Month: March 2024

If it’s April, it must be time for Everest. The Icefall Doctors are hard at work. Climbers and trekkers are making their way through the Khumbu or driving from Lhasa. Sherpas and base camp crews are building tent platforms and preparing their spots for the teams. Yaks and mules are meandering ever higher, loaded with supplies. Katmandu is filled with tourists and visitors, boosting the local economy. Hang on, everyone. It’s time. #everest2024

Leaving home to climb Mt. Everest is no simple task. It’s not a business trip; it’s not a vacation; it’s something entirely different. While it may be your dream, it can be something altogether different for those left behind. As we approach the end of March, scores of climbers are going through this process for Everest 2024.

It’s time for Everest climbers to get focused and serious about the last-minute preparations. Since their dream began, they wondered how this period would feel. They saved money, bought the gear, and trained their bodies for months or even years, but a few crucial steps remain before boarding that plane for Kathmandu.

A longtime reader and climber preparing for Everest sent me this question last week: “How do you keep sleeping and maintain mental focus 20 days before leaving for Everest without stressing yourself out?’ My answer was: Focus on “leaving nothing unsaid” with those who matter most in your life. Visualize being on the mountain with a positive outcome, review your gear using a mental walk-thru of the climb to ensure you have everything you need and want. Finally, surround yourself with positive people who have fun, laugh, and support you.

For this last step of prep, let’s take a closer look at three areas: Physical, Mental, and Emotional. #everest2024

As we near the end of March, climbers fly to Kathmandu and Lhasa for the Spring 8000-meter expeditions. I expect climbs on all the 8000ers in Tibet and Nepal: Everest, Kangchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Dhaulagiri I, Manaslu, Shishapangma, Dhaulagiri I, and Annapurna. If history guides, 97% of all climbers on Everest will use supplemental oxygen, and on most of the others as well. Here are a few to watch this spring. #everest2024

Teams are filling up with Everest aspirants from around the world. I estimate there will be around 600 foreign climbers, supported by 900 Sherpas, taking the total to 1,700 people on the Nepal side and 100 foreigners, with 100 support climbers, on the Tibet side. During the Spring 2024 Everest season, look for a whopping 1,900 people from base camps to the summit. Let’s hope for an extended period of good summit weather (winds under 30 mph/48kph) to let them spread out.

With a recent summit success rate of around 60%, we can expect about 1,140 summits, with Sherpas accounting for half the total. This would smash the 2019 record summit total of 877, comprising 661 from the Nepali side and 216 from Tibet. Nepal issued a record 478 permits to foreigners in 2024. As usual, the Nepali teams will dominate the mountain. #everest2024

The Icefall Doctors are on their way to Everest Base Camp to install the fixed rope and ladders from Base Camp to Camp 2 in the Western Cwm. Usually, this work is completed by the time most climbers arrive in early April. This year, they attended a one-day training session at the Khumbu Climbing Center (KCC) in Phortse and a week-long training program at Everest Base Camp. The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee, SPCC, said that Conrad Anker and KCC instructors taught the courses. Seven Summits Treks will fix the route from Camp 2 to the summit. Alos in this post, two popular climbs have reopened. #everest2024

The Nepal Ministry of Tourism has announced another “new rule” for the upcoming Everest 2024 Spring season, after the horrendous 2023 season that set all-time records for deaths on Everest at 18 deaths–6 Sherpas and 12 clients. In my estimation, 11 deaths were preventable. Authorities wanting to reduce bad press made a last-minute rule saying that all climbers must rent a tracking device that would save lives with faster rescues. However, they choose the wrong tool, and the solution to missing climbers requires zero technology, only common sense. #everest2024