After a week at 6200m: extreme mountaineer rescued

Alexander Gukov was finally rescued on July 31st. For a week he fought for his life on a rock face on Latok 1 in Pakistan. Alexander Gukov is one of the best Russian alpinists, who was even awarded the Piolet d'Or in 2015, one of the most important awards for exceptional achievements in extreme mountain sports.

Gukov and his partner Sergey Glazunov, who was injured in the accident, tried to climb the 7145-meter-high mountain via the north ridge . Due to the bad weather, the two alpinists turned back shortly before the summit. Tragedy struck while abseiling. The 26-year-old Glazunov fell fatally and took Alexander Gukov with him, but he was able to save himself and got stuck in a rock wall.

The red circle shows where Gukov was found

Gukov, injured, had to wait for help at an altitude of 6200 meters. The 42-year-old stayed on a rock face for a week with little equipment and hardly any food. Several rescue attempts had to be canceled due to bad weather. Neither other mountaineers nor the army managed to reach the Russian mountaineer by helicopter. Gukov himself no longer believed in salvation Alexander Gukov's chances of survival were decreasing by the minute; even he himself no longer believed he could be saved, he said in an interview from his hospital bed. He heard helicopters flying every day, but knew full well that they couldn't fly at 6000 meters because of the clouds and weather. Alexander Gukov had not eaten anything since the third day and was suffering from hallucinations. At night he always dreamed of his home and his family.

But on July 31, the weather finally improved and a helicopter flew up to the 42-year-old. The helicopter circled the rock face for several minutes until the Russian was finally found. He was severely hypothermic, dehydrated, malnourished and had frostbite on his feet when he was rescued. Gukov was taken to Skardu hospital by the Pakistani military and treated there. Gukov is responsive and his life is no longer in danger.

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After a week at 6200m: extreme mountaineer rescued

The Russian Alexander Gukov, who had been trapped in a rock face on Latok 25 since July 1th, was rescued on July 31st. The alpinist's life is no longer in danger.

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