First US woman to summit K-2 in Pakistan says she's 'proud'

ISLAMABAD – The first American woman to scale Pakistan's dangerous K-2 summit says it was a "proud moment" when she hoisted the U.S. and Pakistani flags at the top of the mountain.

The 52-year-old Vanessa O'Brien achieved her mountaineering feat on July 28.

K-2 is the world's second-highest mountain, at 28,251 feet or 8,610 meters. For mountain climbers, it is also considered particularly difficult, after Mount Everest

O'Brien said Friday she hopes her achievement will promote people-to-people contacts between the two countries. She says her 12-member team of international climbers was grateful to Islamabad for facilitating their endeavor.

It was O'Brien's third attempt at conquering K2, after being unsuccessful in 2015 and 2016 when an avalanche buried all of her equipment and strong winds forced her team to return to base camp.