2019/20 Winter Himalaya Climbs: Weekend Update
Climbing in the winter is dramatically different than in the usual seasons, obviously. More expeditions don’t summit than stand on top. There are many reasons for this ranging from experience, preparation, and team dynamics to weather, mountain conditions or just that after weeks on end at temperatures hovering under -20F/-29C and winds gusting over 100mph/160kph […]
2019/20 Winter Himalaya Climbs: Broad Peak Summit Push Stopped
The Karakorum continues to play tough. Yesterday the only team on K2 quickly flew out ending their effort and today the Broad Peak team halted their summit push but suggest they will try again in February to meet Denis Urubko’s definition of winter. Broad Peak – Illness Stops Summit Push Don Bowie developed some kind […]
2019/20 Winter Himalaya Climbs:K2 Winter OVER, Broad Peak Summit Push Underway
Huge news that Mingma Gyalje Sherpa‘s Imagine Nepal has ended its K2 winter effort. The reasons remain vague. The team flew back to Askole by helicopter ending speculation some might stay and join with Urubko and Bowie after their Broad Peak attempt currently underway. But we never know for sure until everyone is back home. […]
How Much Does it Cost to Climb Mount Everest? – 2020 Edition
Quick 2021 Everest Update In 2019, China increased permit fees for all their 8000ers. Nepal was expected to as well but the COVID-19 crisis delayed any moves. I fully expect Nepal and China to increase fees for 2021 plus Nepal adding experience requirements, i.e. climbing a 7,000m peak. Also, there is pent up demand to […]
Everest: Nepal Looking at Huge Permit Fee Increase
Its been rumored for the past two years that Nepal will increase the permit fee to climb Everest from the current $11,000 to $15,000 but now, according to conversations I had this week with both major foreign and Nepali operators, there is talk of increasing the Everest permit fees to as much as $25,000 per […]
Everest 2019: Season Summary The Year Everest Broke
Everest 2019 will go down as the year Everest finally broke. It was one of those seasons where a lot of things went wrong, more things went right and many trends took center stage with new and old lessons for members, support, guide companies and governments. The only remaining question is, is anyone listening? One […]
Everest 2019: Team Locations and Headlines
LATEST HEADLINE May 31: Season Over 11 Everest Deaths, 900 estimated total summits Welcome to the 2019 edition of Alan Arnette’s annual coverage of the Everest climbing season. I try to provide insight and interpretation of the activities ranging from routes to weather to the challenge and reward of climbing Everest. It’s based on my own three Everest […]
Everest 2019: Welcome to Everest 2019 Coverage
Welcome to the kick-off for my Everest 2019 coverage! I have already posted a few articles on 2019 and am actively covering the current K2 winter attempts so let me officially welcome you. This will be my 18th season of all-things Everest: 12 times providing coverage, another 4 seasons of actually climbing on Everest and two years […]
How Much Does it Cost to Climb Mount Everest? – 2019 Edition
This is my sixth year to blog “How much does it cost to climb Mount Everest?” and I firmly believe we are about to see the biggest changes in Everest, inc. that we have seen since Nepal went from one team permit per year to anything goes back in the early 1990s. The key drivers […]
China Clamps Down on Everest Climbs
Over the past few years, I’ve been predicting two things will change dramatically about climbing Everest: 1) It will get more expensive and 2) China will make it more difficult to climb from their side. A recent announcement by Chinese Mountaineering Association and Mountaineering Association of Tibet aka CTMA has shown both to be true. […]