K2 is the mountain famously nicknamed the “Savage Mountain” because of its extreme climbing difficulty.
K2, also called Mount Godwin-Austen, rises to 8,611 metres in the Karakoram range on the Pakistan–China border. It is the world’s second-highest mountain, after Mount Everest, but its steep faces, severe weather, avalanche danger and technical climbing routes make it exceptionally challenging.
The nickname became widely associated with K2 through clim climbing literature and mountaineering accounts. The mountain’s standard route, the Abruzzi Spur, still involves steep rock, snow and ice climbing at high altitude. K2 was first climbed successfully in 1954 by an Italian expedition led by Ardito Desio, with Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni reaching the summit.
K2 is sometimes confused with Nanga Parbat, which is called the “Killer Mountain.” Those are separate peaks in the broader Himalayan and Karakoram region, and each has its own well-known mountaineering nickname.