John Mock & Kimberley O'Neil

Pakistan's Baltoro Glacier Visitation

A route along the Baltoro Glacier leads to the Godwin-Austen, upper Baltoro and Vigne Glaciers, and to the base camps of many major peaks such as K2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum I-IV, and the Trango Towers. This remote corner of Baltistan is the destination for the majority of all regulated trekking parties and mountaineering expeditions in Pakistan. These parties and expeditions are supported by local Balti porters (see the discussion of Baltistan and Ghanche District Tourism in the report entitled Survey of Ecotourism Potential in the Biodiversity Project Area). This concentration of activity and impact (see Appendix J - Observation of the 1995 K2 Concordia Baltoro Glacier Clean-up of the above report) makes the Baltoro Glacier a key indicator of future trends throughout northern Pakistan and of efforts to accommodate more highly-concentrated mountain tourism.