Trango Towers, K2 Base Camp trek Photo: John Turner 50 Download detailed itineraries from www.himalayankingdoms.com e: info@himalayankingdoms.com K2 and the Gondogoro La This fantastic trek was reconnoitred by the members of our successful 1991 Broad Peak Expedition. They found the crossing of the Gondogoro La and descent through Hushe to be an ideal finale to their trip, and expedition leader and former Director of Himalayan Kingdoms, Steve Bell, said it was the best trek he had ever done. Until relatively recently the only access to Concordia and the great peaks surrounding it, was via a two-way trek up the Baltoro Glacier. With the opening of the Gondogoro La by the tough Hushe porters, an exceptional alternative now exists for strong trekkers wishing to visit K2 Base Camp and cross one of the highest passes in the Karakoram. We cross in a fabulous setting, using fixed ropes, axes and crampons. The return leg down the Hushe Valley contrasts with the high mountain wasteland of Concordia, with a good path along vegetated hillsides. This is an arduous trek and should be regarded as an Expedition Grade (please see page 6). For ambitious trekkers, this is undoubtedly one of the most exciting treks in the Himalaya. £2,395 £1,970 Dates: Sun 22 Jun – Wed 16 Jul*, Sun 27 Jul – Wed 20 Aug land only Grade: Strenuous (Exp Gr) On Trek: 16 days European Leader: Dave Pickford* Nights’ Accommodation: Hotels: 7 Camping: 16 Optional: Single Room £115 Single Tent £155 Insurance: £99 (Standard Policy) Days Itinerary Duration: 25 days 1–2 Depart London, arrive Islamabad 3–5 Drive Karakoram Highway, rest day Skardu 6–13 Jeep to roadhead, trek to Concordia 14–15 Concordia – rest and optional trek towards K2 Base Camp 16–22 Cross Gondogoro La to Hushe 23–25 Fly to Islamabad, fly to London Guaranteed to run for a minimum of6clients Snow Lake – Last Blank on the Map On this trek we partly retrace one of the most famous journeys of exploration in the Himalaya. The solving of this cartographic puzzle was a major achievement in Eric Shipton’s lifetime. The combined lengths of the Biafo and Hispar glaciers measure 72 miles. Travel is sometimes on the glaciers themselves but mainly in ablation valleys. Gradual progress upward allows plenty of time for acclimatisation before crossing the Hispar La, 5,151m/16,899ft. This is a tough trek for the mountain enthusiast, as once we leave Askole we are a self-contained expedition and will not see human habitation for two weeks. The route offers a continuous array of famous granite mountains, and panoramas of the monolithic central peaks of the Karakoram. The most spectacular sight though, is ‘Snow Lake’, described by the Bullock Workmans as follows: “…one felt not only the overwhelming beauty, but also the intangibility of a scene that seemed in no way of this world.” Finally, we drop back to ‘civilisation’ to the Hunza capital, Karimabad, and onwards via Gilgit to Islamabad. £2,495 £2,065 Dates: Wed 06 Aug – Sat 30 Aug land only Grade: Strenuous (Exp Gr) On Trek: 16 days European Leader: Dave Pickford Nights’ Accommodation: Hotels: 8 Camping: 15 Optional: Single Room £145 Single Tent £155 Insurance: £99 (Standard Policy) Days Itinerary Duration: 25 days 1–2 Depart London, arrive Islamabad 3–4 Drive on the K.K.H to Skardu 5–11 Trek up the Biafo Glacier to Snow Lake 12–13 Ascend the Hispa La, exploration 14–20 Trek down to Karimabad 21–22 At leisure in Karimabad, drive to Gilgit 23–25 Fly to Islamabad, at leisure, fly to London Guaranteed to run for a minimum of5 clients Kashgar to K2 Camel Trek Accessing K2 Base Camp from the Chinese side provides a unique and exciting trekking objective. The scenery is wild, dramatic, unspoilt and on a huge scale. It has soaring snow-capped summits, river valleys up to a kilometre wide, towering limestone cliffs and Kirghiz villages where the nomads may well invite us in to sample their freshly-made goat’s milk, yoghurt and bread. We have time to explore Kashgar’s famous and exotic Sunday market – a riot of noise, colour and a fascinating mix of people. After trekking for 6 days to reach the Chinese base camp of K2, crossing the Aghil Pass at 4,800m/15,748ft, we have 3 days to explore the area including a walk to view the K2 glacier. Camels carry all the equipment (and occasionally us!) over the river if the water levels are high. If you want to follow in the footsteps of Francis Younghusband, and the great explorer, Eric Shipton, in this remote and fascinating part of China’s Yinyiang province, this is the trip for you. £2,895 £2,465 Dates: Thu 08 May – Sun 01 Jun*, Thu 18 Sep – Sun 12 Oct land only Grade: Vigorous On Trek: 14 days European Leader: John Shipton* Nights’ Accommodation: Hotels: 8 Camping: 15 Optional: Single Room £180 Single Tent £145 Insurance: £149 (Insurance Plus) Days Itinerary Duration: 25 days 1–4 Fly Islamabad, fly Kashgar, Sunday market 5–6 Drive to Yilik 7–12 Trek to Chinese B.C. of K2 13–15 Explore B.C. area 16–20 Trek back to Yilik 21–23 Drive to Kashgar 24–25 Fly to Islamabad, fly to Birmingham Guaranteed to run for a minimum of4clients

Outer Mongolia conjures images of a little-known country, famous only for the great warlord, Genghis Khan. At the height of his power, his empire encompassed a major part of China and extended through all of Persia as far as Europe itself. He also conquered parts of Russia, India and the Middle East. Later Mongol rulers defeated the kings of Tibet and installed in their place the ‘Great Fifth’ Dalai Lama. 51 tel: 0845 330 8579 (local call rate, UK only) international tel: +44 1453 844 400 www.himalayankingdoms.com Total of the himalayan kingdoms See this spectacular natural phenomenon in the beautiful surroundings of Achiit Lake in Outer Mongolia on the Nomads and Ibex Trek Eclipse 2008 sun £2,595 £2,250 Dates: Tue 01 Jul – Sun 20 Jul land only Grade: Gentle On Trek: 7 days European Leader: Katherine Darjaa Nights’ Accommodation: Hotels: 7 Camping: 5 Gers: 5 Train: 1 Optional: Single Room £195 Single Tent £40 Insurance: £99 (Standard Policy) Days Itinerary Duration: 20 days 1–2 Fly to Beijing 3–4 Visit Great Wall and Temple of Heaven 5–6 Trans Mongolian Express to Ulaanbaatar 7–16 Travelling and trekking to Karakoram, attend Nadaam festival 17–18 Drive to Ulaanbaatar, sightseeing 19–20 Fly to Beijing, fly to London £2,795 £1,995 Guaranteed to run for a minimum of5clients Dates: Mon 21 Jul – Tue 05 Aug land only Grade: Moderate On Trek: 7 days In-Country Leader: Enkhbold Darjaa Nights’ Accommodation: Hotels: 4 Camping: 10 Optional: Single Room £85 Single Tent £40 Insurance: £145 (Insurance Plus) Days Itinerary Duration: 16 days 1–2 Fly to Ulaanbaatar via Moscow 3–11 Fly to Ulaangom, trek "between the Twin Peaks" –12 View solar eclipse 13–16 Fly Ulaanbaatar, city tour. Fly London via Moscow. Guaranteed to run for a minimum of clients Views Solar Eclipse Nadaam Festival 5 Outer Mongolia The Nomads and Ibex Trek with Total Solar Eclipse In the summer of 2004 two of our past clients, along with Catherine and Enkbold Darjaa, reconnoitred this trek. Catherine describes it as her best trek ever in Mongolia, and our clients came back bubbling with enthusiasm. This trek appears in The World’s Great Adventure Treks, edited by Marielle Rensen, published by New Holland. The trek passes between the twin peaks of Mount Kharkhiraa (3,978m/13,051ft.) and Mount Turgen, and is approx. 60 miles in length. It crosses two passes of roughly 3,050m/10,000ft. These snow-capped, glaciated mountains lie far off in the western end of Mongolia but quite separate from the Altaï range. This is a wild, unkempt region where local people live a continuous nomadic existence. We shall certainly encounter their ‘open house’ hospitality, and be amazed at the hard life they live. Our recce group was also thrilled to observe two herds of ibex. These magnificent creatures were seen through binoculars to perform a seemingly impossible climb up a steep rocky mountainside. At the end of the trek we drive to Achiit Lake to observe the total eclipse of the sun. The Genghis Khan Trek This year our Genghis Khan trek is once again going to the Khangai range, which featured so strongly in Tim Severin’s book, In Search of Genghis Khan. Our journey to the Far East begins with a flight to Beijing where we will spend time sightseeing, including the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City, before taking the train across the Gobi Desert to Ulaanbaatar. We have timed our arrival to coincide with Mongolia’s National Day celebrations, Nadaam, which this year we will see in the Arkhangai Province. There will undoubtedly be wrestling, archery contests and horse races to enjoy. We will also visit Genghis Khan’s old capital, Karakoram, and trek in and around Khogno Khan mountain. Some nights we will sleep in traditional yurts, visit camel, yak and horse breeding families and a health spa, and will enjoy some fishing and a Mongolian barbecue. Returning to Ulaanbaatar, we then fly back to Beijing before flying home to London to end the journey of a lifetime. with Capital City Town Airport Major peak International Border Road Trans-Siberian Railway Great Wall of China Pass ] [