No one actually takes a walk to the roof of the world lightly. Climbing Mount Everest is no joke – it takes a person to be in the best physical condition to take on this challenging endeavor. Despite peak fitness, many people have failed in the treacherous routes of the mountain and have met horrific outcomes. We know that no one would take up to the Mount Everest without proper training and equipment. We know that possessing additional information regarding the mountain can be beneficial when you want to climb. Here for your knowledge thus, we have listed 7 vital things that you need to know before climbing Mount Everest.
7. Climbing Mount Everest is not as deadly as it is made to believe:
Make no mistake about the fact that climbing Everest is as tough and dangerous as it can be. You need to take all the necessary training and precautions before climbing. If reports in the press are believed then you can think climbing Everest to be a task you would never want to undertake. But the truth is that there are many other mountains that are more dangerous in terms of lives lost while climbing. It is said that almost 1.5 percent climbers en route the Mount Everest lose their lives on the mountain, which is really no match to about 25 percent deaths on K2 and almost 38 percent deaths on Annapurna.
6. Time and preparation needed:
An assent can take a person anywhere between 60 to 70 days, this time can include the time spent for acclimatization, and other training routines and the ultimate climb to the summit. Generally people prefer the months of April and May (before the monsoon) as the favorable time to climb the mountain, while there are some who consider September and October (immediately after the monsoon) months as the most preferable time. But the climbers willing to scale the mountain after the rains must keep in mind that the rains freeze the snow making it more solid, this make the climb more dangerous.
5. Two main routes to the summit:
If you slightly familiar with the Mount Everest, you would know that there are several routes to the summit of Everest. However the climber prefer only two route, which have become the two main route to the summit. The first is the way from South Col in the Nepali side of the mountain. The second and more challenging route is from the Northeast Ridge on the Tibetan side of the mountain.
4. Ski the Mount Everest:
If you’re a world class skier, then it is possible for you to ski on the Mount Everest. There are no lodges on the mountain, but the Everest has been skied in the past. Yuichiro Miura was first recognized skier who skied down the Everest from 27000 feet in 1970. However, it was DavorinKarnicar who in 2000 skied the full length of the mountain from the summit.
3. Do not litter the Mountain:
Mount Everest is steadily becoming the highest junkyard on the face of the earth. Climbers on route to the Everest litter the mountain – they leave behind human excrement, food packaging, broken gears, oxygen bottles, tents parts and spoilt equipment etc. There are tons of non-biodegradable waste on the mountain that will take years to clean all the waste. To stop the problem from becoming any bigger, Nepal government requires all climber to get back all the waste or risk losing $4,000 deposit they have made. New dust bins have also been installed in the vicinity of the mountain.
2. Corpses remain on the mountain itself:
Avalanches, blizzards, altitude sickness, rockslides, freezing temperatures etc., all prove fatalon the Everest especially in the “death zone” – area above 26,000 feet mark. If someone perishes due to the harsh conditions on the mountain, getting him/her down is very difficult. About 240 people have died on their attempt to climb the Mount Everest, and there is a very significant percentage of bodies that have not been able to be recovered from the mountain.
1. Climbing Mount Everest is not cheap:
Climbing the Mount Everest isn’t a cheap activity – in addition to the lots of mountaineering equipment and clothing, the climbers also need to pay the sherpas for carrying their kit and to guide them through the route. The insurance cost and travel and lodging costs add up majorly to the overall expenditure.