But it didn't spoil the day – and I was so glad that I'd gone with Khaliq, as he took me right into the centre of the Raikot Glacier, and told me about life in the village, the wildlife, and the expeditions that had been here to climb the mountain.
The Raikot Glacier – and Nanga Parbat:
The meadows:
Khaliq leading the way across the glacier:
Some of the hundreds of different flowers that grow here:
Looking back towards Fairy Meadow – you can see the white and black glaciers that run side by side:
On the glacier:
Khaliq resting for a moment amongst the beautiful flowers of the meadow:
Marmots playing:
Finally, we made the long pull up to the base camp, where I managed to eat a few spoons of boiled rice and drink a cup of tea.
The “hotel” at base camp:
It was truly breathtaking - there are few place you can get so close to such a major mountain - it's literally less than 2km to the main face.
Nanga Parbat means naked mountain – it's sides are so sheer that snow refuses to cling to sections of it, and where the snow does settle, avalanches are frequent events. It also has another name: Killer Mountain – so many people have died here trying to reach it's sharp peak the name reflects reality.
The main cause of death: the avalanches that rush down the mountain into the glacier. In many cases the bodies are never recovered, ending up within the glacier itself. Because glaciers churn as they move down the hillside, the bodies are trapped and preserved by the ice - and in some cases, the bodies return again to the surface. While we were on the glacier Khaliq told me of the time he found the body of a climber swept away by an avalanche in the 1950's, which had been perfectly preserved.
The naked mountain:
View back down the mountain:
Me – at Base Camp:
The Raikot Glacier:
I'd read about the Drexel Monument – built to commemorate those who have lost their lives here, and we went the 500 meters away from the Base Camp to find it. It was a poignant moment – and moving to standing there – less than 1.5 kilometers from the main face and look at the view. It's easy to understand why people come here to try and reach the top.
Despite coming here many times, Khaliq is still clearly in awe of the view and the area. As we stood and looked up at the mountain, Khaliq told me that everything we could see was an incredible gift provided to us by God. I couldn't have agreed more with him, as we stood and took in the grand design.
And the conversation opened up an opportunity for me to ask some of the many questions I had about Islam. In the space of an hour – with the mountain side as the classroom – Khaliq taught me more about his faith than I'd learned in a semester of studying Islam as part of my comparative religions course at university.
What struck me was how much we could agree on.
And then – we headed back to Fairy Meadows – crossing another glacier on the way back. It was tough going on little food and an unsettled stomach, and it was dark as we walked back into Fairy Meadows.
The second glacier crossing:
Khaliq leading the way:
And just one of the many crevasses we'd walked around during the day:
Rakaposhi at sunset – the light making the mountains look as if they were painted onto the sky:
Path on the way down:
The old village – lived in more than 100 years ago:
The view from Fairy Meadow:
I skipped dinner and went straight to bed – and woke up twelve hours later feeling amazing.
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