04/08/2026
On July 30th, the Avalanche on Broad Peak in Pakistan took the lives of 10 climbers and has rocked the outdoor adventure community around the world. This tragedy has hit the Epic Expeditions family very close to home indeed. The grief, the sense of loss, the what if potential have all been profound since I learned of this tragic news.
One of those climbers involved was Sohail Sahki from Hunza Valley, Pakistan. Sohail was one of my oldest friends in Pakistan, a trip leader for Epic Expeditions for 5 years, a skilled mountaineer and athlete, and one of the most intelligent and interesting people I have met in my life.
The loss of Sohail on Broad Peak has me asking myself some real questions and has also confirmed everything I thought to be true about him prior to his death. There are just those rare souls who have an ability to inspire, to connect, to listen, to push beyond, to make something out of nothing, to somehow make the mountains seem less intimidating, to summon an energy from another realm, and to define what it means to be human in a way unmatched by others.
How does one measure a full life when that life has been cut short? How does one make sense of a person so full of potential and hunger for life suddenly taken by the mountains he lived and breathed like a lover who turns off the lights without a word and walks out the door with no time left.
The hourglass has run out and we have not got the chance to give it another turn.
Brother Sohail, your journey in life and now through death has a metric all its own. You cast a shadow higher than the mountains you loved. Even in death you have the ability to make people dream, as much as it hurts to say goodbye.
We never got a chance to hike the full Karakoram Trail or hang out in Madeira or climber an 8000er together. I guess we will just have to save those for the next life, brother. I will be eternally grateful for all of the amazing moments, laughs, and running and gunning we did together as young men deeply in love with the Pakistani Mountains.
Until we meet again, rest easy, friend. The mountains now have their son forever and I am sure he would not have wanted it any other way 🖤🖤