bad weather and deadly accidents forced Warner to abandon K2 back in 2002.
But he didn’t stay away long. Now he’s equipped with a different strategy: He’ll climb the SSE Ridge (Cessen Route) in pure alpine style. Plus, he’ll have a little help from his friends, Marty Schmidt and Tao Franken.
Volumes of knowledge and experience from other 8000+ climbs won’t hurt him, either; among his climbs Chris has the first American solo of an 8000 meter peak.
In this first part of an interview with ExWeb, Chris recalls K2 in 2002, and his experience on Shisha Pangma’s south face.
ExWeb: What happened exactly on K2 in 2002? Tell us about the tragedies.
Chris: The 2002 season was quite stormy. In early July, six high altitude porters and Sherpas were ferrying loads to C1 on the SSE Ridge, when a huge serac tumbled down the gully, washing right over them. It was a miracle that anyone survived. Sadly, Sher Rahman, a Pakistani climber from the Nanga Parbat region was swept to his death.
Most of us in base camp evacuated his body down to Concordia, for a helicopter evacuation. It was very emotional. That day I spent 10 hours with Capt. Iqbal, the LO for the Tibetan team.
A few weeks later a bunch of us witnessed his approx. 5000 foot fall from above House's Chimney to the base of the route. Rod Richardson and I were the first to the body, pronounced him dead and set about the task of packaging his body for the evacuation. Brutally disfigured by the fall, Capt. Iqbal was handled with the most care imaginable.
Covered in blood and emotionally wrenched, I packed my bags that very night and headed home in the morning.
ExWeb: Back then, there was also a commercial expedition on K2. Where you part of that team, sharing a permit, or were you an independent climber?
Chris: In 2002, I was a member of the team that Henry Todd put together. It was a remarkable group of climbers: Inaki Ochoa, Simone Moro, Joby Ogwyn, Ray Brown, etc.
I enjoyed the structure of the team since it allowed me to climb independently of the gang. I spent a lot of time alone on Broad Peak, hoping to maximize my acclimatization on this much safer peak.
In Mid July, a bunch of us turned back just below the Col on our summit bid: two meters of unconsolidated snow made the final slopes too dangerous for any of our liking.
ExWeb: You run your own expedition outfit company. What is your point of view on guided expeditions to K2? Do you think there will be more commercial teams on K2 in the future?
Chris: First let's define commercial expeditions as being either non-guided or guided. Non-guided commercial expeditions have already occurred on K2 and will continue to exist there and on all 8000 meter peaks. They provide an inexpensive option for small teams and solo climbers to realize their dreams.
But can K2 be guided? Yes. With a large Sherpa and guide to Client ratio, you can guide clients to the summit of K2. It is always a question of infrastructure and luck. Everest is summited by recreational mountaineers because of the infrastructure.
The greater the infrastructure, the less that luck is required. The systems employed by Himalayan Experience and Adventure Consultants on Everest, are the systems needed to guide a client to the summit of K2.
ExWeb: You did a very fast climb on Shisha's south face, solo. Even if you are part of a team, are you thinking about a similar strategy for Broad and K2? What are your memories from Shisha, by the way?
Chris: On Shisha Pangma, I first tried to climb the Yugoslav route so that I could be totally independent of the other climbers on the mountain. 600 meters up the face, I broke an ice tool and was forced to make 9 rappels off some imaginary anchors using a length of 5mm rope, then climbed down the lower face.
With my tail between my legs, I turned to the Scott route, which offered the security of freshly fixed lines for the bottom half of the 2300 meter couloir. I set off at 3:40 p.m. ignoring the ropes, and climbed for 17 straight hours to the summit.
On the descent, a whiteout with spin drift avalanches made the descent a bit treacherous. As soon as I found the ropes, I began to rappel off the face. I am ever thankful for those ropes, without them I may have been washed off the face. In total I was moving for 34 hours non-stop when I finally collapsed into the tent at ABC.
I prefer that type of climbing: Setting off with a small daypack on my back and just my tools in my hands. It demands the highest level of emotional control, physical stamina and intellectual skills. The risks are greatest, but so are the rewards.
I have played with variations on that theme on Lhotse, Broad Peak and Nanga Parbat. But few 8000 meter peaks offer the purity of style that you can find on Shisha Pangma. Simply put, the routes are too long or too crowded.
On K2, my priorities are to survive, summit and be true to the purest of styles (in that order). We will first try to make a light, fast ascent of the SSE Ridge, but if bad weather, poor conditions and the team's strengths demand it, we will alter the style in pursuit of the summit. And we will abandon the summit bid if we can not create a solution that is "safe."
Wednesday, part 2 (final): K2 our way
Chris Warner, founder of Earth Treks, an international mountaineering guiding service and operator of two large climbing gyms, has been on ten 8000 meter peak expeditions, summiting on Everest (as a guide), Lhotse (solo), Cho Oyu and Shisha Pangma via the British route (1st American solo of an 8000 meter peak).
Marty Schmidt, owner of Marty Schmidt Independent Guides, has been on a half dozen 8000 meter peak expeditions, summiting Cho Oyu three times (twice solo) and Kanchenjunga.
Tao Franken is the founder of Bomber Gear, a high end kayaking business. Tao has been the California state BMX Champion, US National Rodeo Kayaking Team member and Red Bull sponsored adventure athlete. Tao now guides for the Earth Trek's mountaineering team.
The expedition begins in early June. Dispatches on Earth Trek’s website.
Images of Chris Warner on BP, and K2 from 6200 at Broad Peak, courtesy of Chris Warner/Earthtreks.
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