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Elevate to New Heights at the Summit of Mount Everest

Published by Kristin Cowles, Editor-in-Chief

Country: Nepal

The Experience

The greatest of the greats, humbling, awe inspiring, life changing, and empowering are all common regards held toward the highest mountain on earth, Mount Everest. Those who endeavor to conquer it in their lifetime follow the trail of some of the greatest adventurers Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the first two people to ascend to the summit of Everest on May 29, 1953. Also known as Chomolungma, Qomolangma, Sagarmatha or Zhumulangma this epic summit measures 29,029 feet above sea level. It's hard to say exactly how many thousands of people have now challenged the heights of Everest's famous peaks, but due to the extreme weather conditions deaths are not uncommon tolling 210 to date. Located between Nepal and Tibet, there are different ascent routes to choose from but to get an idea of what it is going to cost you to brave this front costs to consider are the following: license to climb purchased for $10,000 cnd. - $25,000 cnd. (dependent on number of people in climb group) from the Nepal government, sherpa guides, equipment, and transport, making the average trip in the $65,000 cnd. range easily. Trips can range in duration from as little as one day upwards of 30 days which will also affects the price. Mount Everest might cost you a pretty penny, but well worth the price for joining the list of elite adventurers at the top of the world!

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Puzzle

When to Go to Mount Everest

Want a Guide?

Kailash & Everest Adventure - GAP Adventures
An incredible overland journey across the roof of the world to Asia's most sacred mountain, Kailash, with a side trip to the legendary Everest Base Camp before descending to Kathmandu. Amble through colourful bazaars, see Mt Everest from many different angles, and circumnambulate Mt Kailash - a completed kora cleansing the sins of a lifetime.

More Experiences Nearby

Trek Langtang Nepal
Langtang National Park is located north of Kathmandu and stretches all the way to the Nepali/Tibetan border. The remote and stunning views offered here of the Himalayas are unparalleled and well worth the strenuous trek that it takes to see them. The region is home to the Tamang people who have built several Buddhist monasteries among the peaks, which house brightly colored Buddha’s and cradle hundred-year-old silk brocade paintings called Thangka. Setting out to trek Langtang region, we took the bus from Kathmandu to Thulo Bharku, a spine shattering, nerve-wracking, patience-trying ride, that took 11 hours to travel a mere ...85 miles away.

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Books and DVDs

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster
A bank of clouds was assembling on the not-so-distant horizon, but journalist-mountaineer Jon Krakauer, standing on the summit of Mt. Everest, saw nothing that "suggested that a murderous storm was bearing down." He was wrong. The storm, which claimed five lives and left countless more--including Krakauer's--in guilt-ridden disarray, would also provide the impetus for Into Thin Air, Krakauer's epic account of the May 1996 disaster.
Everest: Mountain Without Mercy - National Geographic
When David Breashears agreed to climb Mount Everest with an IMAX camera in order to film from the summit, he had no idea that his little expedition would become embroiled in a tragedy that would make headlines around the world. On May 10, 1996, two expeditions led by experienced Everest guides Rob Hall and Scott Fisher summited the mountain, only to suffer the loss of eight members--including the two leaders--on the way back down.
Nepal Travel Guide - Lonley Planet
Shangri-la exists. Trek to the top of the world, or share a smile with a Buddhist monk; raft down a mountain gorge, or glimpse a living Hindu goddess - in Nepal adventure and culture go hand in hand. With this definitive guide, you'll tread lightly through the best of the Himalaya.
National Geographic Video: Surviving Everest (Full Screen)
Surviving Everest, produced by National Geographic, bills itself as a "collector's edition" and is really three videos in one. The first segment of a half-hour's length is titled "Surviving Everest" and features informative interviews with men who have made it to the summit and back.

Elsewhere on the Web

Mount Everest - Wikipedia.org
Mount Everest, also called Chomolungma or Qomolangma (Tibetan: ???????????) or Sagarmatha (Nepali: ???????) is the highest mountain on Earth, as measured by the height of its summit above sea level, which is 8,848 meters or 29,028 feet.
Mount Everest By Climbers
This site was originally set up to cover our expedition in 1999. The expedition was successful and we received almost 4 million hits from around the world during the 3 months that it lasted.
Everest Online - PBS.org
Explore the most popular route up Everest, on the South side, including QTVRs (360-degree images) of key points along the way.
Everest (29,035ft/8,850m) Nepal - Alpine Ascents
Mount Everest, rising 8,850m (29,035ft) above sea level reigns as the highest mountain on Earth. For decades summitting Everest has been considered one of the greatest mountaineering achievements. In the spring of each year, we embrace this intense challenge by taking a group of qualified climbers to Nepal to climb Mt. Everest via the South Col route.
Summit Bling
Below is the gear list Scott Parazynski prepared for his trip to Mt. Everest:
Travel Report Nepal - Voyages.gc.ca
WARNINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Ascent Routes - Mount Everest.net
We saved the best for last. Pete Poston has created an outstanding map of all the routes on Mount Everest (including the Central North Face). Click the image to view larger, and then mouse over the route symbols and the fatality symbols for statistics (by AdventureStats).
Panorama View from Summit of Mount Everest - Panoramas DK

Media References

Everest 50 - National Geographic.com (magazine)
Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the First Ascent of Mount Everest (1953-2003)
Everest 50 Years and Counting - National Geographic.com (magazine)
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay were the first two. Since them, 1,200 men and women from 63 nations have reached the summit. What does it take to stand on top of the world?
Nepal Puts Everest Off Limits During China’s Olympic Torch Relay in May - NY Times.com (newspaper)
There are two routes to the world’s highest peak, and both are scheduled to be off limits to mountaineers this spring, as Beijing strives to inaugurate the Summer Olympics free of pro-Tibetan protests.
In Rarefied Air, Rarefied Company - NY Times.com (newspaper)
IN the 50 years since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay first conquered Mount Everest, on May 29, 1953, more than 1,650 climbers have stood atop the world's highest peak. Eighty-nine people did it in one day alone, May 23, 2001. (The total for that year was 182.)
The Man Who Stood on Top of the World - Time.com (magazine)
For one who had reached such a lofty height, he was a strange mix of confidence and modesty. A beekeeper from New Zealand, Sir Edmund Hillary was an aggressive amateur mountaineer drawn, he said, by the appeal of "grinding [competitors] into the ground on a big hill."
An Interview with the Last Adventurer - Time.com (magazine)
In 1953 Mount Everest was conquered, and the names of an Auckland bee farmer, Edmund Hillary, and his Sherpa climbing partner, Tenzing Norgay, joined those of Peary, Amundsen and Lindbergh atop the hill of 20th Century adventuring giants. With the death of Hillary at age 88, the all five are gone.
Everest 2007 Photo Essay - Time.com (magazine)
Reflected Summit The peak is seen in the glasses of a climber at a base camp in Tibet, China.
The Sherpas of Mount Everest - National Geographic.com (magazine)
The cheerful smiles and legendary strength of the Sherpas have been an integral part of Everest climbing expeditions from the very beginning. Indeed, very few significant successes have been achieved without them.
The Everest Decade: 1996-2007 - National Geographic.com (magazine)
In 1996, a storm brought tragedy to the world's grandest stage. Ten years later, the spectacle is as bizarre, disturbing, and heroic as ever.
How to climb Everest - The Observer.co.uk (newspaper)
The gear you'll need to tackle the highest mountain in the world.

Language Guides

Hindi is one of the languages spoken in Nepal. If you know of a freely available phrase book or podcast for one of the missing languages, let us know!

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