Trek to K2 Base Camp: Pakistan's Savage Mountain

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K2, at 28,251 ft, is the second highest mountain in the world and the most lethal: one of every four people who attempt its summit does not come back. But reaching its base camp (16,900 ft) requires no mountaineering skills, only physical and mental endurance beyond the ordinary. This 8-day trek travels the Baltoro Glacier, a 38-mile highway of ice flanked by seven of the highest mountains on the planet: Gasherbrum IV, Broad Peak, Masherbrum and K2 itself. The route starts in Skardu with a jeep ride to Askole, the last village. From there, 4 days of ascent up the glacier among moraines, crevasses, meltwater rivers and the unmistakable roar of avalanches. Nights are spent in tents on the ice. There are no lodges, no villages, no easy evacuation. Walking on the glacier is technically demanding: crampons mandatory, ropes on certain sections. The reward is the view of K2 at dawn from Concordia, the most impressive mountain amphitheater on Earth.