Nepali mountaineers achieve historic winter first on K2 With their ‘impossible’ summit of the world’s second-tallest mountain, Nepali climbers send national pride surging in the Himalaya. ByFreddie Wilkinson Editor’s note: This story has been updated. A team of 10 Nepali climbers reached the 28,251-foot summit of K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, on Saturday, January 16th, according to several reports on social media. This long-sought achievement adds a stunning new chapter to mountaineering history. Located in Pakistan’s part of the Karakoram range, K2 is the last of the world’s 14 tallest mountains—all higher than 8,000 meters—to be climbed in winter. It is considered by far the most difficult and dangerous because of the technical climbing required to reach the top.