For the second day in a row, Everest and Lhotse summits pile up, despite windy conditions.
Nepal’s Department of Tourism reported 185 Everest summits yesterday. While today’s numbers won’t be as high, it has been a fruitful day.
Dan Mazur’s SummitClimb team left early and reported that all eight team members reached the summit at 4:30 am. He later confirmed that everyone had made it safely back to the South Col.
At such an early hour, Mazur saw few others on the upper slopes. “We had the mountain to ourselves,” he wrote. “We did pass a few groups while we were descending.”
Later in the morning, more teams reported summits. Phil Crampton of Altitude Junkies confirmed that their climbers had summited and returned to Camp 4. They intend to proceed down to Camp 2 after resting and rehydrating.
Some groups hope to reach the summit tomorrow, but it is unclear if conditions will permit further attempts in the next two days.
Controlling the narrative
The biggest story of the season might be the lack of information. Outfitters are listing summiters’ names (always with more Nepali guides and assistants than clients) but otherwise they have provided very few details.
There have been no updates on climbers on their way to the summit or during the descent, no notes on progression, and no accidents or rescues reported. A safe season would be the best possible news. But the overall lack of transparency (officially, for example, there has been no COVID) suggests that it is wise to wait until everyone checks in from Base Camp for confirmation.
Everyone in Base Camp seems to have colluded with Nepal to erase all drama from this expedition season. Trying to hide COVID cases has proved impossible, and even counterproductive for the image of climbers, expedition leaders, and officials. But during the summit push, the narrative continues to be successfully controlled.
This has killed the essence of the Everest season; the extraordinary has been made to sound ordinary.
Yet a lack of news does not necessarily mean no news. The real stories will have to wait until these climbers return and can speak freely.
About the Author
Angela Benavides
Senior journalist, published author and communication consultant. Specialized on high-altitude mountaineering, with an interest for everything around the mountains: from economics to geopolitics. After five years exploring distant professional ranges, I returned to ExWeb BC in 2018. Feeling right at home since then!
Second day of selfish, inexperienced and guided ego-driven tourists taking part in the circus.
Bitter and twisted.
You sure have a point, but on the other hand, many members of the Sherpa people would live in dire poverty and be unable to send their children to school without the said tourists’ money… So there are always at least two sides to a story.
That’s not true Marie. Some would argue the tourist and donor money has ruined the culture and livelihood of the mountain people. Having lived in the mountains of Gorkha for nearly a year I agree there is poverty in the eye of the wealthy tourist but if you stay and look deeper you see the wealth of life, culture, lifestyle, being in tune with nature. They have houses, land to farm and animals. Once we bring in money into the picture then yes they are poor. But if you take money out and introduce the barter system which is the… Read more »
Fair enough, but what is “a good life”? Isn’t that very subjective? What if they no longer want to raise animals and grow vegetables until their very last day? What if they want to see New York, marvel at Michelangelo’s Pieta in Rome, become a pilot, run an enterprise that specializes in solar panels, or join St Peter’s boys’ choir? Who are we to say that they should be content with their present way of life and not aspire to other things (as well), as we do?
So you’re saying that inside each Sherpa is one of us trying to get out, to escape to the West and climb into the hamster wheel of materialism with the rest of us?
I think Marie is saying that there is variation among Sherpas just as there is among every people, and some may not want the traditional way of life, or not that only. Choice is a good thing to have.
Absolutely!! Money can’t smile and serenity on the face. Thank you.
Supporting the sherpa communities matters, but I am wondering how much the Everest climbing gives back to the communities? Every year, the clients pay more, but their money seems to flow into fewer and fewer pockets. Trekking to base camp which supported the villages along the way is almost universally replaced with helicopter flights. Carrying loads is now also disappearing because helicopters are cheaper and less dangerous. I do hope for the sake of the Nepali communities that trekking and low altitude tourism continues to support them.
I was there last year
I was there yesterday!
Im there right now!
Abramov turned around with somebody did’nt feel well beetween C4 and summit. He hope to reach camp 2 and expect HELI for the russian client. 2 persons need to stay at C4 and not went down to C2 with the group.
Another team wrote, the conditions are challenging to go down to camp 2 with clients.
nicht bei C4 in C3, sorry.
I had info all the way through from a friend who’s team has abandoned. They had many sherpas with Covid and I’m proud that they took the safe route and took a helicopter back to Kathmandu
Posers. 180 of them couldnt climb a ladder without a guide. Lets just pay the Sherpas to climb and film it. Id pay for sure.
Having been there, yes it is crowded , but tourism suits well for the local economy…..Nepali people are the absolutely friendliest ive ever met..why is it climbed so much? Because its there and the highest…