Corona Daily 276: Goddess of the Sky

The official name of Mount Everest is Sagarmatha (Goddess of the Sky), but hardly anyone uses it. It was named by Andrew Waugh, the Surveyor General of India, after his predecessor, George Everest. Everest, in fact, was not in favour of this naming, believing it was important to use local names.

Since the time Tenzing Sherpa and Edmund Hillary reached the 29,029 feet (8848 meters) summit in 1953, the climb has become one of the most aspirational, superhuman, daredevil challenges.

Most climbers prefer the South side approach (Nepal) rather than the North (Tibet). From Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital bustling with foreigners, mountaineers take a short flight to Lukla, then trek about 10 days to reach the Everest base camp at 17,500 feet. In spring, they spend a few weeks there to acclimatize to the altitude, go on day treks, rest, hydrate, and start for the summit in May.

An equally great challenge is arranging finances. A permit for Everest costs $11000. But that’s not all. A foreign mountaineer needs to spend $60000-$70000 if he dreams of making the ascent. Other than the permit, you pay the wages of the Sherpa guides, porters, kitchen staff, transport, hotels and food.

Nepal is one of the poorest countries, the average wage is $3 a day. Everest is a key source of income. Considering the treacherous climb, there should be some criteria for age, fitness and experience. However, the Nepal government hands over permits to anyone who pays. Dubious adventure companies take untrained climbers. 2019 was a boom year for Nepal. It earned $ 2 billion from tourism. A million Nepalese including pilots, porters, Sherpas and cooks were employed in tourism. It was also the deadliest season when at least 11 deaths were reported in May 2019.

Out of the nearly 5000 people who reached the top since 1953, more than 300 have perished. 200 of those bodies are still scattered on Everest. The subzero temperatures preserve the bodies for years. The body of George Mallory, an English mountaineer, who disappeared in 1924, was found in 1999. Morbid as it may sound, several well-known bodies now serve as milestones. (One corpse is called Green Boots). This is because getting the frozen bodies back is a greater challenge. I recommend an extraordinarily poignant NYT story “Deliverance from 27000 feet” that describes the Sherpa attempt to bring back the body of an Indian climber several months after his death.

The unregulated permit regime has resulted in making the climb more dangerous. One climber described the long chain of climbers pushing and shoving one another to take selfies. Some 20 people standing on a surface the size of two ping-pong tables. Because of the crowding, people wait for hours in line, chest to chest, on an icy, rocky ridge. This climber stepped around the body of a woman who had just died. Climbers complain of theft and heaps of trash on the mountain. Sherpas say some deaths occur because the long lines prevent the climbers from replenishing oxygen supply. The government inspectors found many oxygen cylinders were leaking, exploding or improperly filled in the black market.

Obviously, there are no cops at the top of the mountain to keep an eye.

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Despite the criticism, the Nepali government issued a record number of permits last year. 2020 was declared as the “Visit Nepal Year”. The government had an ambitious plan of doubling the number of tourists to 2 million.

On 12 March 2020, fearing the novel coronavirus, Nepal closed its borders, and all peaks including Mount Everest.

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(To be continued tomorrow.)

Ravi