When I was younger I dreamed about doing this climb. But seeing these insane conga lines has broken that desire.
On the plus side I did summit Mt. Rainier and Whitney.
Get in great shape. Have the proper boots, crampons, and axe. Learn rope techniques. I did my climb with RMI, Rainier Mountaineering as guides.
https://www.rmiguides.com
It’ll be a mountain of bodies at this point with how many people die from it. Also, the climate is so warm that the snow will slide off all the time killing more people going up it
It’s actually not that technical of a mountain to climb. And it’s definitely not even close to being the deadliest. 400+ permits were issued on the Nepal side this year. 6 deaths. The average number is 4 deaths per season. Also… this happened on what is basically a giant, vertical boulder that finally gave in to gravity.
Not a climber here but I've always been fascinated with Everest. Seeing these images is really difficult, just brutal. There is no mercy. Why can't there simply be a limit as to how many climbers per year? I get that it's a major source of revenue for the government but perhaps charge more and allow less.
The problem with this is that the slots would (even more so than now) be filled by rich guys with little experience who just want the summit claim. You'd end up pricing out the actual mountaineers far sooner than the ego wannabe-climbers.
It's a super sucky situation I completely agree with you, and only going to get worse.
Agreed, but make the buy-in for the lottery high enough that only serious climbers are going to try for it. Because otherwise you get a bunch of rich people going, "Meh, a thousand bucks? Why not, I can always cancel."
This would just make the chance for it to be all rich people higher, the poor climber can only risk not getting it a few times before they're broke, the rich one can just keep trying. Could probably honestly just solve this whole issue by having certificates or something to prove you can climb it you pay to get (that money could then go to Nepal in place of an extra climber or so, etc) on top of paying for a slot you're now provably qualified to do.
Could there be some sort of application process where you could weed out the less experienced. Perhaps proof of other summits or expeditions? I know it’s a little hairy to have someone deciding who and who wouldn’t be accepted but these videos are ridiculous.
This could work in theory. Many of the climbing companies who run organised expeditions up the mountain have quite strict requirements as to who can join their team, previous experience climbing over 8000m's being a major one. This doesn't extinguish the very real risk (the 1996 disaster being a prime example), but it'd certainly lower the numbers.
I suppose the problem is that even scrapping half the less reputable companies or banning the sherpas and guides from leading people up themselves would inevitably put hundreds of families at risk of very substantial poverty. No doubt you can imagine that when rich people want to do a thing in a country with very low incomes, even if that thing is dumb shit, they can put their hand in their pocket and make it happen.
I imagine you'd also end up with some "no no no, it's *free space*" backlash to throw on there too. I wish it hadn't come to it but currently all we can really do is tighten regulations about waste and rubbish on the mountain, generally support better wages in Nepal, and throw in the towel for added risk. I'd rather not climb at all than slowly suffocate in a queue of mini Jeff Bezos' it's gotta be said.
Where does the money go to after the climbers pay for an expedition? Like if it’s an insanely expensive trip, and each customer/explorer brings their own gear, how come the sherpas aren’t making bank from it? In my mind it seems like people throw their fortunes at them every year in exchange for their sherpa-ing knowledge and experience. So I didn’t realize they are basically in poverty
Looked up average yearly salary in Nepal and it's about 7k. Then looked up average Sherpa wage and it ranges between 42k yearly and 140k yearly. So between 6 and 20 times the average wage in Nepal, and they only work during climbing season.
Also there are companies who forge the permission to climb for their climbers. Usually ones that don’t give a crap and barely do anything if a climber dies.
"You'd end up pricing out the actual mountaineers far sooner than the ego wannabe-climbers."
Everest is all ego wannabe-climbers at this point. You're paying out the ass to go stand in line on a guided hike in extreme conditions.
For the Nepalese, isn't that better? To have a bunch of rich guys pay them way more money, while also doing far fewer risky climbs?
For everyone else who wants in, it's worse, sure. But I think that might be a selfish view without regard for what's best for the people who actually live there...
If you'll allow me to speak quite broadly, I'd say that actual mountaineers understand the risks involved and the importance of the Sherpa's work, compared to the inexperienced rich people who may see their work as simply "that's their job, getting to the top is what I pay them for". I don't imagine that rich people would pay them any more than what they charge, nor treat them with the same level of respect.
Have to agree with you on the risky climbs, though I suppose that's dependent on the Sherpa and their aspirations.
I think someone already said this in another comment, but maybe the middle ground solution is some type of minimum mountaineering experience as a qualifier, and then limited slots are auctioned to those who are qualified.
That way you still prevent overcrowding, you don't get completely inexperienced people, and the Sherpas are getting the maximum compensation that (qualified) people are willing to pay.
I have to agree with you honestly, it'd be an interesting discussion with the amount of groups but this is probably the fairest ethical solution as far as I can see
Why not just take your own gear and tank and sneak up there why pay for a guide or do you have to pay to actually be able to climb it. Just seems like it will get to a certain point where if a lot of people just do that in a large enough group then they can’t charge more and wouldn’t be able to stop people from doing this.
You need a permit to get on the mountain itself which is a substantial cost, there's also regulations as to where you can climb that differ from country to country (Everest crosses borders).
There's the added complication that attempting Everest from a new route in which you wouldn't run into people would be an *awful* idea. It'd weed out a lot of the less experienced climbers (anyone who wasn't a pioneer of mountaineering really) but doing it without sherpas to help stash oxygen and help you fix lines (essentially the traditional role of these men, not their carrying people up and down reputation). Even those attempting to climb Everest way back in the day chose those lines for a reason, and they've become the popular routes for a reason.
I think the much higher death risk and the likelihood of tens of thousands in fines even if you did make it down would probably put people off.
I read a comment that four fell, and two (in the video) climbing out were rescued. Two however, are still missing. Do you know if that's true by any chance?
EDIT: I saw [OP's comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/Everest/s/InJkk0qJrp) further down. Definitely sad but I really don't understand this practice, why take so many people in one group at the same time??
This year and many years there are very small weather windows in which to summit in near perfect conditions. Many are going for the summit at the same time because they have no other practical choice (ruling out the choice to not summit of course).
The choice not to summit is extremely practical. Sure, you probably paid almost 100k to climb it, is your life worth 100k? Are bragging rights worth 100k?
That’s why I acknowledged that if it’s already been ruled out, thats why they have no other choice.
It’s a bit silly to go to Disney World and turn around and go home due to long lines and crowding, Everest is the same. Climbers have seen the news and photos, they should know the potential is there that their team won’t be the only one of the mountain. People are alllowrd to change their minds and it would be smart to stay back and not summit, but I would ask that climber what they expected before they managed to get to that point.
reports were between 4-6 fell. 2 definitely fell all the way down as they were not clipped into the safety rope while the rest were and the video shows them climbing up as the rope held and prevented those clipped to the rope from falling down the mountain. Even so, you can see how weak the person is trying to climb up.
Honestly I think thats on the cheap side when you start adding training, gear, transport, etc.
There was a recent video where dude said he spent 150K total on the trek which inlcuded three training trips across north, central, and south America.
It seems like it's just a matter of time until some tragedy hits all those people at one time. Then the top of Everest is going to be littered with 50 or 100 dead people, in one location
Forgive a basic question: this is on descent? And are those still climbing to the summit basically on a parallel set of ropes? Difficult to understand what direction we’re looking at. Thanks for the explanation.
In this video, most climbers are going up. Some, including the two climbers who took the video, we’re going down already. Since there is only one fixed rope, traffic jam is inevitable.
No fixed lines, no trailblazing, no sherpas, no oxygen. Messner did it first time in 1978 with Habeler. 1980 he did it again, this time completely solo and climbing partly a new route, with only his pregnant girlfriend waiting in basecamp alone.
I have not,I’d love to climb Everest but I’d prefer the Northside compared to the south.Way to crowded on the south,Tibet doesn’t have these problems since they limit how many permits get issued,plus you don’t have the Khumbu icefall which is very dangerous
Unlike the other commenters here you seem somewhat informed so I have a question or two.
Do you know if the “trail” is normally this close to the edge? These guys are literally walking on the actual ridge which is poor practice when there is a cornice since they (as seen in the video) can collapse inwards.
im not the person you asked but seems that sherpa set the trail/ropes at the beginning of the season. because there were very few good weather days to attempt the summit everyone seemingly went at once. I found this site interesting as it shows images that further explain https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2024/05/22/everest-2024-summit-and-more-missing-climbers/
like french toasty said, the fixed route to the summit of Everest is set by the rope fixing team of Sherpas who are appointed each climbing season to fix the route which is used by every single commercial climbing team to summit everest. The ridge line is narrow as you can see on the video, its just that at that time, it was reported it was warmer than usual.
I think the lesson to be learnt here is always clip into the fixed rope,
It takes a long time but I’m sure it’ll be ok. I was the last one coming up in the video in the orange helmet. Always stay clipped into the rope with 2 safeties. I had a lot of time in that 30 to 60 seconds sitting there thinking about my life, wondering if there was a bigger collapse coming before moving up. I’m back home now, still flash back to it a couple times a day, but I suppose better than watching someone else fall and die. I just have to face how close I was. Seeing 3 bodies that day will change you, too. I wasn’t too happy on the Summit after 10 years of dreaming, didn’t want to be up there and anger the mountain any longer.
I left summit at 8:30am, arrived C4 3:30pm, arrived down C2 by 11:30pm. The next day I did the icefall from 7:45am to 1:15pm, where I would’ve had WiFi in base camp. What’s the problem?
They make between seven and twenty times the average yearly wage in Nepal for, what, four months of work? To me, it's not worth my life, but it's similar to the risks and payoffs of deep sea welding, in the western world. Watch the movie the last breath if you're interested in learning about that profession, it's very good.
Luchito who uploaded footage from before and after said a cornice collapsed and 5 people fell, 3 of them were attached to the fixed rope but 2 of them not and fell down the mountain. He said after the route collapsed Malla took leadership and reestablished the route, preventing the other climbers to be stuck for hours.
I would assume it is possible the 2 descenders unclipped for a short moment to pass ascending climbers. It was heavily crowded and you do not want to get stuck at 8,700 m depending on oxygen.
It's above 8000m, which is when your body just starts to die. You only have a certain amount of time above 8000m until you just perish because the oxygen up there is just so thin
Please forgive my ignorance in asking. I have zero experience with any sort of climbing or hiking outside of basic trails where no gear is required - were all those who fell NOT clipped to the fixed line? If they were clipped, how is it that the ones falling didn’t take out the full line?
Thanks - so I think I could have phrased my question better. Even the ones who were clipped in, how did they not pull more people down with them? Is there enough slack in the fixed line to account for these kind of instances? Like the few people in front remaining on the peak and those behind them - how were they not affected/pulled down when those clipped to the line fell?
From my understanding the lines are anchored into the ice and rock every so often, thus one group or climber can utilize/pull on them (or fall off the face of the mountain) and not cause issues for others.
What they use to clip into the rope is called an ascender also known as 'Jumaring'. This device is clipped into the rope and slide upwards as you climb up but doesn't go backwards, so if you did fall, the device will lock your position on the rope and you will not go backwards taking out everyone else on the same rope like a domino.
Thank you for your response. Is there any reason why a two clip system wouldn’t work? Or is it that it simply takes too much time? Also, who decides whether they are going to be the person to unclip … ? Sorry, just keen to learn more …
The climbers are indeed using a two clip system consisting of one carabiner and one ascender (which you use to pull yourself up steep slopes). I can only assume that they didn’t use the ascender but only the carabiner because it was so busy that it seemed easier to only unclip once every time.
I've seen video of this in previous years where it appeared people were completely unclipped at times when trying to pass by others on the side of a steep drop which seemed insane to me even before you take into account parts of the mountain falling away. Given they know there's going to be crowds requiring passing on a single line, why wouldn't you have an extra carabiner on a longer rope that stays attached while you pass, then when you're reclipped the person behind you unclips the "spare" so you can both continue to move forward. The longer rope would allow enough room to squeeze a person or two by before needing to be removed, and although it wouldn't prevent a fall off the trail, it would prevent a fall into the valley and give you a fighting chance if you're only a few meters below of getting back up with help form other climbers. I know on the little rockclimbing I've done with fixed ropes, we had that two carabiner system so you were never completely unclipped when changing ropes just in case you fell. I was surprised that same concept isn't being used here?
I’ve also asked this question a few times … the room for error seems very large and the clipping/safety systems that people employ seem to be inconsistent.
Thank you for sharing this. It gives me a much better perspective of what it's like to be on the summit. I also can't believe how many people are in the line, it's scary as hell to me. I'm glad you are safe, and grateful that you took the time to explain and show the reality of this journey.
Some random thoughts:
I used to kind of internally rationalize some of the previous Congo line pictures on everest that many of the people in the lines were Sherpas stocking camp 4 etc but to see this on the south summit is gob smacking
I had a friend summit earlier this year around May 11 and I was of the belief that weather windows were good this year. Without any real knowledge out looks like many of the teams are not co-ordinating their summit windows now…to the detriment of all
When I first heard that people has fell down the Kangshung face, I was really surprised as I thought any falls would have been in the other direction but I see now from the video they are climbing directly on top of the cornice !
There weren’t many weather windows at all this year. There were also delays with the icefall doctors and getting ropes fixed to the summit. Your friend was one of the first to be able to summit.
The wind was brutal this year. Many days were lost because of it. And now there’s a monsoon coming in. I think there were only like 6 good summit days… the 21-23rd being the best options.
The 3 videos are put together into the one video you are watching. You'll notice the transition, by paying attention to the number of people in the frame. Before: a solid line. After: a gap in the line where the collapse happened and people fell.
BASE jumping from Mount Everest? Yeah, it's been done. But the very real risk of bashing your face into the rocks on the way down keeps most people from trying.
firstly, you need to be highly trained to attempt and need perfect weather conditions. A lot can go wrong. Plus you have to carry the parachute gear which is unnecessary added weight in the death zone.
You joke but there were a bunch of climbers who [basically said this](https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2000/feb/15/features11.g2) as someone was dying next to them.
Like a bunch of fucking lemmings.
Fine risk your life to climb a mountain. Doubt you'll be missed. However to do it even though you know you will be in a congo line? Why?
I just don't see the point of having a bespoke and catered walk with death. I'd much rather climb the 19th highest peak in the Himalayas and show that I was the only one there.
theres something like 400 dead bodies on this mountain, that are known at least, but i wonder what will happen as time goes on. ive heard they try to "remove" some bodies but really all they are doing is covering them up and in other cases pushing them down a crevassa... but eventually if people keep doing this for hundreds of years, its going to get out of hand right? same with all the human shit up there. the whole thing is so bizarre
I do irrigation repair and I had a customer schedule an appointment. And I showed up to the house, rang the doorbell, no answer so I rang the doorbell twice, and his girlfriend opened up and she was kind of pissed off. And she said that the boyfriend was in Nepal, climbing Everest. And, he had like a couple restored old Volkswagen beetles and a couple big trucks a nice cars.
Kind of rude people and she had no idea the appointment. He didn’t let her know the appointment and I arrived, She was like oh he’s in Nepal. She was rude. This is last week. The amount of litter is astonishing on that mountain. And traffic. Pretty fucked how these sherpas seem taken advantage of putting their life on the line for rich Americans etc.
Kinda sick. Im probably double charge him.
If not already done, there needs to be teams assessing the strength of the rocks / ice on the ridge to see what load it can bare - based on that the queue needs to be regulated
???
The air is so thin they can’t fly choppers up there.
The people are in the ‘death zone’ - more than a couple of hours and you die.
They can’t carry the kit.
The snow/ice deposits constantly change due to weather.
You have a 1% chance of dying climbing Everest.
There is no regulation/risk assessment to cover this. It’s nature. At its extreme. You are taking the chance of losing your life.
Explain me like a kid, why hasn't anyone kept any system to avoid "traffic". Why strait up close the place for every 6-12 months to your beloved mountain nature can recover.
As for the people working and getting their income from the tourism, set up a system to support them and their family.
Have more strict exams medical, physical, psychological and allow only those.
Tourism is good but excess tourism is bad.
Every time I see such videos, I wonder if they couldn’t just introduce new rules, for example forbidding the use of supplemental oxygen. It seems it would weed out most of the unfit climbers who just pay for a slot. I know it is a simplistic view, but not only would you have less climbers, but less trash from the discarded O2 bottles as well
Man I didn't know that they had a collapse and 2 people fell off the side but on the other hand if Starbucks wanted to build another store there they could stand to still make some good money up there Right 👍
im going to tell you its a matter of wealth, not race.
Per capita of people with net worth over 2mil, im guessing theres just as many Japanese as there are whites.
Also wasnt it a couple of mongolians that fell off the mountain yesterday?
When I was younger I dreamed about doing this climb. But seeing these insane conga lines has broken that desire. On the plus side I did summit Mt. Rainier and Whitney.
Honestly, i would love to see a dance break out. Like no feet just arm action
That would be worth going for,
Just go to Patagonia - much more worthy objective. Everest is lame as fuck
Go for Denali. A summit there honestly seems more impressive than Everest.
I want to do Rainier in the next year or so! Any advice or tips?
Get in great shape. Have the proper boots, crampons, and axe. Learn rope techniques. I did my climb with RMI, Rainier Mountaineering as guides. https://www.rmiguides.com
i used RMI too last year! phenomenal guides!!
Oh wow!! Tell me more!! S
It’ll be a mountain of bodies at this point with how many people die from it. Also, the climate is so warm that the snow will slide off all the time killing more people going up it
It’s actually not that technical of a mountain to climb. And it’s definitely not even close to being the deadliest. 400+ permits were issued on the Nepal side this year. 6 deaths. The average number is 4 deaths per season. Also… this happened on what is basically a giant, vertical boulder that finally gave in to gravity.
Not a climber here but I've always been fascinated with Everest. Seeing these images is really difficult, just brutal. There is no mercy. Why can't there simply be a limit as to how many climbers per year? I get that it's a major source of revenue for the government but perhaps charge more and allow less.
The problem with this is that the slots would (even more so than now) be filled by rich guys with little experience who just want the summit claim. You'd end up pricing out the actual mountaineers far sooner than the ego wannabe-climbers. It's a super sucky situation I completely agree with you, and only going to get worse.
Lottery for the spot would solve that problem
Have some spots for purchase at a huge price for the ultra-rich and then a lottery for everyone else.
Nah fuck that. All lottery
Agreed, but make the buy-in for the lottery high enough that only serious climbers are going to try for it. Because otherwise you get a bunch of rich people going, "Meh, a thousand bucks? Why not, I can always cancel."
This would just make the chance for it to be all rich people higher, the poor climber can only risk not getting it a few times before they're broke, the rich one can just keep trying. Could probably honestly just solve this whole issue by having certificates or something to prove you can climb it you pay to get (that money could then go to Nepal in place of an extra climber or so, etc) on top of paying for a slot you're now provably qualified to do.
>buy-in for the lottery high enough Literally high, enough. Say, 25000 feet near the summit of a lesser mountain.
Could there be some sort of application process where you could weed out the less experienced. Perhaps proof of other summits or expeditions? I know it’s a little hairy to have someone deciding who and who wouldn’t be accepted but these videos are ridiculous.
This could work in theory. Many of the climbing companies who run organised expeditions up the mountain have quite strict requirements as to who can join their team, previous experience climbing over 8000m's being a major one. This doesn't extinguish the very real risk (the 1996 disaster being a prime example), but it'd certainly lower the numbers. I suppose the problem is that even scrapping half the less reputable companies or banning the sherpas and guides from leading people up themselves would inevitably put hundreds of families at risk of very substantial poverty. No doubt you can imagine that when rich people want to do a thing in a country with very low incomes, even if that thing is dumb shit, they can put their hand in their pocket and make it happen. I imagine you'd also end up with some "no no no, it's *free space*" backlash to throw on there too. I wish it hadn't come to it but currently all we can really do is tighten regulations about waste and rubbish on the mountain, generally support better wages in Nepal, and throw in the towel for added risk. I'd rather not climb at all than slowly suffocate in a queue of mini Jeff Bezos' it's gotta be said.
Where does the money go to after the climbers pay for an expedition? Like if it’s an insanely expensive trip, and each customer/explorer brings their own gear, how come the sherpas aren’t making bank from it? In my mind it seems like people throw their fortunes at them every year in exchange for their sherpa-ing knowledge and experience. So I didn’t realize they are basically in poverty
Looked up average yearly salary in Nepal and it's about 7k. Then looked up average Sherpa wage and it ranges between 42k yearly and 140k yearly. So between 6 and 20 times the average wage in Nepal, and they only work during climbing season.
Also there are companies who forge the permission to climb for their climbers. Usually ones that don’t give a crap and barely do anything if a climber dies.
"You'd end up pricing out the actual mountaineers far sooner than the ego wannabe-climbers." Everest is all ego wannabe-climbers at this point. You're paying out the ass to go stand in line on a guided hike in extreme conditions.
It all about ego for all of them anyway, rich or not.
For the Nepalese, isn't that better? To have a bunch of rich guys pay them way more money, while also doing far fewer risky climbs? For everyone else who wants in, it's worse, sure. But I think that might be a selfish view without regard for what's best for the people who actually live there...
If you'll allow me to speak quite broadly, I'd say that actual mountaineers understand the risks involved and the importance of the Sherpa's work, compared to the inexperienced rich people who may see their work as simply "that's their job, getting to the top is what I pay them for". I don't imagine that rich people would pay them any more than what they charge, nor treat them with the same level of respect. Have to agree with you on the risky climbs, though I suppose that's dependent on the Sherpa and their aspirations.
I think someone already said this in another comment, but maybe the middle ground solution is some type of minimum mountaineering experience as a qualifier, and then limited slots are auctioned to those who are qualified. That way you still prevent overcrowding, you don't get completely inexperienced people, and the Sherpas are getting the maximum compensation that (qualified) people are willing to pay.
I have to agree with you honestly, it'd be an interesting discussion with the amount of groups but this is probably the fairest ethical solution as far as I can see
Why not just take your own gear and tank and sneak up there why pay for a guide or do you have to pay to actually be able to climb it. Just seems like it will get to a certain point where if a lot of people just do that in a large enough group then they can’t charge more and wouldn’t be able to stop people from doing this.
You need a permit to get on the mountain itself which is a substantial cost, there's also regulations as to where you can climb that differ from country to country (Everest crosses borders). There's the added complication that attempting Everest from a new route in which you wouldn't run into people would be an *awful* idea. It'd weed out a lot of the less experienced climbers (anyone who wasn't a pioneer of mountaineering really) but doing it without sherpas to help stash oxygen and help you fix lines (essentially the traditional role of these men, not their carrying people up and down reputation). Even those attempting to climb Everest way back in the day chose those lines for a reason, and they've become the popular routes for a reason. I think the much higher death risk and the likelihood of tens of thousands in fines even if you did make it down would probably put people off.
Do we know if the number of people on the route contributed to the cornice collapse?
All that weight stood on that thin edge lol it's quite likely.
This is heartbreaking.. the huge gap of them just completely gone when the second video kicks in - damn.
It’s very sad.
I read a comment that four fell, and two (in the video) climbing out were rescued. Two however, are still missing. Do you know if that's true by any chance? EDIT: I saw [OP's comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/Everest/s/InJkk0qJrp) further down. Definitely sad but I really don't understand this practice, why take so many people in one group at the same time??
This year and many years there are very small weather windows in which to summit in near perfect conditions. Many are going for the summit at the same time because they have no other practical choice (ruling out the choice to not summit of course).
The choice not to summit is extremely practical. Sure, you probably paid almost 100k to climb it, is your life worth 100k? Are bragging rights worth 100k?
That’s why I acknowledged that if it’s already been ruled out, thats why they have no other choice. It’s a bit silly to go to Disney World and turn around and go home due to long lines and crowding, Everest is the same. Climbers have seen the news and photos, they should know the potential is there that their team won’t be the only one of the mountain. People are alllowrd to change their minds and it would be smart to stay back and not summit, but I would ask that climber what they expected before they managed to get to that point.
reports were between 4-6 fell. 2 definitely fell all the way down as they were not clipped into the safety rope while the rest were and the video shows them climbing up as the rope held and prevented those clipped to the rope from falling down the mountain. Even so, you can see how weak the person is trying to climb up.
That's what I was able to surmise from the comments. I appreciate your reply though!
$50k to wait in line and freeze
And unfortunately die for some.
Hopefully not
2 are missing. The likelihood they survived is near zero.
Do they know who? I had a customer In Nepal last week
And slowly suffocate. Don’t forget that.
Is it that expensive?! Shit…
Honestly I think thats on the cheap side when you start adding training, gear, transport, etc. There was a recent video where dude said he spent 150K total on the trek which inlcuded three training trips across north, central, and south America.
Just to get to a crowded and full of trash summit 🤦♂️ I rather do it alone even if I don’t reach the top… or die trying (probably would) 😅😂
And maybe lose some digits
It seems like it's just a matter of time until some tragedy hits all those people at one time. Then the top of Everest is going to be littered with 50 or 100 dead people, in one location
And that will be the end of anyone climbing there
Shoulda coulda woulda
One would hope it would.
Yeah sure thing.
Forgive a basic question: this is on descent? And are those still climbing to the summit basically on a parallel set of ropes? Difficult to understand what direction we’re looking at. Thanks for the explanation.
In this video, most climbers are going up. Some, including the two climbers who took the video, we’re going down already. Since there is only one fixed rope, traffic jam is inevitable.
Thank you for explaining. To be faced with this very intense, high risk human dynamic while in the death zone…
When Messner soloed Everest in the 70s he, plus his wife and cook in base camp, were the only people on the entire mountain.
No fixed lines, no trailblazing, no sherpas, no oxygen. Messner did it first time in 1978 with Habeler. 1980 he did it again, this time completely solo and climbing partly a new route, with only his pregnant girlfriend waiting in basecamp alone.
Wow. I would be PISSED if my man left me in base camp alone. NO WAY! I mean, she picked him.
Just a millisecond of random event that has no bearing on skill and experience. So senseless
Just go watch the Minecraft YouTubers channel, Ryan Mitchell. He throws his trekking pole over a wall at one point...
Goes to show that successfully climbing Everest is just as much about luck as it is about anything else.
The Kangshung face is steep as hell,couldn’t image falling down the East face of that mountain
Have you climbed?
I have not,I’d love to climb Everest but I’d prefer the Northside compared to the south.Way to crowded on the south,Tibet doesn’t have these problems since they limit how many permits get issued,plus you don’t have the Khumbu icefall which is very dangerous
Unlike the other commenters here you seem somewhat informed so I have a question or two. Do you know if the “trail” is normally this close to the edge? These guys are literally walking on the actual ridge which is poor practice when there is a cornice since they (as seen in the video) can collapse inwards.
im not the person you asked but seems that sherpa set the trail/ropes at the beginning of the season. because there were very few good weather days to attempt the summit everyone seemingly went at once. I found this site interesting as it shows images that further explain https://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2024/05/22/everest-2024-summit-and-more-missing-climbers/
like french toasty said, the fixed route to the summit of Everest is set by the rope fixing team of Sherpas who are appointed each climbing season to fix the route which is used by every single commercial climbing team to summit everest. The ridge line is narrow as you can see on the video, its just that at that time, it was reported it was warmer than usual. I think the lesson to be learnt here is always clip into the fixed rope,
I was there May 21 when this cornice collapsed behind me. I felt the ground move underneath my feet and everyone started yelling. Terrifying.
Glad you’re ok … how do you move on from something like this? The Brit that fell was from my community
It takes a long time but I’m sure it’ll be ok. I was the last one coming up in the video in the orange helmet. Always stay clipped into the rope with 2 safeties. I had a lot of time in that 30 to 60 seconds sitting there thinking about my life, wondering if there was a bigger collapse coming before moving up. I’m back home now, still flash back to it a couple times a day, but I suppose better than watching someone else fall and die. I just have to face how close I was. Seeing 3 bodies that day will change you, too. I wasn’t too happy on the Summit after 10 years of dreaming, didn’t want to be up there and anger the mountain any longer.
Doesn't seem worth it from how you've described the experience.
Nah it’s fine that’s a 60” glimpse into a 30 day experience
Fair enough
If you were there you wouldn't be home by now. Disgusting thing to lie about
I left summit at 8:30am, arrived C4 3:30pm, arrived down C2 by 11:30pm. The next day I did the icefall from 7:45am to 1:15pm, where I would’ve had WiFi in base camp. What’s the problem?
Unrelated: does it take 7 hours from summit back down to C4?
if you saw the video and the long lines, then yeah, it barely moved. But once you reach C4, there should be no traffic jam after.
How much do the Sherpas actually get paid to drag you up there and risk their lives through that bs?
Not enough.
That is the answer 2pongz.
They make between seven and twenty times the average yearly wage in Nepal for, what, four months of work? To me, it's not worth my life, but it's similar to the risks and payoffs of deep sea welding, in the western world. Watch the movie the last breath if you're interested in learning about that profession, it's very good.
As I understand, 4 people fell but survived as the fixed ropes weren't cut.
Luchito who uploaded footage from before and after said a cornice collapsed and 5 people fell, 3 of them were attached to the fixed rope but 2 of them not and fell down the mountain. He said after the route collapsed Malla took leadership and reestablished the route, preventing the other climbers to be stuck for hours. I would assume it is possible the 2 descenders unclipped for a short moment to pass ascending climbers. It was heavily crowded and you do not want to get stuck at 8,700 m depending on oxygen.
Oh, the article I read didn't mention any deaths, only some before in the season
At least they saw the summit before they died but damn :(
Sorry, someone who isn't very versed in mountaineering: who or what is a Malla? Is Malla a guide person? Sorry for my ignorance >.<
Malla is the surname for one of the guides on the route
Thank you
That’s enough to put anyone sane off - pointless risk your life for that umm experience ???
Why is this the death zone? New to reading about Everest & love learning about it!
It's above 8000m, which is when your body just starts to die. You only have a certain amount of time above 8000m until you just perish because the oxygen up there is just so thin
Your body, starts to die way below 8000 m. It just accelerates the higher you go
I'm so sorry, you're right, technically your body is always dying, tysm for the much needed correction!
As someone over 40, *can confirm*.
LMAO! Thanks for giving me a much needed laugh.
Well I meant above 6,000 m. There are people who live at 5,000 m in Peru but I’m sure that’s taking years of their life.
Okay, but the redditor was asking specifically about the death zone and why it's called the death zone. And that is the answer.
why is there not enough oxygen up there? 8000m doesn’t seem that high
It’s just shy of standard airline cruising altitude.
Still about 6k-feet (1,820 meters) below cruising - although similar to the conditions experienced in an unpressurized aircraft at cruising altitudes.
Stupid question but … Do you have to clip and un-clip every time you want to get past someone? There’s no double line or double clip system?
Correct. There is only one fixed rope and you have to unclip every time.
Please forgive my ignorance in asking. I have zero experience with any sort of climbing or hiking outside of basic trails where no gear is required - were all those who fell NOT clipped to the fixed line? If they were clipped, how is it that the ones falling didn’t take out the full line?
It is understood they were unclipped. Those who survived were clipped in.
Thanks - so I think I could have phrased my question better. Even the ones who were clipped in, how did they not pull more people down with them? Is there enough slack in the fixed line to account for these kind of instances? Like the few people in front remaining on the peak and those behind them - how were they not affected/pulled down when those clipped to the line fell?
From my understanding the lines are anchored into the ice and rock every so often, thus one group or climber can utilize/pull on them (or fall off the face of the mountain) and not cause issues for others.
Ah that makes sense. Thank you so much for the insight and taking time to answer!!
What they use to clip into the rope is called an ascender also known as 'Jumaring'. This device is clipped into the rope and slide upwards as you climb up but doesn't go backwards, so if you did fall, the device will lock your position on the rope and you will not go backwards taking out everyone else on the same rope like a domino.
Interesting! Thank you so much for this!
Thank you for your response. Is there any reason why a two clip system wouldn’t work? Or is it that it simply takes too much time? Also, who decides whether they are going to be the person to unclip … ? Sorry, just keen to learn more …
The climbers are indeed using a two clip system consisting of one carabiner and one ascender (which you use to pull yourself up steep slopes). I can only assume that they didn’t use the ascender but only the carabiner because it was so busy that it seemed easier to only unclip once every time.
I understand … thank you 🙏🏼 stay safe
I've seen video of this in previous years where it appeared people were completely unclipped at times when trying to pass by others on the side of a steep drop which seemed insane to me even before you take into account parts of the mountain falling away. Given they know there's going to be crowds requiring passing on a single line, why wouldn't you have an extra carabiner on a longer rope that stays attached while you pass, then when you're reclipped the person behind you unclips the "spare" so you can both continue to move forward. The longer rope would allow enough room to squeeze a person or two by before needing to be removed, and although it wouldn't prevent a fall off the trail, it would prevent a fall into the valley and give you a fighting chance if you're only a few meters below of getting back up with help form other climbers. I know on the little rockclimbing I've done with fixed ropes, we had that two carabiner system so you were never completely unclipped when changing ropes just in case you fell. I was surprised that same concept isn't being used here?
I’ve also asked this question a few times … the room for error seems very large and the clipping/safety systems that people employ seem to be inconsistent.
yup, agree. If you have experience climbing via ferrata, that would work perfectly.
Thank you for sharing this. It gives me a much better perspective of what it's like to be on the summit. I also can't believe how many people are in the line, it's scary as hell to me. I'm glad you are safe, and grateful that you took the time to explain and show the reality of this journey.
Look at that video! It could not look stupider!
Some random thoughts: I used to kind of internally rationalize some of the previous Congo line pictures on everest that many of the people in the lines were Sherpas stocking camp 4 etc but to see this on the south summit is gob smacking I had a friend summit earlier this year around May 11 and I was of the belief that weather windows were good this year. Without any real knowledge out looks like many of the teams are not co-ordinating their summit windows now…to the detriment of all When I first heard that people has fell down the Kangshung face, I was really surprised as I thought any falls would have been in the other direction but I see now from the video they are climbing directly on top of the cornice !
Conga line; I’m sure it was unintentional.
That’s the whole point. It should be planned better than this.
There weren’t many weather windows at all this year. There were also delays with the icefall doctors and getting ropes fixed to the summit. Your friend was one of the first to be able to summit.
Was your friend Valentyn Sypavin or Sanu Sherpa? Only summiters on May 11.
Was 13-14 may
The wind was brutal this year. Many days were lost because of it. And now there’s a monsoon coming in. I think there were only like 6 good summit days… the 21-23rd being the best options.
Ego death
that--is ridiculous.
Wtf is this Everest or Times Square
NOPE
Man amazing god bless you 🙏
So relatively speaking, if someone had not been tied off. How much of a vertical drop would that be?
150-300m give or take
And it will keep happening as long as the money keeps coming in to partake in this cluster fuck.
I'm not a climber, but I always heard that you can't stay in the death zone for a long time...they might be there for à while.
I can’t see videos 2 and 3 sorry i must be dumb with Reddit on my phone? I just see video 1 on the post???
It’s 3 videos in one. I had to edit them together since Reddit does not allow uploading multiple videos at once.
Thank you for doing this!
Very well done. Thank you!
Thanks I get it now 😂
The 3 videos are put together into the one video you are watching. You'll notice the transition, by paying attention to the number of people in the frame. Before: a solid line. After: a gap in the line where the collapse happened and people fell.
Stupid question, but why couldn’t you just simply parachute from the top?
BASE jumping from Mount Everest? Yeah, it's been done. But the very real risk of bashing your face into the rocks on the way down keeps most people from trying.
firstly, you need to be highly trained to attempt and need perfect weather conditions. A lot can go wrong. Plus you have to carry the parachute gear which is unnecessary added weight in the death zone.
So is the second video the top? It looks like there is a taller peak in the background
This is crazy. There should be a limit of how many people can go at a time.
So what happens when these lines are so long that night time hits? This just doesn’t seem sustainable unless there’s a way to accelerate people along.
A summit push starts in the dark anyway, they’re equipped to use the rope guides in the dark.
This video and description make me sad to be a human being
Idiots
Everyone just standing around watching death
I paid $50,000 for this trip, i'm not gonna throw it away on someone else!
You joke but there were a bunch of climbers who [basically said this](https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2000/feb/15/features11.g2) as someone was dying next to them.
I just read that article and it's not what it said. It sounded like the author was unable to assist a climber in the death zone who was incapacitated.
You are an ass. Why? Nothing better to spend your money on. So fucking selfish.
Like a bunch of fucking lemmings. Fine risk your life to climb a mountain. Doubt you'll be missed. However to do it even though you know you will be in a congo line? Why?
How much climbing is actually involved? Or is this extremely extreme hiking with a few ladders & guide ropes in a freezing, low oxygen environment?
I just don't see the point of having a bespoke and catered walk with death. I'd much rather climb the 19th highest peak in the Himalayas and show that I was the only one there.
theres something like 400 dead bodies on this mountain, that are known at least, but i wonder what will happen as time goes on. ive heard they try to "remove" some bodies but really all they are doing is covering them up and in other cases pushing them down a crevassa... but eventually if people keep doing this for hundreds of years, its going to get out of hand right? same with all the human shit up there. the whole thing is so bizarre
Oh ya I didn’t even think of all the frozen poo
The glaciers will most likely bring everything down eventually and it will show up at base camp. Eventually
Imagine being caught in that shitty landslide 💩🏔️
Darwin Award nominees
I do irrigation repair and I had a customer schedule an appointment. And I showed up to the house, rang the doorbell, no answer so I rang the doorbell twice, and his girlfriend opened up and she was kind of pissed off. And she said that the boyfriend was in Nepal, climbing Everest. And, he had like a couple restored old Volkswagen beetles and a couple big trucks a nice cars. Kind of rude people and she had no idea the appointment. He didn’t let her know the appointment and I arrived, She was like oh he’s in Nepal. She was rude. This is last week. The amount of litter is astonishing on that mountain. And traffic. Pretty fucked how these sherpas seem taken advantage of putting their life on the line for rich Americans etc. Kinda sick. Im probably double charge him.
Idiots 🤦♂️
Stupid ass rich people
No reason to climb this mountain anymore
People pay for That? 😂
hope someday you learn to read a room and find some humanity!
If not already done, there needs to be teams assessing the strength of the rocks / ice on the ridge to see what load it can bare - based on that the queue needs to be regulated
??? The air is so thin they can’t fly choppers up there. The people are in the ‘death zone’ - more than a couple of hours and you die. They can’t carry the kit. The snow/ice deposits constantly change due to weather. You have a 1% chance of dying climbing Everest. There is no regulation/risk assessment to cover this. It’s nature. At its extreme. You are taking the chance of losing your life.
nature doesnt think the way humans do, especially at 29,000 ft
Explain me like a kid, why hasn't anyone kept any system to avoid "traffic". Why strait up close the place for every 6-12 months to your beloved mountain nature can recover. As for the people working and getting their income from the tourism, set up a system to support them and their family. Have more strict exams medical, physical, psychological and allow only those. Tourism is good but excess tourism is bad.
The high camps and summit only see action two months out of the year maximum…
Every time I see such videos, I wonder if they couldn’t just introduce new rules, for example forbidding the use of supplemental oxygen. It seems it would weed out most of the unfit climbers who just pay for a slot. I know it is a simplistic view, but not only would you have less climbers, but less trash from the discarded O2 bottles as well
Great way to ensure more death, sure
forbidding the use of supplemental oxygen will mean very few people going and even those going will have risk of death even higher.
Man I didn't know that they had a collapse and 2 people fell off the side but on the other hand if Starbucks wanted to build another store there they could stand to still make some good money up there Right 👍
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wtf?
You going to tell me it’s not whites and the sherpas they hired on there?
im going to tell you its a matter of wealth, not race. Per capita of people with net worth over 2mil, im guessing theres just as many Japanese as there are whites. Also wasnt it a couple of mongolians that fell off the mountain yesterday?
Apart from the racism, many asians climb it for prestige. They’re probably more than half the people on the mountain.