LATOK GROUP (23442 ft / 7,145 M EXPEDITION

Duration of Trek: 34 Days
Mountain Range:  Karakorum                             
Season:     May to September                     
Maximum Elevation: 7145-M. 

Located in the Panmah Muztagh part of the central Karakorum range Latok group is a small cluster of dramatic rock peaks. They are situated east to the Ogre group, which is dominated by Baintha Brakk. The Baintha Lukpar Glacier is located immediately south of the Latok group, a small tributary of the Biafo Glacier and Karakorum's main glaciers. To the north of the Latok group lies the Choktoi Glacier.

Latok group comprises four main summits Latok I, north-central, 7,145 m, Latok II, west, Latok III, east, 6,949 m, Latok IV, southeast, 6,456 m. 

All of the Latok group summits are notable for their extreme technical difficulty, and they have been some of the most challenging climbing done at high altitudes around the world.

Latok I was first climbed by a Japanese expedition in 1979, led by Naoki Takada; the first summit members included Sin'e Matsumi, Tsuneo Shigehiro, and Yu Watanabe followed by Hideo Muto, Jun'ichi Oku, and Kota Endo three days later. They started from the Baintha Lukpar Glacier and climbed a buttress to reach the East Ridge of Latok I.

The North Ridge of Latok I, which is steep and 2,500 m, is a famous unclimbed route: its first attempt was made by the noted American climbers Jim Donini, Michael Kennedy, George Lowe Jeff Lowe and almost successfully climbed. The lightweight style of this climb was widely admired, despite the unsuccessful summit. Many other unsuccessful attempts have followed after this attempt.

Latok II was first ascent by an Italian group led by Arturo Bergamaschi in 1977. This was the first successful ascent in the Latok group. They climbed the southeast face of Latok II. E. Alimonta, T. Mase, and R. Valentini were the first ones who made the summit.

A recent ascent of Latok II came in 1997 when a solid team, including Alexander Huber, Toni Gutsch, Thomas Huber, and Conrad Anker, climbed the peak's sheer West Face. They described this aptly as putting "El Capitan on top of Denali": a 1,000-meter vertical rock wall with a base of 6,100 meters elevation. The total vertical distance for this climb was 2,200 meters.

A Japanese team first climbed Latok III under the leadership of Yoji Teranishi in 1979, they climbed the Southwest Ridge. The summit party members included Teranishi, Kazushige Takami, and Sakae Mori. In 1988 the second ascent was made via the same route by an Italian party. This was, in fact, the first repeat ascent of any peak in the Latok group.