“We just wrapped up our incredible expedition to Nun Peak (7,135m) and had a few days off in Leh before myself and my friend Neema were due to guide an expedition to trek/climb Kang Yatse II (6,250m). Not being folk to sit still for very long (or at all), we decided to have our own little bit of altitude fun. Bill who is still in town (after the Nun Peak expedition) naturally wanted in on the action and asked if we could climb Kang Yatse II together since it was on the top of his list of dream mountains. We agreed. Kang Yatse II is fairly close to town and if we moved quickly, it could conceivably be climbed in two days.

Bill is the kind of guy we can all relate too. He discovered mountain climbing in his 50’s and was hooked immediately. His first summit was Kilimanjaro, which he loved and treasures but at the same time left him feeling that there had to be something more than just following the masses to reach the top. In his “what’s next” question he asked if we offered expeditions that retained a true sense of adventure, expeditions to mountains that no-one had ever heard off, expeditions to mountains no-one could find on a map. Our answer was ‘of course we do! These kinds of mountains are our favourite also!’

So, after completing a very thorough Alpine apprenticeship Bill found himself joining our Gasherbrum II (8,125m) and then, a few weeks ago, our Nun Peak expedition. By now, the dude has become a true remote expedition creature and this showed on Kang Yatse II as we climbed from the roadhead (3,700m) to basecamp (5,200m) in a very quick 7 hours. We spend a comfortable night there and early the following evening went to the top. Our return time from basecamp, to summit and back was 9 hours.

It was a pleasure to move through this incredible part of Ladakh at a pace we all felt good at. We had acclimatised well on Nun Peak and the climbing although very cold and very steep in places provided little physical discomfort. We were all in the groove and it felt fantastic!

As I mentioned, Neema and myself are off to do it all again tomorrow. Our team of 16 climbers hail from every corner of the globe and are off the same ilk as Bill. These are the kind of folk who want to find out for themselves what it is like to be on an expedition to a mountain no-one has heard of in a place no one can find on a map. It’s our pleasure to open that door for them. I am sure that by the time we return to Leh, every member of this team will also be asking the “what’s next?” question. Climbing unknown mountains is an addictive habit, just as this team will soon discover…”

Itching to experience Kang Yatse 2 for yourself? Check out the expedition right here or get in touch with the team and we chat about what mountains have caught your eye!