More than 1,000 climbers reach Everest summit in busiest season on record

KATHMANDU: More than 1,000 climbers made it to the top of Mount Everest during this climbing season, officials said on Wednesday, making it the busiest season recorded so far.

Nepal tourism department official Himal Gautam said the final number still needs verification, but the total has already crossed the 1,000 mark. He told AFP:

More than a thousand climbers reached the summit this season, but the final number will have to be verified

According to the Himalayan Database, the previous highest number of Everest ascents in a single season came in 2019, when 877 climbers reported successful summits. Officials said the final tally is compiled only after each climb is confirmed through photographs as well as statements from expedition companies and guides.

Weather window and route changes aided summit push

Climbers and officials said a broad summit window, or a period of stable weather suitable for safe attempts, helped drive the surge in successful ascents. Nepal had issued a record 494 Everest permits to foreign climbers this season, and a large temporary camp was set up at the mountain's base for mountaineers and support teams.

On May 21 alone, an estimated 275 climbers reached the summit of the 8,849-metre Himalayan peak, the busiest single day on the southern route. Photographs from that day showed climbers queuing on the mountain as they waited for their turn to move toward the top.

The season had begun with concerns over possible delays after a serac, or block of glacial ice, obstructed the route. Nepali climbers later established an alternative path. Lakpa Sherpa of 8K Expeditions, who said his team had 80 clients and guides reach the summit this season, said the early phase had been difficult. He said:

It was a challenging start and we were worried what would happen if we couldn't open the route

He added:

But teamwork made it possible and we now have a very successful season with low fatality.

Deaths, missing guide and broken records

At least five people died during the season, including two Indian climbers and three Nepali climbers involved in Everest preparations. Another Nepali guide remains missing after disappearing while descending from the summit.

Guides also said better logistics and technology, including internet access, had improved safety on the mountain. The season also saw multiple records fall, including Nepali guide Kami Rita Sherpa extending his own mark with a 32nd Everest summit.

Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain at the Nepal-China border, can be climbed from either Nepal or from the northern side in Tibet. China, however, closed its route this year. Nepal, which is home to eight of the world's 10 highest mountains, draws hundreds of climbers each spring. Mountaineering has grown into a major commercial activity since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa completed the first ascent in 1953.