Notable South Asian
Mountain Exploration
by John Mock & Kimberley O'Neil

We have been trekking in the Karakoram, Hindukush and Himalaya for more than twenty-five years. Here are some of our more notable treks and pass crossings in Pakistan, Afghanistan and northern India.

Wakhan Corridor Across Dilisang Pass, July-August 2004 - Pamir Knot

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil traveled to Afghanistan's Wakhan Corridor. Their successful expedition to the source of the Oxus River in the Wakhjir Valley and across the Dilisang Pass to Misgar in Pakistan's Northern Areas was supported by the 2004 Shipton Tilman Grant awarded by W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. Read the expedition report. Play the expedition slide show.

Werthum Pass, July 17, 2000 - Batura Muztagh in the Central Karakoram

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil established a route between the Batura Glacier and Chapursan's Lupgar Valley over the Werthum Pass (5147m) in the Gojal region of Pakistan's Northern Area.

Ghidims Pass, June-July 2000 - North Ghuzherav Mountains in the Northern Karakoram

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil reconnoitered and crossed two previously unknown passes, Ghidims Pass South (5650m) on June 26 and Ghidims Pass North (5486m) on July 2, over the Central Asian watershed into the remote Sher Ilaq Valley. They became the first westerners ever to visit the Sher Ilaq Valley, an isolated part of Shimshal territory in Pakistan's Northern Areas. This endeavor and the Mai Dur Pass (see below) were supported by the 2000 Shipton Tilman Grant awarded by W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. Read the expedition report.

Mai Dur Pass, June 19, 2000 - South Ghuzherav Mountains in the Northern Karakoram

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil crossed the Mai Dur Pass (5700m), a pass in Shimshal territory of Pakistan's Northern Areas. Mai Dur Pass was first crossed in 1925 by the Visser-Hooft expedition that was searching for the source of the Hunza River, but the pass had been neglected ever since.

Lupgar Pir Pass, August 28, 1994 - Lupgar Mountains in the Central Karakoram

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil crossed the Lupgar Pir Pass (5190m) between the Chapursan and Lupgar Valleys in the Gojal region of Pakistan's Northern Areas. Lupgar Pir Pass was first crossed by Reginald Schomberg in 1934. The renowned Pakistani mountaineer Nazir Sabir said that we were the first people in 60 years to cross the pass and thereby open a new trekking route.

Pin-Parbati Pass, August 10, 1992 - Indian Himalaya

John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil made the initial reconnaissance and crossing of the Pin-Parbati Pass between the Kulu Valley and Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, India. The late Colonel Jimmy Roberts, who failed to find the pass in his 1939 expedition, sent us his notes and a map locating the pass, which we used to make our crossing. Once a frequently used trade route, the pass was neglected for decades. It is now a popular trekking route.

Saltoro Valley, 1982 - Saltoro Mountains in the Eastern Karakoram

The late Hugh Swift joined John Mock in Pakistan, and they trekked from the easternmost village in Baltistan's Saltoro Valley to Shagiri in the Rupal Valley, beneath Nanga Parbat's southern face, at the western end of the Great Himalayan Range in Pakistan's Northern Areas. This trek completed Swift's Great Himalayan Traverse - an east-west foot journey that began the previous year in Bhutan with Arlene Blum.

Kondus Valley, 1977 - Saltoro Mountains in the Eastern Karakoram

John Mock and the late Hugh Swift visited the Hushe and Kondus Valleys in Baltistan, and trekked up the Kondus Glacier to the Sia La. The Kondus and Saltoro Valleys, "Forbidden Valleys", closed to foreigners by the Pakistan government since 1984, have some of the finest clean granite towers in Pakistan. The Pakistan government, however, has allowed a few climbing expeditions since 2000; read the story of one expedition's successful first ascent.