commercial mountaineering

Budget climbing on its way out, cried a headline in the Himalayan Times. Nepal has often been seen as a cheap destination for mountaineering, but this perception is changing. I look at the reasons, examine whether it’s true and make some predictions.

The Denali guiding concession is up for grabs. According to the National Park Service it’s intended to provide a variety of mountaineering services of different prices and style. But is this true? I had a look at what the existing operators are offering.

If ever I used omens as a means of determining my next holiday destination, then it’s likely I would have spent this autumn sunning myself on a beach. Luckily I’m not superstitious, and my climb of Cholatse proved as happy and successful as an expedition can be.

National Geographic has just published a series of articles about this year’s Everest avalanche when 16 Sherpas died. Buried further down the story is one startling statement that leapt out of the page at me.

Everest’s Deadliest Day was the title of a debate at the RGS in London last week, about the April avalanche and what it meant for the future of Himalayan climbing and the economy of Nepal. Here is my account and thoughts about the event.

Now that we’re beginning to understand what happened on Everest this year a little better, more recent articles on the subject seem to be more moderate in their approach. I thought it would be a good time to examine some of the things I’ve read more recently.

There were remarkable events on K2 this week, with record numbers of climbers reaching the summit. K2 is regarded as one of the hardest mountains in the world, but has it now become within the range of less experienced commercial climbers?

I’m going to finish my series of posts on this year’s Everest season on a positive note by looking at some possible ways forward for commercial mountaineering on Everest. The aim is not just to make the mountain safer but to improve the overall experience for all who climb it.

One thing every Everest climber has to get used to is hate written about them in the media. Sometimes the hate becomes so pervasive that it starts to resemble propaganda, and one particularly corrosive piece of propaganda concerning Everest has been cited frequently recently and needs to be challenged.

In April government officials flew into Everest Base Camp to meet with Sherpas who had issued demands after a fatal avalanche. Afterwards they issued a press release about the meeting that was misleading in a number of ways. Here is my account of the events I witnessed that day.

Is mountaineering in Nepal becoming too expensive?

The Denali concession: is it good for customer choice?

Cholatse 11, Ama Dablam 0 (Everest arrested for streaking)

It’s normal to say you’re going to break someone’s legs, Sherpa admits

Everest’s deadliest day – debating Everest’s future

Looking back on Everest as the dust settles

Is K2 the new Everest?

4 ways to improve the south side of Everest

The cod science of Everest hate

The Everest Base Camp summit meeting: an eyewitness account