The Duffel Shuffle Podcast

K2: The Savage Mountain

The Duffel Shuffle Podcast

Show Notes

George Bell, a climber on the 1953 American Expedition to K2 said "It's a savage mountain that tries to kill you." Nearly than 75 years later, the reputation is intact. Adrian successfully climbed K2, without supplemental oxygen, in 2019, doubling down on his no o2 ascent of Everest in 2017. With decades of experience climbing and guiding clients throughout the Himalaya, Adrian has spent little time in the Karakoram, and has only climbed K2 once. Following the 2025 K2 climbing season, Sam an...

More from The Duffel Shuffle Podcast

Oct 21, 2026

On Episode 66, Sam and Adrian open with quick hits on early-season snow stoke and Andrzej Bargiel calling off his Dhaulagiri ski attempt before sitting down with IFMGA mountain guide, avalanche educator, and Black Diamond athlete Angela Hawse. Angela traces her path from Prescott College and Outward Bound to the American Alpine Institute, five seasons on Denali, and nine seasons heli-ski guiding in the San Juans. In 2010 she became the 60th IFMGA guide in the US and only the sixth woman...

Oct 7, 2026

On Episode 65, Alex Honnold returns for his second appearance on the show, this time flipping the script and taking over as guest host. Sam and Adrian open with the tragic avalanche that struck base camp on Nepal's Himlung Himal and a quick look at a storm-battered fall season in the Himalaya before handing Alex the mic. Fresh off town-to-summit days on the Eiger and the Matterhorn, Alex arrives with the questions anyone who's climbed high has wondered about. Why does it feel like...

Sep 23, 2026

*Editor's note: This episode was recorded on September 18, before an avalanche at Camp 3 on Manaslu killed two climbers. Our thoughts are with their families, their friends, and everyone involved in the rescue.* In Episode 64, Sam and Adrian open with quick hits on The Gear Project, a new online consignment shop for used outdoor gear, and a wave of climbing and ski films landing on major streamers this fall, before turning to the autumn Himalaya season. Adrian opens the episode with why...

Sep 9, 2026

Episode 63 opens with Adrian and Sam's conversation on the devastating Nepal-China border flood at Gyirong Port, and a nod to Laura Rogora's blazing six-day ascent of Bibliographie, before settling into a wide-ranging interview with viral Minecraft-YouTuber-turned-mountaineer Ryan Mitchell. Ryan built a following of millions making Minecraft videos before walking away to chase Mount Everest — a goal he set purely because he thought it would make a good video title. With no outdoor backg...

Aug 26, 2026

Episode 62 opens with quick hits on T-Mobile's satellite phone service and a run of Alps headlines — climbers requesting paid rescue after ignoring a Mont Blanc closure, a family of 36 rescued in the Austrian high country, and Kilian Jornet's viral post on the range's fast-changing climate — before Sam and Adrian sit down with Cody Townsend and Tommy Caldwell to talk through their spring traverse of Norman's 13. Norman's 13 links the Sierra's thirteen 14,000-foot peaks from Mt. Langley to Nor...

See all episodes →