Gasherbrum IV, originally surveyed as K3, is the 17th highest mountain on Earth and the 6th highest in Pakistan, as well as the highest independent mountain under eight thousand metres in Pakistan.

One of the peaks in the Gasherbrum massif, its immense West Face looms over the glacial junction of Concordia. The Name "Gasherbrum" is often claimed to mean "Shining Wall", presumably a reference to this face's tendency to reflect the rays of the setting sun, but in fact it comes from "rgasha" (beautiful) and "brum" (mountain) in Balti, hence it actually means "beautiful mountain."

Despite its lower height relative to the surrounding eight-thousanders, Gasherbrum IV is a venerated challenge among mountaineers.

Features

Seen on approach from the Baltoro Glacier, Gasherbrum IV serves as the western anchor for the main arc of the Gasherbrum range. Carved by glaciers, it is a huge, steep fin of marble and limestone, wider on its western and eastern sides and narrowing considerably toward its col with Gasherbrum VII in the south.

From the South Gasherbrum Glacier, a steep, dangerous icefall separates it from Gasherbrum III, and, by extension, the rest of the massif. While the 1958 route of first ascent climbed into the cirque above to reach the Northeast Ridge, and a handful of abortive attempts on the 900-meter East Face have accessed it, it has never been successfully repeated due to ever-increasing hazards from falling ice and rock. While fleetingly visible from the flanks of the two 8000-meter giants immediately to the north, the glaciated North Face, sequestered in one of the least-visited parts of the Chinese Karakoram, is barely documented and has never been attempted.

By far the most famous feature of the peak in mountaineering circles is its immense West Face, which enjoys great visibility on the trek into the heart of the Baltoro Muztagh. Although a favored target by elite alpinists, not every expedition to reach the top of this wall has continued on to the highest point at the south end of the summit ridge; while surmounting the wall is coveted prize unto itself, true summit rates on this extremely difficult peak are consequently even narrower as a result."Piolets d’Or update!" Climber Magazine. To date, the East and South Faces and South and Southeast Ridges of Gasherbrum IV have repelled all climbing attempts, some fatally.Bernardi, Federico. "A Climber We Lost: Dmitry Golovchenko." Climbing, 10 January 2024.

Notable ascents and attempts

Year Climbers Summited? Description 1958 Walter Bonatti Carlo Mauri Yes First ascent. An Italian expedition led by Riccardo Cassin via the Northeast Ridge and the North Summit. Traversing the pinnacled ridge to the main summit was considered the crux of the climb. 1980 Craig McKibben Steve Swenson No First attempt of ascent via the East Face was unsuccessful due to weather conditions. 1982 Koichi Takebe Hiroyuki Shirasawa Hirokazu Nishioka Shigetoshi Tada Tomoyoshi Usaka No Three of five Japanese fall to their deaths on the West Face after a serac fall at 6,100 meters. Shigetoshi Tada is able to help the injured Tomoyoshi Usaka descend safely, and nearby expeditions come to the survivors' aid.http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12198227502/Asia-Pakistan-Gasherbrum-IV-Tragedy275 1985 Wojciech Kurtyka Yes (North Summit) First ascent of the 2,500 m high West Face. Bad weather, depletion of food and fuel, and extreme exhaustion forced them to stop at the north summit. The climb was called the "most remarkable alpine-style ascent of the 20th century" and cited in support of Kurtyka's 2016 Piolets d'Or Lifetime Achievement Award."Piolets d’Or update!" Climber Magazine. 1986 Greg Child Tim Macartney-Snape Tom Hargis Yes First ascent of the Northwest Ridge, involving an open bivouac on the north summit. This was the second ascent of Gasherbrum IV. 1993 No Unsuccessful ascent attempt via the East Face. 1995 Miroslav "Slavko" Svetičič No Died while attempting a solo climb of the West Face. His body was later discovered at 7000 meters by the 1997 Korean team. 1996 Kim Chang-ho Lim Saeng-muk No Attempted to summit via the East Face. Climb was abandoned after reaching about 7,400 m due to avalanche warning. 1997 Bang Jung-ho Kim Tong-kwan Yoo Huk-jae Yes First complete ascent via the West Face by a Korean team, via the central spur. Reached the summit after a sieged ascent quoted as 5.10 A3. 1999 Kang Yeon-ryong Yun Chi-won Yes Second ascent of the Northwest Ridge as part of a 13-member Korean team. 2008 Alberto Iñurrategi Juan Vallejo José Carlos Tamayo Mikel Zabalza Ferran Latorre No Third ascent of the Northwest Ridge by a Spanish team. Did not reach the main summit, stopped at a minor peak a short distance from the true summit.Carbonell, Rafael. "Oro en el Himalaya." El País, 8 August 2008. "mounteverest.net - Interview with Juan Vallejo, member of the Spanish team." 2012 French Expedition No Attempting a summit of the "Shining Wall" on the West Face was abandoned mid-route due to an avalanche. 2016 Aleš Česen Luka Lindič Yes (North Summit) Reached the North Summit via the Northwest Ridge on July 26th. Intended to summit via the West Face, but weather conditions and heavy snow altered their route. This was the fourth successful ascent of the Northwest Ridge."Aleš Česen and Luka Lindič: the Broad Peak and Gasherbrum IV North Summit interview." PlanetMountain.com. Gripped. "Ales Cesen and Luka Lindic Make Fourth Ascent of Gasherbrum IV Route." 31 July 2016. 2018 David Göttler Hervé Barmasse No Expedition to climb the Southwest Face was abandoned midway due to poor weather. 2018 Oriol Baro Roger Cararach Iker Madoz Marc Toralles No Spanish expedition abandoned their summit attempt due to bad weather. Planned to reach the summit via the still unclimbed South Pillar. 2018 Italian Expedition No Aimed to replicate the first ascent by Italians Walter Bonatti and Carlo Mauri on the sixtieth anniversary. Ended in tragedy as Maurizio Giordano was hit by falling ice and killed on the descent. 2023 Sergey Nilov Dmitry Golovchenko No Expedition via a completely unknown route up the southeast ridge ended in tragedy as Golovchenko was lost in a fall.Bernardi, Federico. "A Climber We Lost: Dmitry Golovchenko." Climbing, 10 January 2024. 2024 Sergey Nilov Mikhail Mironov Sergei Mironov No Attempt to recover Golovchenko's body ended tragically as a serac fell on the team. Expedition leader Sergei Nilov was reported missing and climbers Mikhail and Sergei Mironov were injured.Benavides, Angela. "Another Tragedy on Gasherbrum IV: Nilov Presumed Dead, Two Injured, Call for Help." Explorersweb, 18 August 2024.

See also List of mountains in Pakistan List of highest mountains

References