Baintha Brakk II (Ogre II) Update: Bad Weather Hinders SAR
Previous Update
Bad weather continues to hinder the attempts to search for missing climbers, Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson, on Baintha Brakk II (Ogre II). Helicopters remained grounded at Skardu, while apparently no one could enter the North Face of mountain. Weather Forecast shows an improvement in conditions over the next 24-48 hrs, from Friday afternoon.
Note that ‘traditional’ summer climbing season in Karakoram is over and there may be just a handful of climbers in the region; Thomas Huber’s team intended to attempt nearby peak Latok I, but its not known whether they have reached the mountains or not.
On the other hand, a group of porters have been dispatched up the Biafo Glacier to inspect the mountain from South side. Just in case, the two climbers decided to descend on that side of mountain, due to bad weather. These porters are expected to conduct a visual search of the region, today.
Ten days have gone by since last contact with Kyle and Scott, but there’s always hope. In fact, Ogre I (7284m) itself witnessed one of the finest survival stories in mountaineering history, when Doug Scott with both legs broken near the summit and fellow climbers made it back to Base Camp after two week on mountain, in 1977.
Update 01:-
Message from the climbers sponsor. Sadly chances of finding the missing climbers have exhausted.
"Saturday, September 3, 2016
Salt Lake City, Utah
This update is for Saturday, September 3rd and is provided in order to keep everyone informed of the efforts being made to locate Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson. NOTE: All dates and times referenced are for Pakistan Standard Time.
Early on Saturday, September 3rd, two Pakistani military helicopters left Skardu in clear weather. They landed at basecamp on the Choktoi Glacier and picked up climber Thomas Huber (Austria) who would assist as an observer/spotter. An exhaustive and close-proximity initial search of the north face of the Ogre 2 (where Kyle and Scott were last seen on August 22), the northeast ridge (their planned descent route), and the glacial basin between the Ogre 2 and Ogre 1, yielded no sign of the pair. After refueling, the two helicopters made a second sweep of all sides of the mountain, from an even higher altitude, and again found no sign of Kyle and Scott. In light of those extensive yet unsuccessful efforts, the search team and knowledgeable observers in Pakistan, the US, and Europe, assessed that there remained a very slim chance that any evidence of their passage would be revealed in subsequent sweeps of the mountain.
Given the time that has elapsed and the nearly continuous stormy weather since they were last seen, and the substantial risks that such high-altitude missions entail, Kyle and Scott’s families have made the extremely difficult decision to end the search efforts."
Bad weather continues to hinder the attempts to search for missing climbers, Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson, on Baintha Brakk II (Ogre II). Helicopters remained grounded at Skardu, while apparently no one could enter the North Face of mountain. Weather Forecast shows an improvement in conditions over the next 24-48 hrs, from Friday afternoon.
Note that ‘traditional’ summer climbing season in Karakoram is over and there may be just a handful of climbers in the region; Thomas Huber’s team intended to attempt nearby peak Latok I, but its not known whether they have reached the mountains or not.
On the other hand, a group of porters have been dispatched up the Biafo Glacier to inspect the mountain from South side. Just in case, the two climbers decided to descend on that side of mountain, due to bad weather. These porters are expected to conduct a visual search of the region, today.
Ten days have gone by since last contact with Kyle and Scott, but there’s always hope. In fact, Ogre I (7284m) itself witnessed one of the finest survival stories in mountaineering history, when Doug Scott with both legs broken near the summit and fellow climbers made it back to Base Camp after two week on mountain, in 1977.
Update 01:-
Message from the climbers sponsor. Sadly chances of finding the missing climbers have exhausted.
Salt Lake City, Utah
This update is for Saturday, September 3rd and is provided in order to keep everyone informed of the efforts being made to locate Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson. NOTE: All dates and times referenced are for Pakistan Standard Time.
Early on Saturday, September 3rd, two Pakistani military helicopters left Skardu in clear weather. They landed at basecamp on the Choktoi Glacier and picked up climber Thomas Huber (Austria) who would assist as an observer/spotter. An exhaustive and close-proximity initial search of the north face of the Ogre 2 (where Kyle and Scott were last seen on August 22), the northeast ridge (their planned descent route), and the glacial basin between the Ogre 2 and Ogre 1, yielded no sign of the pair. After refueling, the two helicopters made a second sweep of all sides of the mountain, from an even higher altitude, and again found no sign of Kyle and Scott. In light of those extensive yet unsuccessful efforts, the search team and knowledgeable observers in Pakistan, the US, and Europe, assessed that there remained a very slim chance that any evidence of their passage would be revealed in subsequent sweeps of the mountain.
Given the time that has elapsed and the nearly continuous stormy weather since they were last seen, and the substantial risks that such high-altitude missions entail, Kyle and Scott’s families have made the extremely difficult decision to end the search efforts."
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| Ogre II North Face. (1) The Adamson- Dempster's line of ascent in 2015. (2) The descent route; Source:Kyle Dempster / AAJ 2016 |
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