K2 and Everest Winter Teams on the Move
The Polish K2 team is now in Pakistan and the Everest team in the Khumbu. It will be weeks before they begin actually climbing either peak. See this post for full background on both expeditions and the history of winter attempts on the highest two mountains on Earth. Winter K2 I received this update today […]
K2 and Everest Winter Climbs are on!
After months of speculation, Alex Txikon will return to attempt a winter, no supplemental oxygen summit of Everest. And the Polish K2 team will leave Poland on 29th December for their winter K2 attempt. UPDATE: The K2 team has left Poland. Winter Dates To claim a true winter ascent of a northern hemisphere peak, the summit […]
Young Sherpa Brought to U.S. Before Amputation
One of the tragic stories from Everest 2017 was of Dawa Sange Sherpa who had all of his fingers severely frostbitten while working with a member who reportedly refused to turn back in bad weather. Thanks to the generosity of the climbing community, Sange is now in Vail, Colorado receiving treatment from some of the […]
Everest 2017: Loose Ends
Now that the last summits of Everest 2017 are about a month old, there are a few storylines that continue to get press. In the grand scheme, nothing really changes with any of this “news”. Big Summit Numbers from Nepal Nepal Tourism reported for spring 2017 there were 445 summits from the south (Nepal) side […]
Climber Selfishness Causes China to Close Autumn Climbs
Without thinking of anyone else but himself, Polish climber Janusz Adam Adamski, 49, made an illegal traverse from China to Nepal this Everest 2017 season. Now, not only will he will be punished by Nepal and China, but his action have costs others their opportunity to climb in Tibet this autumn. Follow No Rules Adamski made an illegal traverse from China to Nepal, knowing […]
Everest 2017: Season Summary – A Mountain with Two Sides
This is one of the more difficult seasons I have covered to sum up in one word so let me use several: wind, tragedy, misinformation, spin and summits. Overall it was a good year, a normal year with many summits on both sides plus the average death toll. I think we saw how the pressure […]
Everest 2017: Team Locations and Headlines
Alan Arnette’s Everest 2017 coverage and annual coverage is based on my own Everest and K2 summits and climb experiences, research, sources, and public information. I try to provide insight and interpretation of the activities ranging from routes to weather to the challenge of climbing Everest. I am home in Colorado this season after a […]
Everest 2017: Weekend Update May 27
This season had more twists and intrigue than a U.S. Presidential election. While not completely over, this past week brought a strong end for almost all the teams on both sides of Everest. Many dreams came true, like that of my climbing buddy Jim Davidson (who is already back home in Colorado!), and for others they set […]
Everest 2017: Who is left? – updated
It has been a season of wild swings from the weather to information from the mountain. But it’s not over. Let’s look at who is left and where they are. Heavy snow appears to be arriving on 28 May, so there is a sense of urgency for those still heading higher. UPDATE: Summits thus far Saturday 27 […]
Everest 2017: South Col Dead Body Report was Wrong
The same people that reported 4 bodies – 2 Sherpas, 1 foreign woman and 1 foreign male – were found at the South Col now say they got it all wrong. I spoke live with both key sources last night. Managing Director at Seven Summit Treks, Mingma Sherpa, who provided the the information to Himalayan Times reporter Rajan Pokhrel who wrote the story. Both now […]