Russian-Polish climber Denis Urubko has called off his attempt to summit K2 alone during winter, a post on his former teammates’ Facebook page said Monday after a weekend drama saw him begin what another climber had called a suicide mission.
Urubko, 44, was part of a team of Polish mountaineers attempting to be the first to scale the world’s second-highest peak in winter.
But he broke away from the group on Saturday after a series of disagreements, sparking fears for his safety on one of the world’s most dangerous climbs.
A statement on the Polish expedition’s Facebook page said he ended his attempt on Monday, capping a dramatic three days on the mountain.
“Denis Urubko, according to his convictions regarding the end of the winter season, decided to leave the Winter Expedition on K2,” the statement said.
“The decision was accepted by the participants of the expedition, who did not see any further possibility of cooperation with Denis after his independent attempt to get (to) the top.”
The rest of his former team are believed to still be preparing their own summit bid.
The Polish team arrived at the K2 base camp late last year, enduring sub-zero temperatures and gale-force winds.
But Urubko had become increasingly frustrated with their pace after a series of delays, including the daring night-time rescue of French mountaineer Elisabeth Revol on another Pakistani mountain, Nanga Parbat, in January.
Urubko had volunteered to go to Nanga Parbat as part of that rescue team.
But K2 expert Rehmat Ullah Baig said the mission forced the Poles to readjust their initial plans and choose a new route, a move that Urubko was said to be unhappy with.
He left his team members behind on Saturday after arguing that waiting until March would make a summit more difficult.
“He has had a heated debate with the team leader and left for the summit without saying a word,” a porter accompanying the group told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The Polish team confirmed the incident, saying Urubko left Camp Two without a radio after refusing to speak to the expedition’s leader.
‘Completely suicidal’
Fellow mountaineers had expressed concern at any solo attempt while also acknowledging Urubko’s extraordinary abilities.
“He is the most outstanding Himalayan climber of today. You can rank him among the top five active legends of mountaineering,” said Pakistan’s most accomplished climber Nazir Sabir, who has summited both K2 and Everest.
Others said the lone attempt was the height of recklessness.
“A solo attempt of K2 in winter is completely suicidal,” said Pakistani climber Mirza Ali.
Asghar Ali Porik — the owner of Jasmine Tours that is organising the summit — said he had not yet been informed about arranging Urubko’s journey back.
But he hailed the climber’s decision to call off his bid as “expected and honourable”.
Earlier, on Monday, an expedition spokesman told AFP that for the rest of the Polish team, some of whom are in base camp and some at Camp Two, “the expedition is going according to the plan”.
Everest has been summited by thousands of climbers young and old but K2 is a much lonelier place. Around 300 have made it to the top since the first ascent 60 years ago. Many climbers have died on the descent.
Northern Pakistan is home to some of the world’s tallest mountains, including K2 in the territory of Gilgit-Baltistan.
Nestled between the western end of the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush mountains, and the Karakoram range, Gilgit-Baltistan has 18 of the world’s 50 highest peaks. (AFP)
