It was the first controversy of the 2024 Everest season, and now as the season closes, so has the controversy. The Khumbu local authorities have taken down the unpopular billboard that in March replaced the traditional grafitti’d rock welcoming trekkers and climbers to Everest Base Camp.
The billboard featured the camp’s altitude and a photo of Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary. It was placed right in front of the much-beloved old stone marked “EBC.” That was the official photo spot for those arriving at the site for years.
Everest Chronicle suggests that the decision came after climbers, trekkers, and social media audiences criticized the billboard. Some wanted a photo with the original stone, others simply disliked a new, artificial element in the landscape. Presumably, they were able to overlook the hundreds of tents populating the head of the Khumbu Glacier.
In any case, it was only a question of time before the billboard fell on its own since its two legs stood on a constantly moving glacier.
The billboard briefly became the official photo point for Everest Base Camp this season. Photo: 8K Expeditions
Last days of the season
The Everest season officially ends the first week of June, but the monsoon rains are approaching. The Icefall Doctors set the exact closure date when they retrieve the ladders and ropes from the Khumbu Icefall. That could happen this week, as soon as the last people on the mountain return to Base Camp.
Right now, Everest is almost empty, except for staff dismantling camps and two (as far as we know) climbing teams. They are Elite Exped, led by Nirmal Purja, and a private client outfitted by 8K Expeditions and led by Sanu Sherpa and supported by two other sherpas. They tried to summit today but turned around at the Balcony, Lakpa Sherpa, the head of 8K, told ExplorersWeb.
