In the coming days, the normal route to the summit of Mount Everest will become crowded. Most commercial teams have set out to take advantage of the window of good weather expected in the coming days. It is inevitable that traffic jams will occur at key points along the route.
After all, the Nepalese Tourism Department (as of 15 May) has issued a record 494 Everest permits to foreign climbers. In addition, there are 143 permits for the neighboring 8,516-meter-high Lhotse and 56 for the 7,855-meter-high Nuptse, which also lies within the horseshoe-shaped area around the so-called Western Qwm, the “Valley of Silence.”
Rope-fixing teams on Lhotse and Nuptse near the summit
Meanwhile Usually, there are two Nepalese supporters for every foreign client. So in the coming days, hundreds will be on their way to attempt the summit. On Everest, as reported, the route has been secured with ropes since this Wednesday all the way to the highest point at 8,849 meters.
On Lhotse, the rope-fixing is expected to reach the summit tomorrow, Sunday, thereby officially opening the route for commercial teams. On Nuptse, the first summit success of the spring season is also expected on Sunday.
Kristin Harila on Nuptse without a breathing mask
Among those who reached Nuptse Camp 3 at 6,850 meters today was Kristin Harila. The 40-year-old Norwegian has set out to climb Everest, Lhotse, and Nuptse this spring without bottled oxygen.
Harila made headlines worldwide in 2023 when, together with her Nepalese mountain guide Tenjen “Lama” Sherpa, she climbed all 14 eight-thousanders within 92 days – with a breathing mask and with the support of strong Sherpa teams. Tenjen Lama lost his life in the fall of that same year in an avalanche accident on the eight-thousander Shishapangma in Tibet.