The Karakorum Mountain Range extends along the borders of Pakistan, China, and India. In 1997, Vicki and I flew to Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, to hike to the base camp of K-2, the second-highest mountain in the world after Mt. Everest. We were with the adventure travel company Mountain Travel Sobek.
After flying to Skardu, we took Land Cruisers to the trailhead and began walking in 100-degree heat. The trek into the mountain is arduous, with rocky trails, tricky river crossings, and steep sections. Our company had numerous porters, a competent chef, and excellent guides. We were in good hands. For much of the trek into K-2, we paralleled another, smaller group with less staff. They began enthusiastically, but the group looked more disheveled and beaten down as the days passed.
One man we labeled Larry, the hair guy, symbolized the group's problems. One day, we noticed that Larry had a large bandage around his head. What had happened? A rock dislodged rolled down a slope and hit Larry in the head. And so, it went with that group.
Denis Cote and Vicki
Denis Cote was an entrepreneur from Montreal who lived near San Francisco. At 6’5”, he was an imposing figure who could hike all day without getting tired. He had a dry sense of humor, and he and I bonded during the trip. The rigor of the journey was mollified by Denis’s constant, witty remarks, which became more frequent as the trip went on. In the evenings, he and I, when possible, walked through the camps of other companies, talking and joking with other trekkers. Denis was often irreverent and could insult you without knowing you were being dissed!
Over the years, I have read much literature about the history of trekking and climbing in the Karakorum Mountains. Unlike their counterparts in Nepal, the porters in Pakistan were often aggressive about getting more money than they had contracted for. Porters on climbing expeditions knew how much energy and funding had been invested in mountaineering ventures, and they used that knowledge as leverage to extort more money from the expedition they were on.
Once, Jim Whittaker, the famous mountain climber and adventurer from Seattle, became so frustrated with his porters that he started burning cash. That put an end to the uprising.
So, what does this have to do with our group? It is essential to understand that groups can never pay porters enough by American standards. These guys carry heavy loads all day, set up camp, prepare food, and sleep in rock enclosures with no roofs. It is often problematic for fair-minded Westerners to accept this situation. Such was the case of Denis Cote.
One afternoon at camp, he assembled our group of ten and said we should collect more money for the porters. I admired his point, but I don’t think he understood the climbing culture in that part of the world. We could never pay them enough! He had riled up the porters who knew what was happening, and I thought we were headed for trouble.
Eventually, we reached a compromise and gave Denis some money to distribute, but not as much as he wanted. Payment of the porters was the responsibility of Mountain Travel Sobek and not the guests who gave tips typically at the end of the trip.
Denis's role as union organizer ended soon. His disappointment soon disappeared, and his infectious wit returned. I saw him a few times in later years, and then I learned he had gone to the jungles of Brazil to set up a phone company.