Three French Ski Mountaineers First Ski Descent of Laila Peak

A first descent of Pakistan’s Laila Peak was made by three French ski mountaineers. According to Snow Forecast, French skiers Carole Chambaret, Tiphaine Duperier and Boris Langenstein are the first to have ever skied the peak. Laila Peak is a 6,092m or 20,000ft peak in the Hushe Valley near the Gondogoro Glacier and is apart of the Karakoram range. The trio skied the 45 to 50 degree pitch on the northwest face for 1,500m or 4,500ft vertical. The peak’s shape is what dreams are made of and literally looks like a giant spear risking from the earth.

People in the past have tried to ski Laila Peak. The peak was first summited in 1987 by a British expedition. In 2005, Swedish steep skiers, Fredrik Ericsson and Jörgen Aamot tried to ski it and had to turn around 100m or 300ft from the summit. In 2016, an Italian team tried to ski it and Leonardo Comelli was killed when he fell on a traverse. Carole Chambaret, Tiphaine Duperier and Boris Langenstein climbed for 12 hours straight and skied in near perfect weather. Huge congrats!