Everest 2023: Interview with Garrett Madison from Everest Base Camp

The #Everest2023 season is taking shape as teams continue to acclimatize with rotations to Camps 1 and 2, with some tagging Camp 3 at 23,000 feet or 7,000 meters. In this interview with Garrett Maddison, founder of Madison Mountaineering from Everest Base Camp, we discuss the record permits, his acclimatization strategy, addressing the human waste problem, the long route through the Icefall and their attempt to summit the difficult and highly technical Nuptse. #everest2023

Everest 2023: Miracle Rescues on Annapurna

In what can only be described as a miracle, Anurag Maloo, 34, was found barely alive deep in a crevasse. He disappeared three days earlier. Polish climbers Adam Bielecki, and Mariusz Hatala descended into the crevasse and found him. He was flown to Pokhara and then to Kathmandu and is in critical condition. Bielecki was on Annapurna trying a different route when he heard of the situation. #everest2023

Everest 2023: First Deaths of Season

Debris from an apparent serac release off Everest’s west shoulder has taken the lives of three Sherpas in the Khumbu Icefall. They were part of the rope team ferrying gear to begin fixing the route from Camp 2 to the summit. Searchers are said to have located their bodies but have not recovered them, but early information is often wrong. #everest2023

Everest 2023: Weekend Update April 2

The Everest spring season is starting slowly, at least on the Nepal side of the Hill. The Tibet side remains closed to foreigners. Multiple teams are trekking to Everest Base Camp – Nepal, aka EBC. Each weekend during the season, I’ll post a “Weekend Update” summarizing the main stories for the past week. #everest2023

I’ve always felt that if you are qualified and have earned the right to be on Everest, you should be applauded, regardless of your result. No matter what you read, Everest is not a walk-up; it hard, and people die. With that, let’s look at a few climbers with unique stories. #everest2022

Everest 2023: First Steps in the Khumbu

As we approach April, activity is picking up in Nepal. Team after team has left Kathmandu, taking helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft to Namche or Lukla. There they will begin the trek to Everest Base Camp, Island Peak, or just in the Khumbu. It’s a special time. As I’ve said since 1997, if you ever get a chance to trek in Nepal, jump on it. It will change your life for the better. Let’s take a look at the first steps in the Khumbu.

#everest2023

Video Interview Adventure Consultants Guy Cotter

Guy Cotter

If you follow mountaineering, Adventure Consultants is one of the names that evoke almost three decades of memories. Guy Cotter, who began running the company in the mid-1990s, has deftly led his team through years of climbs worldwide. But in 2010, COVID was too much, and Guy made the difficult decision to put AC into ‘hibernation.’ Now, in 2022, he is ready to resume operations, smaller, leaner, and with an increased focus on running high-quality expeditions with discerning clients.

In this interview, I talk with Guy about his decisions with AC over the past few years and where he wants to take the company. We also delve into this new world of climbers’ linking multiple 8000-meter peaks in a single season, the record crowds on K2, and the discussion in the mountaineering community around the validity of claiming summits, especially on the fourteen 8000-meter peaks.

Guy is uniquely qualified to discuss these topics. I hope you enjoy our chat.