Summitting Mount Everest

From the moment it was identified as the world’s tallest mountain, Everest became a ‘third pole’ with climbers desperate to be the first to reach its peak. Now that we know how dangerous the climb is – at least seven people a year have died on Everest during the 21st century – why do people still continue to flock to it?

Among those who have made it to the top is Yuichiro Miura, the first man to ski down Everest from the South Col in May 1970 (although he did sustain horrible injuries). He then went on to become the oldest person to summit in 2003 at age 70 and again in 2013 at the age of 80. American Jordan Romero was the youngest person to summit aged 13 years 10 months in 2010. While Apa Sherpa and Phurba Tashi Sherpa have each summitted 21 times.

Acclimatising is key. There is 66 percent less oxygen in each breath on the summit of Everest than at sea level and while oxygen is used to support climbers, even trekkers visiting Base Camp can experience the breathlessness and headaches associated with Acute Mountain Sickness. This can kick in anywhere from around 2,400m altitude; Everest Base Camp is more than twice that.

Bagging the biggest peak on Earth isn’t something you can do over a weekend, with National Trust membership and a picnic. It’s a big expedition with a massive price tag. A company based in the West, which still relies on local high-altitude support climbers, will charge around £45,000 to £50,000. Local expeditions charge less, around £27,000 for a well-run, properly supported climb, but in recent years, new operators on the ground have offered Everest for much less, raising concerns about correct pay for Sherpas as well as safety standards.

The overall fee also includes everything from the wages for guides and Sherpas to the food, climbing kit, tents and transfers. Operators usually supply some training once you arrive in Nepal, too, in climbing techniques, glacier travel, rope fixing, ascending, descending and safety techniques, and you’ll also be taught how to use medical and communications equipment, and even how to cook at high altitude! Crucially, though, the price cannot guarantee you’ll make it to the summit – only 50 percent of people who shoot for the top, make the top.

A total of 282 people (168 westerners and 114 Sherpas) died on Everest between 1921 and 2016, 176 on the Nepal side and 106 on the Tibet side. Few of the bodies are brought down, so there are well over 200 corpses on the mountain, some of which serve as grizzly landmarks for other climbers. The unidentified corpse of a climber on the north side of Everest became known as Green Boots, and was used as a landmark until 2014, when the corpse disappeared, presumably removed or buried.

Making it to the top, though, is only one victory – you then have to get back down. Sadly, many climbers do not return to Base Camp after this extraordinary achievement, and a quarter of all fatalities occur on the descent.

One of the most disastrous expeditions on Everest was in 1996, when 12 people died trying to reach the summit in a single day. This was documented in the book Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer, who survived the experience. He has been critical of the recent Everest film adaptation of his book – and about climbing Everest altogether. He said: “Everest is not real climbing. It’s rich people climbing. It’s a trophy on the wall, and they’re done… When I say I wish I’d never gone, I really mean that.”

Photo credits: [Top box: Mário Simoes] [Who goes and why: Steve Hicks] [How to climb Everest: Erik Charlton] [Sherpers: Lwp Kommunikáció] [Helicopter: valcker] [Helpdesk: Olga Danylenko] [Khumba Icefall: James Ketchell ] [Base Camp: Rick McCharles]