One morning in October 2024, the writer Julie Summers received a call at her home in Oxford conveying astonishing news. A boot containing the remains of a human foot had been found on the north flank of Mount Everest. A woolen sock tucked into the boot bore a white name tape, with red letters spelling … Read more
Jon Krakauer, 30 years after surviving Everest’s deadliest day, still worries about the climbing season. Everest’s season is off to a “terrible start” due to a Khumbu Icefall closure, delaying acclimatization. Krakauer’s bestselling memoir, “Into Thin Air,” about the 1996 tragedy, has a new edition. It’s been 30 years since Jon Krakauer survived one of … Read more
She set out to conquer the world’s highest peak — and nearly didn’t make it back. Bianca Adler was left gasping for air after spending nearly four days in Mount Everest’s notorious “Death Zone,” an icy, treacherous stretch so high up, there’s barely enough oxygen to survive for even short periods of time. “I feel … Read more
Following years of concern over the amount of climbers attempting to scale Mount Everest, a sweeping change is on the horizon which will dramatically change who can step foot on the mountain in the future. As reported by The Telegraph, a “draft of a new law” suggests Nepal will issue Everest permits only to climbers … Read more
This is peak stupidity. Don’t call it a peace summit: Footage captured the ludicrous moment two tourist couples brawled with each other over a viewing spot near Mount Everest. The kerfuffle reportedly occurred on June 25 after two groups of tourists, who were believed to be Chinese, simultaneously converged on the 8848 Viewing Platform, located … Read more
In April, 2013, a group of Sherpas, the iconic Nepalese mountain guides, hung off the side of the mountain they call Sagarmatha, installing 3,000 feet of the 12 miles of fixed ropes added to Everest each year to aid inexperienced climbers. Because it was dangerous work, the Sherpas carried hundreds of pounds of rope, ice … Read more
A fit Brit with a dream of hiking the Himalayas has smashed world records by climbing and descending the height of Mount Everest in one solitary day — all without leaving the comforts of his suburban home. With the interior steps of the house his blank canvas, Sean Gee, 37, put in an artful performance, climbing … Read more
Summiting Everest would be the feat of a lifetime for almost anyone. For Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, the first Nepali woman to reach the peak, it also meant challenging traditional gender norms in Nepal. And it required transcending a role that Nepali mountain guides have historically played — namely, helping tourist mountaineers rather than taking the … Read more
The iceball cometh. As if things didn’t seem apocalyptic enough already, scientists reported that a “horned” comet three times bigger than Mount Everest exploded and is hurtling toward Earth. The blast originated on Oct. 5 from 12P/Pons-Brooks a cryovolcanic — or cold volcano — comet that measures a colossal 18.6 miles in diameter, or the … Read more
It’s not about the destination, it’s the climb — to the dumpster, that is. Last week, a mountaineer named Mingma Tenzi Sherpa scaled Mount Everest for the ninth time — but instead of appreciating the beautiful view, he found himself filled with revulsion for what he saw around him. As he climbed to the summit … Read more
Hari Budha Magar made history by becoming the first double amputee above the knee to scale Mount Everest. He descended from the peak of the mountain on Tuesday and announced that he had “cried like a baby upon reaching the top.” On the ground in Nepal, he is being hailed as a national hero and … Read more
Ain’t no mountain high enough — to keep germs from getting to you. Humans aren’t the only organisms to scale the world’s tallest mountain: An analysis of soil samples taken from Mount Everest revealed that our coughs and sneezes are getting preserved in the mountain’s ice for hundreds of years. The alarming findings were published … Read more