K2 Base Camp Trek

Day 1: Arrival in Islamabad (540 m)
Islamabad International Airport is the usual starting point for any Karakoram trekking holiday, and this trip is no different. Our representative meets you there and takes you straight to the group hotel. Depending on when you land, you’ll have a bit of free time to rest after the flight or wander the city a little on your own. That evening, we all meet over dinner, you’ll get to know the other trekkers joining the trip, and our staff run through a full briefing covering the route, safety procedures, and what to expect from the altitude ahead.

Day 2: Islamabad to Skardu (2,230 m)
The next morning, weather allowing, you’ll take the flight to Skardu, one of the more memorable short flights anywhere, with Nanga Parbat’s huge face filling the window along with a string of other Karakoram peaks below. Once you land, the afternoon is free, a good chance to wander Skardu, pick up a local SIM card, or grab anything missing from your kit. Skardu sits at 2,230 metres and serves as the capital of Baltistan, built along the Indus River where the Himalaya effectively gives way to the Karakoram. Locals here speak Balti, a language closely related to Tibetan, and the town’s own culture and architecture reflect that connection, which is part of why it’s sometimes called Little Tibet. It’s also worth a bit of self-guided sightseeing if time allows, since Skardu has a character all its own.

If the flight can’t operate, the group drives instead, up the Karakoram Highway toward Chilas, which keeps things on schedule even if the scenery takes a bit longer to reach.

Day 3: Free Day in Skardu (2,230 m)
This day is mostly about preparation rather than sightseeing, though there’s still time for both. Our team finalises trekking permits and coordinates with local authorities, while the guide checks over everyone’s mountaineering equipment and runs through the trek plan in more detail. Some people use the free hours to visit Kharpocho Fort or Satpara Lake; others just want to repack their bags properly, since porter weight limits are strict and there’s no shop or phone signal once the trek actually begins. The evening wraps up with a final briefing and confirmation of tomorrow’s jeep departure.

Day 4: Drive from Skardu to Askole (3,050 m)
From here, jeeps take over. The drive follows the Shigar River through narrow valleys and past traditional Balti villages before climbing into the Braldu Valley, crossing a few suspension bridges and passing farming communities surrounded by apricot orchards. Askole itself is the last permanent settlement before the mountains properly take over, and it’s here you’ll meet the porters who’ll carry the group’s gear for the rest of the trek. Bags get weighed, everything gets divided up, and camp is set for the first night under the stars.

Day 5: Trek from Askole to Jhola (3,200 m)
The actual trekking begins today. From Askole, the trail follows the Braldu River across wide gravel plains, with Bakhor Das and the granite walls around it dominating the skyline the whole way. A lunch stop at Korofon gives the guide a chance to talk through some of the geology behind this landscape, how the glaciers carved it all out over thousands of years, before the trail continues in the afternoon toward Jhola, crossing a suspension bridge near where the Biafo Glacier runs off. Camp that night sits right beside the Braldu River, and it’s a solid first day, river valley walking, moderate difficulty, nothing too demanding yet.

Day 6: Trek from Jhola to Paiju (3,450 m)
The valley keeps widening as you walk, and the last bits of vegetation, tamarisk, wild rose, the occasional willow, start to thin out. Paiyu Peak, at 6,610 metres, becomes impossible to miss ahead of you, and on a clear day you’ll catch the Trango Group in the distance too. Paiju itself is set among old juniper trees, the last camp where you’ll find natural firewood and fresh bread from the kitchen before the glacier environment starts properly. While everyone rests, the porters spend the afternoon reorganising gear for the crossing ahead, and evenings here often turn into something a bit more festive, with Balti music and dancing around the fire under Paiyu Peak.

Day 7: Trek from Paiju to Khoburtse (3,900 m)
This is the day you actually step onto the Baltoro Glacier, one of the longest glaciers outside the polar regions. The trail climbs over moraine before the ground turns to a mix of rock, gravel, and old ice, uneven enough that trekking poles genuinely help from here on. It’s also one of the most visually dramatic days of the whole trek, with the Trango Towers, Cathedral Peak, and Uli Biaho Tower all rising straight out of the glacier around you. Camp at Khoburtse sits on a rocky terrace above the ice, and the evening light on the surrounding peaks is worth stepping outside the tent for.

Day 8: Trek from Khoburtse to Urdukas (4,050 m)
A shorter day today, which helps with acclimatisation. The route stays on the glacier’s central moraine before climbing up to Urdukas, the only proper grassy campsite anywhere along the Baltoro. From its terrace above the ice, you get uninterrupted views stretching out toward Muztagh Tower, Gasherbrum IV, and part of the Trango massif. Given the comfortable ground and the scenery, Urdukas has a reputation as one of the nicest camps in the entire Karakoram, and the lighter walking day means there’s time to actually sit and enjoy it.

Day 9: Trek from Urdukas to Goro II (4,300 m)
Vegetation disappears completely from here. The trail continues over the upper Baltoro into an increasingly bare, alpine landscape, ice formations, glacial streams, moraine stretching in every direction. Broad Peak and Gasherbrum IV start appearing at a distance, weather permitting, with Masherbrum still visible off to the south. Goro II sits right where the Baltoro meets the Younghusband Glacier, surrounded by mountains on all sides, and it’s genuinely one of the more spectacular high camps you’ll come across anywhere.

Day 10: Trek from Goro II to Concordia (4,650 m)
Today’s walk crosses gently rolling glacier terrain to reach Concordia, often called the heart of the Karakoram, where the Baltoro, Godwin-Austen, Vigne, and upper Baltoro glaciers all come together. K2 appears here for the first time, its unmistakable pyramid shape rising above everything else around it, and it’s genuinely one of those moments that’s hard to describe properly beforehand. From camp, you’re looking at K2, Broad Peak, both Gasherbrums I and II, Mitre Peak, Marble Peak, and Gasherbrum IV, all visible from one spot, which really doesn’t happen anywhere else on earth.

Day 11: K2 Base Camp (5,150 m) and Gilkey Memorial
An early start takes the group along the Godwin-Austen Glacier, past Broad Peak, to reach the actual expedition base camp used by climbers attempting K2. Standing beneath the mountain’s enormous southwest face is something else entirely, and during the climbing season, you’ll often find colourful expedition tents scattered around, with mountaineers from all over the world passing through. A short climb above the glacier leads to the Gilkey Memorial, a cluster of plaques dedicated to climbers who lost their lives on K2 and the peaks nearby, a quiet, reflective stop in an otherwise overwhelming landscape. After some time here, the group heads back down to Concordia for the night.

Days 12–17: The Return Trek
From here, you retrace your steps back along the Baltoro, through Goro II, Urdukas, Khoburtse, Paiju, Jhola, and finally Askole again. It doesn’t feel like walking the same route twice, though. The light hits differently in the afternoons, fresh snow can completely change the texture of the glacier overnight, and moving at a slower, more relaxed pace gives you time to properly take in the scale of everything you rushed past a little on the way up. Reaching Askole again feels like its own small achievement, and most groups mark the occasion with the porters and crew before the drive back to Skardu the next day. Most of your trekking crew and porters actually come from Askole itself, so this is also where you’ll say goodbye to them.

Days 18–21: Skardu, Islamabad, Departure
The jeep ride back to Skardu follows the Indus River once again, and after a night’s rest, you’ll take the mountain-view flight back to Islamabad (with a spare day built in, in case the weather doesn’t cooperate). From there, it’s a transfer to the airport for your onward flight home, bringing this whole expedition to a close.