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Leaving Pakistan

Raphael Slawinski and Ian Welsted made the now-famous ascent of K6 West last summer, but Jesse Huey was also on the trip, what happened to him?

Huey flew to Pakistan with Slawinski and Welsted and was committed to climbing the then-unclimbed peak.

However, on June 22, nearly 20 militants stormed a high-altitude climbing base camp in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan and killed 10 climbers and a guide.

The attack sent many climbers home, but Slawinski and Welsted decided to stay. Huey, the only American on the trip, felt the pressure from his family and friends to return to the U.S., leaving the expedition.

A few days after the attack, Huey returned to America and Slawinki and Welsted continued on the trip and climbed K6 West.

Slawinski and Welsted were nominated for the National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Award and won the Piolet d’Or.

Here is a short clip from Huey’s last days in Pakistan.

 

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