Skardu, Gilgit-Baltistan: Dubai-based Pakistani climber Naila Kiani has set out on a journey to summit the world’s second tallest mountain, K2, in northern Pakistan.
Kiani last year became the first female Pakistani climber to successfully scale the world’s 13th highest mountain, Gasherbrum-II, which stands at more than 8,000 meters above the sea level.
Professionally a banker in Dubai as well as a boxer, Kiani’s passion for mountains came under the spotlight in July 2018, when pictures from her small wedding at the K2 basecamp went viral on the Internet. Her photoshoot in a traditional red-colored wedding dress earned her the title of “K2 Bride.”
The Dubai-based Pakistani climber, who hails from Rawalpindi, has now set her eyes on K2, also called the “Savage Mountain,” which straddles the Pakistan-China border and is widely considered the world’s deadliest mountain as approximately one out of every four attempting to summit it dies on the way.
“I was fascinated by K2, when I did the K2 basecamp trek four years ago. So anyway, any climber or trekker dreams to climb K2. When I descended from G-II (Gasherbrum-II) last year, Ali Raza Sadpara, who was my guide and teacher too, basically encouraged me to climb K2 with him this year. So, it was encouragement and dream,” Kiani, who is currently in Skardu, told Arab News over the phone on Saturday.
“I am very excited because the last few months were very, very stressful anyway to working, looking after kids and also preparing for expedition, training. And I really want to start this because at least all my stress will go away the day I start the expedition. So, I’m really looking forward to it.”
Sadpara succumbed to his injuries and passed away in Skardu in May, weeks after he slipped off a cliff and fell into a ditch. He was scheduled to attempt a K2 ascent this summer.
Kiani, who has two young kids, said she is aware of the dangerous climb and keeps her safety foremost. “Another major thing I believe in is prayer, so all my friends, family and I have been praying to the Lord to strengthen my ability and skills,” she said.
She said she didn’t choose to be a climber and it was “just a coincidence“: “I always loved mountains, but I never thought I would climb a mountain one day. So I think it was just a coincidence somehow. When I was trekking to K2 basecamp and crossing the Gondogoro Pass four years ago, I thought I would one day climb a mountain. And last year, I scaled Gasherbrum-II.”
Kiani believes Pakistani women are super talented and they just need someone to support them and believe in their dreams.
“Dream really big. Do not think of the problems when you have a goal,” she said. “If you face any problem, keep on solving it bit by bit, do not give up and one day you will achieve your dream.”
Besides Kiani, Nelly Attar, a Lebanese mountaineer who was born and raised in Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan’s Samina Baig are also attempting the K2 summit this summer.