K2 & Gondogoro La in Pakistan Traveller Reviews

A three week trek to K2 Base Camp and over the Gondogoro Pass, superbly delivered by The Mountain Company.

Great service throughout, with the pre trip support particularly exceptional.

This trek was brilliant - walking along glaciers and into the middle of some of the world's most impressive mountains, with K2 majestically towering over them all. Then over the challenging Gondogoro La pass and down the Hushe valley, more alpine in nature, beautiful flowers and colours. A wonderful circuit journey through amazing scenery.

Excellent pre-trip information, questions answered promptly, highly personalised service, logistics on the ground in Pakistan great, equipment first rate, western trek leader brilliant, local guides experienced, knowledgeable and helpful. The first time I have travelled with The Mountain Company and the best I have experienced. Highly recommend.

A challenging but thoroughly enjoyable trip to some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. You pass such lesser sights as the Trango Towers, Cathedral Peak and the Gasherbrum group on the way to Concordia, the confluence of two massive glaciers, where you get your first views of K2 standing 4000m above you with Broad Peak sharing the valley. The immensity of the place is breathtaking. There are four 8000m peaks within sight. You're not done after the trek to K2 basecamp and back to Concordia as you head off in the opposite direction to cross the 5600m Gondogoro La and descend into the beautiful Hushe valley. Quite an experience. You can do this trip just to K2 basecamp and back down the Baltoro Glacier, but I highly recommend that you continue over the Gondogoro La since the valley you descend has a completely different character than the hike in.

I can't say enough good things about The Mountain Company. Pre-booking information was plentiful, and any questions I had were immediately addressed. The pre-departure information was extremely useful - everything from gear selection to a fitness program, assistance in arranging visas, suggested airline routings... wow. I had several back and forth interactions about what gear to take and my inquiries were always answered promptly. Then there was the trip. Everything on the ground went smoothly from the time I was met after picking up my bags in Islamabad until I was dropped off again on departure. Our leader, Robert, was exceptional, extremely experienced, good natured with a positive outlook that helped in the difficult days. He was keyed into the needs of the individuals in the group and made the logistics trivial for us. The local operator was of high quality and the local guides friendly, funny, helpful and accommodating to us. Any issues with porters/muleteers or logistics were unseen by us. I am an experienced traveler and have used a half dozen tour operators over the years. This trip with TMC was the best of them, and I will be booking other trips with TMC in the future.

Seeing the Karakorum mountain range was a lifetime experience

Very professional and knowleageable

Trekking to K2 Basecamp and crossing the Gondogoro La was a wonderful, once in a lifetime experience.

The Mountain Company together with their local partner Hunzs Guides did a fantastic job! My trip was extremely well organized and they ensured every participant‘s safety.

Trek up to K2 base camp along the Baltoro glacier, camping along the way. Then up and over the Gondogoro La, with spectacular views of K2, Broad Peak, G1 and G2. Finally, trek down to Hushe.

The Mountain Company provide great logistics and excellent food making for a very comfortable trip. They employ good guides and provide a sensible itenary. This is all backed up by excellent support from their base in the UK before, during and after the trip. Highly recommended, particularly for treks in trickier places!

All along the trek, strong is the feeling of the immensity of the surrounding environment. The route is often on a rough terrain, with sections exposed to falling rocks, and includes steep slopes on a loose ground and crossing of streams. In general the weather was quite warm and it was never really cold even at night. The length of all the stages is comfortable and allows a good acclimatization, including also an appropriate rest day at Urdukas. The local staff supporting us was always very friendly and helpful. In general, I never perceived an hostile attitude from locals both in villages and towns. People I met was always kind, both while taking a walk in Skardu and during the visit to the Faisal Mosque and the Daman-e-Koh viewpoint in Islamabad. Sadly a significant amounts of rubbish is present along the route and especially at some camps. The overall management of the garbage has to be improved to reduce human impact.

I had complete pre-trip information regarding all the aspects of the travel, as well as all the necessary documental support to obtain entry visas. Along the trek the western leader has proved himself competent and effective in all circumstances. We also had prompt remote support from UK by phone, including meteo forecasts. All the staff of the local Agency gave us a very good support. Pakistani guides, cooks, their helpers and the porters made the trip successful.

Adventurous trek passing near roaring mighty rivers and on immense glaciers covered by rocks in a unique, severe and stunning alpine environment that transmits the feeling of immensity and the perception of an unpredictable and precarious environment. In general, main technical challenges, even with good weather, can be related to stream crossing, walk on rough and/or slippery terrain and to the descend of steep slopes of unstable rocks (crossing Gondogoro La). Observed need to improve garbage and excrement collection to reduce tourism impact. Experience of friendly relationships and mutual aid with the local staff supporting us. Perception of a quiet and safe condition in the places visited with the local guides in villages and towns (Skardu, Islamabad); local people I met was always kind and respectful showing interest in speaking with tourists.

The Tour Operator provided effective and detailed pre-trip informations (description of the itinerary, general ethical and environmental consideration, practical infos related to altitude problems, climate, clothing and equipment, documents required to get VISA/ trekking permit...), competent western trek leader, prompt remote support from UK during the trek as regard meteo forecasts and evacuation of sick people. Very good local technical support and service (guides, porters, food) were provided by the chosen local agency.