“The gateway to the Roof of the World is open,” the Nepalese expedition operator 14 Peaks Expedition announced jubilantly in a Facebook post. Other commercial teams on Mount Everest have also confirmed that the route through the Khumbu Icefall up to Camp 2 at 6,400 meters is finally clear.
Breakthrough achieved on Sunday
In a joint effort by the Icefall Doctors and the expedition operators, a route past the dangerous hanging serac was found and secured with ladders and fixed ropes. The ice tower, which was in danger of collapsing, had long halted the Icefall Doctors’ work and disrupted the commercial teams’ schedule – until the government in Kathmandu pulled the plug and called on both parties to work together to find a solution.
The breakthrough was achieved on Sunday by a six-person team consisting of five Nepalese climbers from three operators and the Polish climber Bartek Ziemski. The team, led by the operator Imagine Nepal, had found an alternative route to Camp 1 and begun securing it.
425 Everest permits so far
As of 27 April, the Nepalese Tourism Department has issued permits for Everest to 425 foreign climbers. In addition, 111 permits have been granted for the neighboring eight-thousander Lhotse and 42 for the 7,861-meter-high Nuptse. All candidates for these three mountain giants begin their ascents by crossing the Khumbu Icefall.