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Celebrating 60 years of scaling Everest

On the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of Everest, 101 East explores the real costs of climbing this deadly peak.

Everest 60th Anniversary
On May 10, British climber, David Tait, became the first in the 2013 climbing season to summit Everest. His fifth time to the roof of the world, he celebrates along with a team of sherpas from Himex Expeditions. Tait climbs to raise funds for sexually abused children.
Published On 31 May 2013
Everest 60th Anniversary
Traffic jams have become a common problem on Everest. Causing hours of delays, they are blamed for the deaths of many climbers.
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Everest 60th Anniversary
Climbers face a pile-up on the famed “Hillary Step.” This year about 400 mountaineers are making for the top of Everest.
Everest 60th Anniversary
The body of Shriya Shah-Klorfine lies just 300 metres below Everest’s summit. Her sherpas say she died of exhaustion after climbing for about 27 hours.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Canadian-Nepalese double-arm amputee, Sudarshan Gautum relied on a team of sherpas to help get him to the top of Everest. He succeeded on May 21, 2013.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Every climbing season, trains of gear and supplies are carried to Everest. In 2012, climbing expeditions brought $11.6m in revenue for Nepal.
Everest 60th Anniversary
With no roads leading to Everest it takes days for porters to ferry goods to expeditions at base camp.
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Everest 60th Anniversary
Children line-up for morning roll-call at Khumjung High School. Funded by Sir Edmund Hillary’s foundation, the school provides the best education in the region. Hillary was one of the first two to ever climb Everest.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Monks in a monastery in Tengboche, Nepal hold a puja. Tibetans, living in its shadows, have revered Everest for centuries, as the “Mother Goddess of the Universe”.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Before climbers can even set foot on Everest, they must first have the blessings of Tibetan monks to ensure the “Goddess of the Mountain” will receive them, and allow them safe passage to the top.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Everest’s base camp is today a sprawling “nylon city”. Set up on top of a glacier, it has grown immensely in size to accommodate an increasing numbers of climbers.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Lama Geshe offers blessings to a Sherpa. Geshe, a Tibetan monk who came to Nepal in the 1960s, has presided over Everest expeditions for decades.
Everest 60th Anniversary
A woman comes down from offering prayers at Boudha Stupa in Kathmandu. Tibetans believe that mountaineers must seek blessings before they climb Everest.
Everest 60th Anniversary
Hidden in the Himalayas behind other towering mountains, Everest’s dark-grey slopes peek out in this picture taken from a high-powered helicopter several thousand feet above sea level.