We fly in style – on a sensational, forty-five-minute domestic flight that passes right above the gorge of the Indus river, with cracking views of Nanga Parbat ($8,126$m), from our window. After we arrive in Skardu, we check in at our hotel. (If flight cancellations do occur as a result of mountain weather, the journey from Islamabad is by road following the Karakorum Highway.)

Official Permits with the GB tourism department at Skardu: A special day has been allotted for completing the necessary paperwork and procuring permits with the Department of Tourism Gilgit-Baltistan for trekking with our specialized guides who will deal with the tiresome process for you. Spend your afternoon strolling in the historical Skardu Bazaar or a relaxing day at Upper Kachura Lake.

Climbing aboard our hardy 4x4 jeeps, we embark on an off-road ride through the pristine, deep Shigar Valley, navigating along rushing rivers and through isolated mountain settlements to our first night's camp at the ancient base village of Askole, from where all major expeditions head off to the great Karakorum giants.

Here we finally set foot. We trek through a barren and rocky river plain on the Braldu River valley. After traversing the bridge across the Dumordo River, we reach our camp setup in the wilderness by the riverside in Jhola.

We trace a constant and ascent trail as the full magnitude of the mountain faces begin to be apparent. The stark desert like surrounding will give way at Paiju to a patch of shade given by a grove of willow trees – quite a rare oasis here. A good view point for the snout of the enormous Baltoro Glacier will be at Paiju camp, where the Baltoro Glacier can first be seen.

Mandatory high altitude rest day designed to give your body time to acclimatize to the thin air, and is calculated by a professional mountaineer. Our climbing crew pack and weigh the ration packs for high altitude, and our friendly Balti team put on an evening of music and song to sing us on our way.

We step onto the gigantic moraine of Baltoro Glacier today. Moving through an ever changing track of rock and ice, we gain magnificent perspectives of Trango Towers and Cathedral Spire. We camp on the lateral moraine at Khoburtse.

A tough but spectacular hike across glacial ridges led us to Urdukas. This iconic camp site on grassy shelf just overhanging the glacier allows for uninterrupted view of the granite giants in the valley opposite us.

We head directly up the central spine of the glacier passing by a series of enormous white sails of ice. Vegetation vanishies the moment we enter a rugged land of rock and ice. We have a very special camping experience this evening, as we'll be sleeping right on the frozen heart of Goro II.

This is going to be an iconic day. We head into Concordia, the union of the Baltoro and the Godwin-Austen glaciers. “The Throne Room of the Mountain Gods.” The only place on earth where you could crawl out of your tent and have all of K2, Broad Peak and the Gasherbrums in view.

The main intersection passes and the upper Abruzzi Glacier becomes a broad river and we push high up into its centre – arriving eventually at the base of the Gasherbrum massif. This afternoon we set up camp as our base camp for the two eight thousanders, gasherbrum one and two.

We spend the first three days to establish our high camp at the alpine base, organize communications in higher altitude and manage all the climbing gear. This will also involve recovery walk, check on oxygen sets, and a holy ceremony of safe ascent with the guides.

During this intensive 25-day expedition our professional team will undertake high-altitude rotations to our four progressively higher camps ( Camps 1, 2, 3 and Camp 4). The team will setup and supply our camps and camp each night at camp during our rotations up the mountain. You will traverse steep mixed ice and snow slopes to gain valuable altitude under the care of our world-class guides as they analyze the weather patterns for our optimal summit window to achieve the summit at 8,080m.

The crucial buffer day in our schedule. In the unpredictable climate of the Karakoram, this day allows us the breathing space we need to sit out high winds or snowfall, keeping the expedition on track.

The climbing section is over so we initiate our LNT procedures for the trip; carrying out everything we took with us from our campsite. Back down the top arm of the glacier we walk to have one last farewell hurrah at the immense junction of Concordia.

Packs become lighter and our lungs more acclimatised as we drop down swiftly the Baltoro Glacier's backbone. It's an ease on the feet now, and high peaks start shrinking at our back.

The walk through the central ice lanes finishes and we are back in the welcome comfort of the ground and the terraces of Urdukas for a well-deserved easy evening, full of stories and recuperation.

We disembark from the snout of the glacier to breathe the heavy, oxygen-filled air of the valleys and at the Paiju camp to congratulate the expedition's team in which, thanks to our efforts, we have shared our expedition team on a night of toasts to our employees from the locality.

The trail descends the Braldu River Bed without significant loss of pace and soon we have the opportunity to enjoy the familiar comforts of the riverside camp at Jhola.

The Last day on the trekking trail. Our trek concludes with a return to the mountain base village of Askole, where we hold our well deserved farewell dinner, presenting awards for tip money to our brave high-altitude guides and kitchen staff.

The following morning our private 4x4 jeeps collect us at dawn for the overland trek back into Skardu. We arrive in the afternoon and your first hot shower in weeks awaits, and the following evening we toast the journey at our hotel in Skardu.

You are transferred to the Skardu airport for your beautiful domestic flight to the Capital city. Once landed in Islamabad, you are taken directly to your hotel where you get to enjoy the best of your premium evenings. (In case of delays, the drive to KKH overland can be planned as well).

Enjoy breakfast at the hotel then take private transfers to the airport to connect to your international outgoing flights back home. Your legendary 50 day Gasherbrum I expedition concludes here!