We arrived in base camp this morning after a
long journey, excited for the real adventure to begin. Our team united in Islamabad,
then traveled by bus along the Indus river by way of the Karakorum highway. This highway is about 1
1/2 lanes in width, bordered by potential rock falls on one side and a steep
descent to the river bed below on the other.
For 13 hours, our lives centered in the middle of this
winding balance, protected by the "impressive" navigational skills of our
driver. In the little town of Chillas
we transferred to Jeep-styled vehicles for the last hour of our journey on
wheels. We headed away from the Karakorum
through a canyon where we caught our first glimpse of Nanga
Parbat (our destination).
The road was no wider than the vehicle traveling on it. We'd be driving
straight along and suddenly the road would disappear. Eventually we took to
foot for a six-hour trek under the blazing sun with 109 degree temps. At our first camp we slept under the stars.
Accompanied by the "gentle" neigh of the donkey stationed nearby and the
chattering of our porters, sleep did not come easily for some of us. The next day we headed out early in the hopes
of making our trek to base camp that day. Unfortunately the porters had other
plans, so we camped again. Taking in our surroundings, we hiked up the hill to
a waterfall and bathed for the first time in several days in the chilled water
rushing down from above. This morning we
made the final leg into base camp. The day was spent setting up BC and
preparing for the venture to Camp 1, commencing early tomorrow morning.
