(Lofty Dreams) on the Karakorum Highway

“I believe that determination, stamina, patience and self-motivation are very helpful and essential skills.” — Ettore Campana

LOFTY DREAMS KARAKORUM

A bikepacking and mountaineering adventure along the Karakorum Highway. Dedicated to persons living with disabilities

Ettore Campana likes to get high when he plans his adventures. His intimate connection with the mountains compels him to look for lofty heights: the higher, the better, so it seems. His latest undertaking took him to the world’s tallest mountain ranges: the Himalayas; Karakorum; and the Pamir, which he accessed with his fully loaded Ritchey Ascent. He even selected some peaks to scale as a mountaineer, which required the Ascent to bear even more gear.

A trip like this isn’t without risk. Weather, wildlife, and personal welfare must be taken into consideration — and those are just the w’s. There’s also culture, customs, and regional politics to navigate while pedaling into the unknown. Some risks can’t be managed but that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare. Ettore advises us to “Be organized, have a plan B, and accept that some goals simply can’t be met.”

Ride along with Ettore as he literally rises to elevations that most of us will never experience in our lifetimes. Ettore himself had experiences that he never anticipated (and some that he surely never wants to repeat). Here he tells what it’s like to ride on the Karakorum Highway, the world’s highest road.

The trip to traverse the Karakorum Highway (KKH) turned out to be more intense and unexpected than anticipated.

The plan was to ride the KKH and attempt to explore peaks along the way. The trip’s parallel social mission consisted of giving local children colorful bracelets made by the children of Il Vomere, an educational center in Travagliato, Italy for persons living with disabilities, with the aim to involve them in this adventure — to connect them through their craftsmanship, and to motivate and inspire them.

From day one I was blocked by the police who, apparently for security reasons, decided that it was necessary to escort me.

The situation became complicated as the escort continued for several days and the officers’ mood rapidly deteriorated. Being one of the few tourists that visit the area (and by bike, no less), all attention was on me and there was no chance of getting through checkpoints without being stopped. What’s more, on two occasions, I was forced to follow the officers to the barracks in the dark on sandy and dangerous roads, whereupon I was forced to stay overnight.

Fortunately for me, this unpleasant experience was shared with Imran, a cyclo-traveler of Pakistani descent with whom I rode during the first week and whose help was invaluable because he spoke Urdu and could communicate with the officials.

After crossing the Babusar Pass at 4173 meters (13,691 ft.), I officially entered the KKH, the historic Silk Road built by China in 130 BCE to facilitate trade with neighboring regions. The road, which winds like a snake through rocky canyons, is a rare beauty for its breathtaking scenery, perhaps the consequence of the surrounding severe and rugged mountains.

I parted with Imran because I wished to reach the Nanga Parbat base camp at 3,850 meters (12,631 ft.). From there I climbed a 4560-meter (14,961 ft.) peak just below the immense north face, thus lucky enough to admire one of the most dizzying and impressive ice walls in the world.

I continued the trip, all while dealing with several mechanical problems, including an inefficient braking system and several punctures. The locals always showed great support by helping me during the journey with ingenious and repair techniques that I hadn’t seen before. For example, they have a very interesting way to patch a tube: first they scrape the surface; then they apply some kind of glue; burn it; and, once the flames die down, they hammer the patch into place. I was quite suspicious at first, but it worked very well.

I decided to go deeper into the heart of the Karakoram to reach Skardu, the mountaineering capital of Pakistan, where I hoped to meet other climbers who would be willing to let me join their ascents. Unfortunately, the high-altitude season (in mountaineer speak) had already ended, so I went solo to try to conquer the climbs on my own. I managed to climb an unnamed 5200-meter (17,060 ft.) mountain that I named “Il Vomere Peak,” which I dedicated to the children of the Travagliato educational center for persons living with disabilities.

Finally, curious to find the end of the road, I set out from Skardu and explored the remote, spartan villages along the way. In fact, the guesthouses on my route lacked heat and electricity, while water was stored in battered barrels. At the start, the road was in perfect condition but by the end, it was almost like a trail, with sand, rocks and narrow wooden bridges. I reached the last village, named Hushe, at the bottom of the Hushe Valley. To reach this point, the last settlement at the foot of Mashebrum, I pedaled along a narrow, steep sandy track that forced me to hike with my bike on several occasions.

With the support of locals, I managed to put together an expedition to ascend a 6000-meter (19,685 ft.) mountain that had never been climbed in November. Unfortunately, due to an insurmountable pass, the expedition broke down at only 3900 meters (12,795 ft.), even before reaching Camp 1.

In addition, due to the bad food consumed at base camp, when I returned to the village, I began to feel ill, vomiting during the night with bouts of acute diarrhea. I was utterly debilitated.

From here on, I couldn’t recover my previous energy to what it was before, so continuing the journey was physically and mentally difficult.

After a few days spent in Gilgit where I tried to get my strength back, I set off again in variable weather conditions that heralded the arrival of winter. Gale-force winds and frequent rain chased away the beautiful autumn days that were quickly becoming increasingly gloomy and cold. Due to the physical discomfort and adverse weather, I had to forfeit several of my mountaineering goals. Thus, I decided to focus on the final goal: reaching the Khunjerab Pass, 4693 meters (15,397 ft.), by bicycle — the highest point on the world's highest road.

Although I wasn’t feeling great, and with a blizzard in the forecast, I decided to lay it all on the line and take my only chance to tackle the climb. I was also aware of the expectations my Vomere friends had of me, and I felt the weight of responsibility. After a long and tiring day of pedaling on icy and snowy slopes, I managed to reach the finish line. Fortunately, before nightfall, I managed to catch a ride to retrace the route that had kept me busy the entire day.

Achieving the project’s most important goal gave me confidence, so I decided to attempt to cycle the entire KKH to end the journey in China. To get through the first 100 kilometers, it was necessary to take public transportation with my bike as no one is allowed to travel this route independently because it is strictly controlled. The minibus, which was packed with people and navigating in blizzard conditions, managed with difficulty to take us to the top of the pass and over the border.

Unfortunately, however, once I entered China and reached the village of Tashkurgan, the intestinal discomfort returned and caused vomiting, retching and acute diarrhea. My energy vanished to the point that I could no longer drink or eat. Aware that in this condition, I wouldn’t be able to get back on my bike, I decided to go to the hospital where doctors found an elevated bacterial concentration in my intestines.

After three days of treatment, I began to feel better by being able to ingest food. I decided to set off again to complete the journey by facing the last challenge: the cold.

Barely twenty minutes after my departure, my hands and feet were completely frozen, and I lost feeling in my extremities. Once I reached a 4098-meter (13,445 ft.) pass, whose name was only given in Chinese, the icy descent to the Pamir Plateau began in the presence of mountains that soared to more than 7000 meters (22,966 ft.), including Muztagata and Kongur Tagh. I crossed wonderful, uninhabited valleys frequented only by horses, yaks and camels.

With newfound energy and motivation, I stopped at Karakol Lake where I stitched together several 4000-meter+ (13,123+ ft.) peaks in two days.

Finally, the long final descent to Kashgar began, which proved to be discouraging as braking — which was already inefficient, failed due to the cold. This forced me to keep my bike from picking up speed.

This adventure was marked by difficulties and unforeseen events that made accomplishing this project complicated from the start. Crucial was the support and affection I received from the Vomere kids and the children of the cancer ward, who spurred me on during the most challenging moments. I didn’t want to disappoint them.

All forty bracelets made by the Vomere children were given to the local children who reacted to their wonderful creations with surprise and enthusiasm.

THE TRIP BY THE NUMBERS:

Total duration: 39 days

Total km: 1680 km (168 km of trekking) / 1044 miles (104 miles of trekking)

Total elevation gain: 32,300m (10,450m trekking) / 105,971 ft. (34,285’ of trekking)

Mountain ranges explored: Himalayas, Karakorum, Pamir

Mountain passes: 3

• BABUSAR PASS 4173m (13,691’) - Himalaya
• KHUNJERAB PASS 4693m (15,397’) - Karakorum
• 乌鲁克热瓦提达坂 4098m (13,445’) - Pamir

Peaks: 13

• 1 x 5000m (16,404’); 7 x 4000m (13,123’); 5 x 3000m (9843’)
  • 1) Unnamed Peak 4560m (14,961’) - (from Babusar Pass, Himalayas)
  • 2) Unnamed Peak 4550m (14,928’) (from Nanga Parbat Base Camp, Himalaya)
  • 3) Ringchan Rock 3000m + 3134m (9843’ + 10,282’) (from Skardu, Karakorum)
  • 4) Thoksikhar Viewpoint 3025m (9925’) (from Khaplhu, Karakorun)
  • 5) Vomere Peak 5220m (17,126’) (from Khaplu with base Camp at 4400m (14,436’), Karakorum)
  • X) Failed expedition to Baushal Peak (poor mountain conditions).
  • X) Failed attempt for a summit above Rakaposhi Base Camp (illness)
  • 6) Unnamed Peak 3850m + 4010m (12,631’ + 13,156’) - (from Subash, Pamir)
  • 7) Unnamed Peak 4430m + 4657m + 4609m + 4350m + 3960m (14,534’ + 15,279’ + 15,121’ + 14,272’ + 12,992’)- (from KKH, Pamir)

Days of physical discomfort: about 7

Punctures: 4

Bracelets given to local children: 40

Heartfelt thanks to those who supported the expedition:

• Mountaineering equipment: La Sportiva
• Bicycle: Ritchey Ascent
• Technical bike preparation: State of Bike
• Bikepacking bags + tent: Vaude
• Camping equipment: Sea to Summit
• Goggles: Out Of
• Flag and project logo: Flags.it

Project in collaboration with: Gialdini and The Vomere