Shaheen Baig (born 3 April 1972) (Urdu:شاہین بیگ) is a Pakistani
mountaineer
Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...
. He is also the co-founder and instructor in Shimshal Mountaineering School, and is a member of the
Alpine Club
The first alpine club, the Alpine Club, based in the United Kingdom, was founded in London in 1857 as a gentlemen's club. It was once described as:
:"a club of English gentlemen devoted to mountaineering, first of all in the Alps, members of which ...
.
Early life
Shaheen Baig was born in
Shimshal
Shimshal (old name: Shingshal) ( ur, شمشال) is a village located in Gojal Tehsil of Hunza District, in the Gilgit–Baltistan region of Pakistan. It lies at an altitude of above sea level and is the highest settlement in the district. It is ...
village,
Hunza–Nagar District The Hunza–Nagar District is a former district of Gilgit–Baltistan in Pakistan. In July 2015, the district was divided into two separate districts, namely Hunza District and Nagar District.
Education
According to the ''Alif Ailaan Pakistan Di ...
of
Gilgit-Baltistan
Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute bet ...
, Pakistan. He experienced childhood in the Shimshal valley and spent his initial years moving in the Karakorum and became endlessly in love with the mountains.
Mountain climbing career
Baig started his mountaineering career in 1995 as a high altitude porter with a Korean expedition. In 1997, he summited
Muztagh Ata
Muztagh Ata or Muztagata (, Музтағ Ата, literally "ice-mountain-father"; ; formerly known as Mount Tagharma or Taghalma and Wi-tagh) is the second highest (7546 metres) of the mountains which form the northern edge of the Tibetan Plate ...
() with a Japanese team. Baig's first expedition to an peak was with a Japanese team that attempted
Gasherbrum II
Gasherbrum II ( ur, ; ); surveyed as K4, is the 13th highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It is the third-highest peak of the Gasherbrum massif, and is located in the Karakoram, on the border between Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan a ...
in 2001. He was successful in reaching the top. Later, Baig attempted
Broad Peak
Broad Peak ( ur, ) is a mountain in the Karakoram on the border of Pakistan and China, the twelfth-highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It was first ascended in June 1957 by Fritz Wintersteller, Marcus Schmuck, Kurt Diemberger, an ...
in 2002 and
Nanga Parbat
Nanga Parbat ( ur, ) (; ), known locally as Diamer () which means “king of the mountains”, is the ninth-highest mountain on Earth, its summit at above sea level. Lying immediately southeast of the northernmost bend of the Indus River in ...
in 2003, before ascending
K2 in 2004.
List of mountains climbed
Shimshal Mountaineering School
Established formally in 2009 with the support of
Simone Moro
Simone Moro (born 27 October 1967 in Bergamo) is an Italian alpinist known for having made first winter ascents of four of the fourteen eight-thousanders: Shishapangma in 2005, Makalu in 2009, Gasherbrum II in 2011, and Nanga Parbat in 2016. He ...
, Shimshal Mountaineering School is a pioneer in professional mountaineering training institute in Pakistan. A dream project of Baig and
Qudrat Ali, Shimshal Mountaineering School strives to promote healthy sports and excellence in professional mountaineering through extensive hands-on mountaineering training programs. Led by a team of renowned mountaineering instructors, with treasure of mountaineering experience, Shimshal Mountaineering School has a very customized and tailor-made mountaineering courses to suit the needs of beginners as well as advanced level mountaineers. Located at the heart of Shimshal. Shimshal Mountaineering School is the first ever mountaineering institute in Pakistan which initiated an exclusive mountaineering program for women since its inception.
See also
*
Qudrat Ali
*
Meherban Karim
Meherban Karim (21 January 1979 – 2 August 2008) was a Pakistani mountaineer. He lost his life, along with 10 other mountaineers, in the 2008 K2 disaster, following an avalanche in what was to be one of the deadliest accidents in the history ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baig, Shaheen
Living people
1972 births
People from Hunza-Nagar District
Pakistani mountain climbers
Organization founders