The race for the summit of Everest is on, and impatience has ruffled the usual cooperation between local expeditions. Fed up with waiting, Mingma G of Imagine Nepal has decided to fix the ropes to the summit himself, with or without the official team.
His move seems to have stirred the Sherpas employed by Nepal’s Expedition Operators Association (EOA) into action. They have joined his effort, and many others are preparing to follow. It is unclear how many will attempt the summit on Wednesday, but the word is that over 200 Sherpas are heading to Camp 4 tonight. Most are just there to supply the camp. It is unclear how many of them, and their attendant clients, will continue to the summit on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the first death of the year has occurred: An experienced Nepali climber who fell sick on his way to Camp 2.
Nepalese climber died near Camp 1
Bijay Ghimire Bishwakarma, 35, of Nepal died yesterday near Camp 1 on Everest. According to the Solukhumbu police, he was on his way to Camp 2 at 4 am when he fell suddenly ill. He died while being brought back toward Base Camp, Everest Today reported.
His body was airlifted from the mountain and will undergo an autopsy at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, officials said. It is unclear whether altitude or cardiac arrest caused his death.
Ghimire was far from a newcomer on Everest. He had summited the mountain four times previously. In fact, he was the first Everest summiter from Nepal’s Dalit community.
This is the first death this season to occur on the mountain itself. A Sherpa guide perished last week while approaching Base Camp.
Summits expected on Wednesday
Sherpas plan to summit on May 13 in an apparent joint effort between the official Sherpa rope fixers and Mingma G’s Imagine Nepal team, possibly with some clients in tow. We say “apparent” because the news about the rope fixing has been confusing. Earlier today, Mingma G posted on social media that he plans to ignore the official rope fixers and do the task himself.
File image of Everest’s South Col. Photo: SummitClimb
In April, Mingma criticized the work of the Icefall Doctors but praised the EOA team, which is coordinated by Seven Summit Treks’ Chhang Dawa Sherpa. They fixed the ropes from Camp 2 to the South Col last Friday.
“Obviously, they are tired [and] Base Camp is the best place for them to rest and recover,” Mingma G said. “They are there now, recuperating.”
Mingma said he and his Sherpa team would fix the route to the summit on their own and hoped to reach the top on May 13. He also admitted that he was surprised by the record number of almost 500 foreigners with an Everest permit. He hopes the “government becomes more responsible.”
‘Someone has to take responsibility’
“But someone has to take responsibility, and we are taking that responsibility to ensure there isn’t too much traffic, and that our foreign climbers can enjoy more flexible summit dates,” he added. Read his entire report below.
Mingma G’s team also took the lead to find alternative routes to Camp 1 when an unstable serac stalled route-finding in the Khumbu Icefall. While the Icefall Doctors chose to wait for the serac to fall naturally, the Imagine Nepal team — together with Polish skier Bartek Ziemski and some climbers from EliteExped — found and fixed a passage to Camp 1.
Not ready to wait
Mingma G was also among the first to lead clients to Camp 2 when the route finally opened. Member Anja Blacha of Germany planned to climb Lhotse without bottled oxygen and needed to start her acclimatization rotations as soon as possible. Mingma G has confirmed to ExplorersWeb that everyone in his several groups of climbers has completed acclimatizing and is ready to try the summit.
“Even Anja Blacha is ready for a summit push on Lhotse, but there are no ropes fixed to the summit there,” Mingma G noted.
Blacha has summited 12 8,000’0ers without oxygen, including Everest last year. (See below.) She only has Lhotse and Shisha Pangma left to complete all 14 8,000’ers without supplemental oxygen.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DKUHdaJycoZ/
Meanwhile, Ziemski, the Polish skier, has just returned to Base Camp after an acclimatization round to Camp 3 at 7,100m. Ziemski skied back down to Base Camp from C3, Wspinanie.pl reported.
Storm and crowds ahead
Mingma G told us there is no planned date for fixing Lhotse. “However, we are not in a hurry to climb Lhotse,” he said. “We are worried about Everest.” He has good reason to be concerned: the weather.
“From May 14, the wind will pick up, and we won’t know when another weather window will come,” Mingma G said. “If the [next] window is limited, the traffic will be intense, especially with 496 foreigners plus Sherpas on the mountain. Many of them will get into trouble.”
Mingma G on the summit of Everest without supplemental oxygen in 2024. Photo: Imagine Nepal
Asked about cooperating with the official Sherpa rope fixers, Mingma G referred us to the responsible person at the EOA. In fact, Liaison Officer Gyanendra Shrestha has just told The Tourism Times that the EOA has agreed to join Mingma’s trail-blazing efforts. They too aim to summit on Wednesday.
“The EOA team will carry the necessary ropes from Camp 2 to Camp 4 tomorrow,” they said. “A few climbers are also planning a summit push on May 13 alongside the route fixers.”
The buzz spread throughout Base Camp, and in a few hours, many had rescheduled their plans. The result is a monster summit push.
As night fell on Everest, Mingma G updated the information one last time:
“Today, six of our Sherpas deposited oxygen supplies and 400m of rope at the South Col, while two Sherpas delivered oxygen to Camp 4 on Lhotse,” he said. “Another Sherpa team is at Camp 2, ready to ascend to the South Col tonight. According to our information, over 200 Sherpas will be climbing to the South Col within a few hours.”
Just one rotation
This year, many Everest climbers have acclimatized on other peaks, from 6,000’ers such as Mera Peak and Lobuche East to 8,000’ers in some cases. With all the delays, expeditions have put their trust in the endless supplies of bottled oxygen. Most clients will push for the summit after just one rotation, usually consisting of a couple of nights in Camp 2 and touching Camp 3.
Ryan Waters of U.S.-based Mountain Professionals has told ExplorersWeb that they are proceeding as they do every year.
“Our team is back in Base Camp from their rotation of several nights in Camp 2 and tagging Camp 3,” he said.
His clients started the season by climbing Lobuche East. He thinks the acclimatization plans and the summit schedules are not too different from previous seasons and says most teams are following a similar pattern. “We are ready, just waiting for our Sherpas to pitch and supply Camp 4,” he said.
Climbers arrive at Camp 2. Photo: Mountain Professionals
Record numbers
Everest is more crowded than ever this spring. The latest update from Nepal’s Department of Tourism on May 8 lists a record 496 climbing permits for Everest. The previous high was 473 in 2023.
The only way to prevent crowds near the summit, or at least to minimize them, is to distribute the summit pushes over several days. Before the usual pre-monsoon summit window opens around May 23-25, the route is usually open, and some better-acclimatized teams try to seize earlier weather windows between May 13-18. This has not been an option this year because of the delays. Teams were not able to rotate to Camp 3 until last week.
Hence, Mingma G’s impatience to get the route fixed and his clients done with the mountain as soon as possible. On the other hand, expedition leaders must remain cautious, since Everest has experienced heavy snowfall in the last few days, increasing the instability.
Everest and Lhotse from Camp 2. Photo: Seven Summit Treks
Avalanche
An avalanche fell from the Lho La (left of Everest) yesterday morning. No one was injured, but the cloud of powder shattered Camp 1 and dusted half of Base Camp.
Halung Dorchi of Nepal, the expedition leader with SummitForce, shared his point of view on the situation:
On other peaks, the wise call might be “next time.” But Everest is different: Our members have spent years preparing — countless hours, savings, and sacrifices. We have the responsibility to maximize the opportunities to realize their dreams, [while minimizing] the risks.
As the expedition organizer, my first duty is always safety, not only for members, but also for our Sherpa team. This year, that responsibility feels heavier than ever. The rope-fixing delay might squeeze the length of the summit windows. [Meanwhile,] our government has issued around 496 permits for Everest.
One no-oxygen climber cancels
Some climbers who came planning a no-oxygen climb are already leaving. One of these is the so-called Lucas Extreme. The Polish man with no public last name cycled all the way to Everest from the Bay of Bengal on a vintage, folding bicycle. He arrived in Base Camp as planned on April 16, but the delays have spoiled his summit plans.
“Climbing Everest this season, solo without the use of bottled oxygen, as a debut at 8,000m, is unrealistic,” he wrote.
He was only able to make an acclimatization rotation at the beginning of May. He’d hoped to go to 7,500m, but the route to that altitude was not yet ready. Now it’s too late, he said. “I am forced to cancel this year’s expedition and postpone it until next year.”
Lucas Extreme of Poland near Everest Base Camp a month ago. Photo: Lucas Extreme/Facebook
Others, such as FKT runners Tyler Andrews and Karl Egloff, are ready to launch their speed ascents as soon as the route is fixed.
