Laila Peak
Interesting facts
- The first known ascent came in 1987, when four British climbers including Simon Yates reached the summit via the northwest face without an official permit.
- Simon Yates was the partner of Joe Simpson on Siula Grande in 1985, the ordeal later told in the book and film Touching the Void.
- The first officially recognised ascent was made by an Italian expedition on 2 July 1996, when Paolo Cavagnetto and Fabio Lacchini topped out on the northwest face.
- The 1987 team came down not by their route of ascent but by abseiling down the peak's east face.
- An early snowboarding attempt was halted at a 5,400-metre col when the whole left side of the face avalanched down to bare rock while the team climbed.
- The first complete ski descent from the summit is credited to a French team in 2018, thirteen years after the first partial ski run on the face.
Why it is worth it
Laila Peak rises from the Gondogoro Glacier at the head of the Hushe Valley in the Karakoram, and its shape alone makes it famous: a slender spear of rock and ice, one of the most elegant mountains in a range full of giants. Its northwest face is a sweep of snow at about 45 degrees rising more than 1,500 vertical metres to the summit. The Scandinavian skiers who first tried to descend it in 2005 said it pointed straight up into the sky like a needle. Its height has long been disputed, with figures ranging from about 6,100 to over 6,600 metres; a Japanese map published in 2003 gives 6,096 metres.
For all its fame, few people have stood on top. Local people in Hushe count only a handful of successful ascents, and the mountain has a serious reputation. Spanish climbers Alex Txikon and José Fernández made the first winter ascent in February 2013. Ski and snowboard parties have attempted its face, and the mountain has claimed lives, among them an Italian ski mountaineer in 2016 and the German Olympic biathlon champion Laura Dahlmeier, killed by rockfall in July 2025.
Most visitors see Laila Peak from below, and it is worth the walk. The trek up the Hushe Valley toward the Gondogoro Glacier brings it into view above the ice, and the same valley is the exit route for trekkers crossing the Gondogoro Pass from Concordia and the Baltoro Glacier, below K2. The valley lies in the Central Karakoram National Park. It is a restricted zone for foreigners: climbers need a permit, a licensed guide and insurance for the whole party.
Do not confuse it with the lesser Laila Peak of the Rupal Valley in the Himalaya.
Getting there
The approach starts at Hushe, the last village in the Hushe Valley in Ghanche District, where local men have worked as porters and cooks for expeditions since the 1960s. Skardu is the regional base, about 78 km from the peak in a straight line, and Skardu International Airport (KDU) is about 84 km away.
Plan your visit
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Nearby places
- Baltoro Glacier 16.3 km · glacier
On these lists
From the encyclopaedia
Laila Peak is a mountain located in the Hushe Valley, near the Gondogoro Glacier within the Karakoram. Situated in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan, Laila Peak has an elevation of 6,096 metres (20,000 ft). Its distinctive feature is its spear-like shape, and its northwest face presents a challenging slope of 45 degrees, spanning over 1,500 vertical meters. The height of Laila Peak in the Hushe Valley has been a subject of controversy and discrepancy. Various sources and maps have mentioned different elevations for the peak. Some believe it to be around 6,200 meters, while others suggest it as 6,614 metres (21,699 ft). However, according to a Japanese mountaineering map by Tsuneo Miyamori published in 2003, the height of Laila Peak is listed as 6,096 meters.
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