20-Day K2 Base Camp Trek in Pakistan with Concordia and Baltoro

• Arrive at Islamabad International Airport and transfer to a comfortable, centrally located hotel.
• The rest of the day is free for you to relax and recover from your long flight to Pakistan. In the afternoon, those who wish can join a tour of Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, and the bustling bazaars of Rawalpindi. Visit the Pakistan Movement monument, the Lok Virsa Museum for displays of local cultures, and Daman-e-Koh, a beautiful picnic point popular with Pakistani holidaymakers, where you can enjoy panoramic views of Islamabad. Also visit the Faisal Mosque and see important government buildings such as the Parliament House, Prime Minister's House, Supreme Court, and other prominent business towers. Admire the unique architectural styles before driving along Murree Road, one of the busiest roads in Rawalpindi.
• Enjoy a welcome dinner in the evening, where you can meet your guide and the other group members.

Overnight stay at the hotel.

• Early after breakfast, transfer to the airport for your commercial flight to Skardu Valley.
• Upon arrival at Skardu Airport, transfer to the hotel for preparations and shopping. Skardu is at an altitude of 2,300 m.

• Today is a preparation day for the group and the kitchen staff before the next day's journey. The tourism office will provide a briefing and complete the necessary documentation, including FA section reports. Afterwards, spend some time at leisure.

• Drive from Skardu to Askole (3,000 m), where you will camp for the night. The jeep drive takes about 6 to 7 hours and passes through the Braldu Gorge.

• Trek to Jhula Camp (3,300 m). The walk from Askole to Jhula is an easy and gentle trail across the plain and can be completed in 6 to 8 hours. On the way, cross the snout of the Biafo Glacier and enjoy the stunning first sight of the pinnacles of the Paiyu Group. You will also cross the Domurda River, which flows from the Chotoi and Panmah glaciers. An earlier alternative used handmade chair lifts. Lunch will be served at the Korophone Green campsite.

• Trek to Paiju (3,450 m). Follow the Braldu and Biaho rivers to a riverside campsite, crossing by a bridge upstream. This walk takes about 6 hours and offers your first sight of the mighty Baltoro Glacier, as well as the Trango and Cathedral Groups. Paiyu is the last campsite before Baltoro. Efforts are underway to clear pollution in the area, and many trees have recently been planted there. The walk follows the Biaho River to Paiyu and, depending on the time needed for the crossing, can take 8 hours or more.

• Today is a rest day at Paiju, unless you choose to continue toward the glaciers without resting. Wash up, relax, read, climb the steep ridge behind the camp, and sing and dance with the porters. Depending on the size of the party, goats or a goat will be sacrificed, and the meat will be distributed to the porters as a form of thanksgiving and to bring good luck for the next day's walk on the Baltoro.

• Trek on the Baltoro Glacier to Khuburse (3,800 m). There will be around 6 to 8 hours of walking. It is a tough day as you climb the rocky moraines of the Baltoro, but the sight of the Baltoro pinnacles and Paiyu Peak is astounding. An earlier alternative campsite is Liligo, but there is no water there. You will cross some gushing streams on the way.

• Walk for a few hours along barren donkey paths, then climb two glaciers with gentle traverses before reaching the top for your first views of the Urdukas campsite. The campsite is perched high above the valley and offers excellent views. There will be around 4 to 5 hours of walking.

• This is a tough day's walk on the undulating Baltoro Glacier to Goro II (4,300 m). However, the footing becomes easier as the rocks grow smaller the farther you move up the Baltoro. It takes about 8 hours to reach Goro. Walk right up to the center moraine of the Baltoro. As Masherbrum emerges on the right, it takes your breath away, and Gasherbrum IV stands right in front of you. Goro is a cold campsite, but it offers a great view of the Muztagh Tower. You may also see a classic view of Masherbrum in the backdrop.

• Trek to Concordia (4,550 m), with around 6 hours of easy walking. As you enter the throne room of the mountain gods and see K2 emerging on your left and Broad Peak on your right, you will feel that you have arrived at an extraordinary place on the planet. For many, coming here is a lifelong goal and pilgrimage - a place of superlatives without parallel.

• Today, you may rest at Concordia or take a full-day excursion to K2 Base Camp and the Gilkey Memorial Site. You can sit and watch K2 all day while sipping tea, which many have done and still not fully gotten K2 out of their system. Alternatively, you can go on a long and tiring full-day trip to K2 Base Camp (4,800 m), or head in the other direction toward the Gasherbrum peaks. The approximate walking time is 9 to 10 hours.

• Trek back to Goro II and return to the campsite. The approximate walking time is about 5 to 6 hours.

• Trek to Urdukas Camp (4,050 m) on the Baltoro Glacier.
• Return to the Urdukas campsite. The approximate walking time is about 5 to 6 hours.

• Return to the Paiyu campsite (3,666 m), without stopping at Khobrse on the way down. By now, you will be well acclimatized, and the descent is much quicker and less challenging than the ascent. The approximate walking time is about 6 to 7 hours.

• Stop at Jhula Camp (3,550 m), the crossing point of the Domurda River. You will not stop at Bardumal on the way down. The approximate walking time is about 5 to 6 hours.

• Return to the metropolises of Askole - or at least that is how it feels after being on the Baltoro. If time permits, you will drive to Skardu the same day. The approximate walking time is about 5 to 6 hours.

• Proceed from Askole to Skardu by jeep.
• Enjoy a hot shower and a warm, comfortable bed.

• Fly to Islamabad.
• Upon arrival, transfer to the hotel.
• The group will have some leisure time around the markets in the evening.
• Enjoy some local sightseeing in Islamabad. If the flight does not operate from Skardu, the group will be transferred by road to Islamabad, which takes two days.

• Reserve day: proceed to Lahore via the motorway if the flight operates today.
• Upon arrival in Lahore, enjoy some city sightseeing. Visit the Wagah border and watch the flag ceremony.
• In the evening, return to the hotel for dinner at Lala Haveli rooftop restaurant, with scenic views of Lahore Badshahi Mosque, Lahore Fort, and Minar-e-Pakistan.

Departure.