Remote Karakoram Tower Sees First Ascent Thanks to Bold Paragliding Tactics

July 28, 2022

“If you want to stretch your mind, go alpine climbing. If you want to blow your mind, go alpine climbing with a paraglider,” Will Sim said while cramming ice axes, ropes, and bivy gear into an already bulging paragliding harness. Fabi Buhl laughed in agreement as he fixed a pair of skis to his own flying harness. They were preparing to attempt the first ascent of Gulmit Tower, a 5,800-meter granite monolith, deep in the Karakoram. And they were going to paraglide to access it. Standing at the end of the Ultar Sar massif of Hunza, Pakistan, Glumit Tower has seen several attempts from accomplished teams over the last three decades. In 1988, Frenchmen Emmanuel Schmutz and Gerard Decorps approached the tower from the northeast via Gulmit village and the Bulkish Yaz Glacier. They encountered avalanche-prone slopes, seracs, and blank faces, as did subsequent parties. Teams who attempted from Hunza via the Gurpi Glacier encountered similar dangers: high rockfall potential and steep slopes. Because porters cannot carry loads in the final stretch, it takes four to five days to establish a basecamp at the mountain’s side. All attempts were unsuccessful, primarily because accessing the climb was so challenging. Buhl, from Germany, is an alpinist, having racked up...