Summer is the climbing season for Pakistan's five 8,000-metre peaks, but the Karakoram Mountains, also in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, have a unique and flowing peak. Anyone who has seen a picture of this mountain will never forget her "figure", which is Laila Peak at 6,096 meters above sea level.
Located on the Gondogoro Glacier in the Hushe Valley, Leila Peak is a ridge that is cut like a knife and axe, and the summit is like a needle pointing into the sky. The northwestern ridge of the peak is particularly prominent, which is also a regular route for climbing.
Introduction to mountaineering
The first ascent of Leila was made in 1987 and its northwest face presents a challenging 45-degree gradient with a vertical span of more than 1,500 meters. Due to its steep slopes and mixed terrain of ice and rocks, the ascent of this peak requires great mountaineering skills. As with other peaks in the Karakoram Range, the best time to climb is from June to August. Climbers such as Simon Yates have successfully climbed Laila Peak·
Source: Wikipedia
According to the indigenous people of the Hushe Valley, the peak has only been climbed twice, with a total of seven climbers reaching the summit.
The first winter ascent of Leila was completed in February 2013 by Spain climbers Alex Txikon ·· José Fernandez.
There have been some errors in the elevation of Leila over the years. Some think it's 6,200 meters, others think it's 6,614 meters, while a 2003 map released by Japan mountaineer Tsuner Miyamori shows the peak at 6,096 meters above sea level.
Skiing attempts
In the summer of 2005, Fredrik Ericsson and Jörgen Aamot from the Scandinavian countries made their first attempts at skiing on Leira. Although they failed to reach the summit, they managed to slide down the northwest slope of the mountain. They describe Leila as "one of the most amazing peaks they have ever seen, like a needle pointing straight into the sky".
Frederick and Jozhen arrived at Leila Peak Base Camp (4,150 m above sea level) on June 18, 2005 and at Camp 1 (5,000 m above sea level) on June 22, 2005. They made their first attempt to reach the summit on Friday, June 24. They started their ascent at 5,000 meters at 2:30 a.m., and after seven hours of climbing, only 100 meters from the summit, they realized that the ice was too slippery to continue, so they began to glide from the northwest face of Leila to the Gundogoro glacier.
The second group to try skiing on the mountain were Paul Holding · United Kingdom, Brendan O'Sullivan of Ireland, Ed Blanchard Wrigglesworth of Spain and Luca Pandolfi of Italy. When they climbed the col from the south to an altitude of 5,400 meters, they found that the entire left side of the col was exposed to rocky faces due to avalanches, and that year's attempts were lost.
In June 2016, an expedition composed entirely of Italy made another attempt to reach the summit of Leira, including Zeno Cecon, Carlo Cosi, Enrico Mosetti and Leonardo Comelli. During an attempt to reach the summit, the team decided to turn back due to snow 150 meters below the summit. During the ski descent, Leonardo · Comelli was killed after a 400-meter slide.
permit
The peak is located in a restricted area, and non-Pakistani visitors must obtain a permit in advance, hire a guide and purchase insurance.
Famous landscape photographers @Thomas take a look at Leila Peak, which the world has photographed.