Everest removes corpses. Creepy footage from Death Mountain: what Everest is turning into

13.09.202027.05.2017

It is estimated that more than 200 people died trying to reach the summit of Everest. The reasons for their death are as varied as the weather at the top. Climbers face various dangers - falling off a cliff, falling into a crevice, suffocation due to low oxygen levels in the high altitude, avalanches, rockfalls and weather that can change radically within minutes. Winds at the summit can reach hurricane force, literally blowing climbers off the mountain. Low oxygen levels cause climbers to suffocate, while oxygen-deprived brains leave them unable to make rational decisions. Some climbers who stop for a short rest fall into a deep sleep, never to wake up. But ask any climber who has conquered the mountain and reached the 29,000-foot summit, and they will tell you that apart from all these dangers, the most memorable and most disturbing part of the climb was the many perfectly preserved bodies of those who died on the way to the summit. .

Apart from the seven-day trek to Base Camp and the two-week acclimatization period there, the climb to Everest itself lasts 4 days. Climbers begin their four-day climb to Everest at Base Camp, located at the foot of the mountain. Climbers leave Base Camp (located at 17,700 feet), which demarcates Tibet and Nadas, and ascend to Camp No. 1, located at 20,000 feet. After a night of rest at Camp 1, they then go to Camp 2, also known as the Advanced Base Camp (ABC). From Advanced Base Camp they climb to Camp 3, where, at 24,500 feet, oxygen levels are so low that they must wear oxygen masks while sleeping. From Camp 3, climbers 3 attempt to reach either the South Col or Camp 4. Having reached Camp No. 4, climbers reach the border of the “death zone” and must decide whether to continue climbing, then stop and rest a little longer, or return back. Those who decide to continue climbing face the most difficult part of the journey. At 26,000 feet, in the “death zone,” necrosis begins and their bodies begin to die. During the climb, climbers are literally in a race against death, they must reach the top and return before their bodies shut down and they die. If they fail, their bodies will become part of the mountain landscape.

Corpses are perfectly preserved in such a low-temperature environment. Considering that a person can die literally in two minutes, many dead are not recognized as such for some time after death. In an environment where every step of the climber is a struggle, rescuing the dead or dying is practically impossible, as is the evacuation of corpses. The bodies become part of the landscape, and many of them become "landmarks", later climbers using them as "markers" during their ascent. There are approximately 200 bodies lying at the summit of Everest.

Some of them:

David Sharp's body still sits near the summit of Everest, in a cave known as Green Shoe Cave. David was climbing in 2006 and near the top he stopped in this cave to rest. Ultimately, he became so cold that he could no longer get out of it.

Sharpe was no stranger to the mountains. At the age of 34, he had already climbed the eight-thousander Cho Oyu, passing the most difficult sections without the use of fixed ropes, which may not be a heroic act, but at least shows his character. Suddenly left without oxygen, Sharpe immediately felt ill and immediately collapsed on the rocks at an altitude of 8500 meters in the middle of the northern ridge. Some of those who preceded him claim that they thought he was resting. Several Sherpas inquired about his condition, asking who he was and who he was traveling with. He replied: “My name is David Sharp, I’m here with Asia Trekking and I just want to sleep.”

A group of about forty climbers left Englishman David Sharpe alone to die in the middle of the northern slope; Faced with the choice of providing assistance or continuing to climb to the top, they chose the second, since reaching the highest peak in the world for them meant accomplishing a feat.

On the very day that David Sharp died, surrounded by this pretty company and in utter disdain, media around the world sang the praises of Mark Inglis, the New Zealand guide who, without legs amputated after a professional injury, climbed to the top of Everest using hydrocarbon prosthetics. artificial fiber with cats attached to them.

His body still sits in the cave and is used as a guide for other climbers reaching the summit.

The body of “Green Shoes” (an Indian climber who died in 1996) is located near the cave, past which all climbers ascending the peak pass. The "Green Shoes" now serve as a marker that climbers use to determine the distance to the summit. In 1996, Green Shoes broke away from his group and found this rock overhang (actually a small, open cave) to use as protection from the elements. He sat there, shivering with cold, until he died. The wind has since blown his body out of the cave.

The bodies of those who died at the Advanced Base Camp are also left to lie where they froze.

George Mallory died in 1924, the first person to attempt to reach the top of the world's tallest mountain. His corpse, still perfectly preserved, was identified in 1999.

Details: Mallory was the first to reach the summit and died on the descent. In 1924, the Mallory-Irving team launched an assault. Last time they were seen through binoculars in a break in the clouds only 150 meters from the summit. Then the clouds moved in and the climbers disappeared.
The mystery of their disappearance, the first Europeans remaining on Sagarmatha, worried many. But it took many years to find out what happened to the climber.
In 1975, one of the conquerors claimed that he saw some body off to the side of the main path, but did not approach so as not to lose strength. It took another twenty years until in 1999, while traversing the slope from high-altitude camp 6 (8290 m) to the west, the expedition came across many bodies that had died over the past 5-10 years. Mallory was found among them. He lay on his stomach, spread out, as if hugging a mountain, his head and arms frozen into the slope.

Climbers often place rock debris and compacted snow around their bodies to protect them from the elements. Nobody knows why this body was skeletonized.

The bodies lie on the mountain, frozen in the position in which death found them. Here a man fell off the path and, not having the strength to get up, died where he fell.

The man is supposed to have died sitting, leaning on a snowdrift, which has since disappeared, leaving the body in this strange elevated position.

Some die falling from cliffs, their bodies left in places where they can be seen but cannot be reached. Bodies lying on small ledges often roll down, out of sight of other climbers, only to be later buried under fallen snow.

American Francis Arsenyeva, who was descending with a group (which included her husband), fell and begged passing climbers to save her. While walking down a steep slope, her husband noticed her absence. Knowing that he did not have enough oxygen to reach her and return to base camp, he nevertheless decided to return to find his wife. He fell and died while trying to go down and get to his dying wife. Two other climbers successfully descended to her, but they knew that they could not carry her off the mountain. They consoled her for a while before leaving her to die.

Details: Sergey Arsentiev and Francis Distefano-Arsentiev, having spent three nights at 8,200 m (!), set out to climb and reached the summit on 05/22/1998 at 18:15. The ascent was made without the use of oxygen. Thus, Frances became the first American woman and only the second woman in history to climb without oxygen.
During the descent, the couple lost each other. He went down to the camp. She doesn't.
The next day, five Uzbek climbers walked to the summit past Frances - she was still alive. The Uzbeks could help, but to do this they would have to give up the climb. Although one of their comrades has already ascended, and in this case the expedition is already considered successful.
On the descent we met Sergei. They said they saw Frances. He took the oxygen cylinders and left. But he disappeared. Probably blown by a strong wind into a two-kilometer abyss.
The next day, three other Uzbeks, three Sherpas and two of South Africa— 8 people! They approach her - she has already spent the second cold night, but she is still alive! Again everyone passes by - to the top.
“My heart sank when I realized that this man in the red and black suit was alive, but completely alone at an altitude of 8.5 km, just 350 meters from the summit,” recalls the British climber. “Katie and I, without thinking, turned off the route and tried to do everything possible to save the dying woman. Thus ended our expedition, which we had been preparing for years, begging money from sponsors... We did not immediately manage to get to it, although it was close. Moving at such a height is the same as running under water...
When we discovered her, we tried to dress the woman, but her muscles atrophied, she looked like a rag doll and kept muttering: “I’m an American.” Please don't leave me."...
We dressed her for two hours. “My concentration was lost due to the bone-piercing rattling sound that broke the ominous silence,” Woodhall continues his story. “I realized: Katie is about to freeze to death herself.” We had to get out of there as quickly as possible. I tried to pick Frances up and carry her, but it was no use. My futile attempts to save her put Katie at risk. There was nothing we could do."
Not a day went by that I didn't think about Frances. A year later, in 1999, Katie and I decided to try again to reach the top. We succeeded, but on the way back we were horrified to notice Frances' body, lying exactly as we had left her, perfectly preserved by the cold temperatures.

"No one deserves an end like this. Katie and I promised each other that we would return to Everest again to bury Frances. In preparation new expedition 8 years have passed. I wrapped Frances in an American flag and included a note from my son. We pushed her body into the cliff, away from the eyes of other climbers. Now she rests in peace. Finally, I was able to do something for her." - Ian Woodhall.

Unfortunately, even when using modern technologies mountaineering, the list of climbers who have died on Everest is growing. In 2012, the following climbers died while attempting to climb Everest: Doa Tenzing (collapsed due to thin air), Karsang Namgyal (collapsed), Ramesh Gulve (collapsed), Namgyal Tshering (fell into a glacier crevasse), Shah -Klorfine Shriya (loss of strength), Eberhard Schaaf (cerebral swelling), Song Won-bin (fall), Ha Wenyi (loss of strength), Juan Jose Polo Carbayo (loss of strength) and Ralph D. Arnold (broken leg led to loss of strength ).

Deaths continued in 2013; The following climbers met their tragic end: Mingma Sherpa (fell into a crevice in the glacier), DaRita Sherpa (loss of strength), Sergey Ponomarev (loss of strength), Lobsang Sherpa (fall), Alexey Bolotov (fall), Namgyal Sherpa (cause of death unknown) , Seo Sung-Ho (cause of death unknown), Mohammed Hossain (cause of death unknown), and one unknown person (died on descent).

In 2014, a group of approximately 50 climbers preparing for the season was caught in an avalanche at an altitude of over 20,000 feet (just above base camp on the Khumbu Ice Cascade). 16 people died (three of them were never found).

Scary footage from the Discovery Channel in the series “Everest - Beyond the Possible.” When the group finds a freezing man, they film him, but are only interested in his name, leaving him to die alone in an ice cave:

The question immediately arises: how is this possible?

based on the materials of the article.

Over the weekend it became known about the death of three climbers on Everest. They died from altitude sickness. It is unknown when the bodies of the victims will be returned to their relatives. Now there are more than 200 corpses at the highest point on Earth. “Futurist” figured out how climbers die and why they are not buried.

When climbers attempt to conquer Everest, they must accept a painful truth: if the mountain takes a life, it will not give up a body. Currently, more than 200 bodies of climbers remain on Everest. The highest peak on Earth, fraught with mystery and challenging daredevils, is now turning into a cemetery. To reach the summit, climbers are forced to step over the bodies of their predecessors.

“The bodies of climbers and Sherpas (representatives of the indigenous Nepalese people who often become guides in the mountains, editor’s note) are hidden in cracks, they are buried under avalanche snow and rest on the drainage area of the slopes - their distorted limbs are bleached by the sun,” writes the BBC Future.

The main landmark for climbers is the “Green Shoes Cave”. In 1995, an Indian climber climbed there to shelter from a snowstorm, but the stone vaults of the cave could not save him, and he froze. Since then, his body has shown the way to other summit conquerors.

The sad statistics continue to grow due to an increase in the number of people wishing to climb to the top. This weekend it became known about the death of three more climbers: Subhash Pavel from India, Erik Ary Arnold from Holland and Maria Strydom from Australia.

Peak Everest has been summited so many times that it's easy to forget how dangerous it is. Many climbers die during storms or fall down while climbing to the top. Statistically, most deaths on Everest are due to avalanches. In 2014, an avalanche buried 16 climbers at a 5.8-kilometer altitude - after which climbing was temporarily banned. 2015 was the only year when Everest became truly inaccessible: not a single daredevil was able to conquer it. Only on May 11 of this year, an expedition of nine people led by Sherpa conquered the highest peak on Earth.

For those who have nevertheless approached their cherished goal and boldly claim that the height of Everest is just an altitude above sea level, the danger lies elsewhere. In high altitude mountaineering there is a term “lethal zone” or “death zone”. This is an altitude of 8000 meters, where a person can stay for no more than 2-3 days. During this time, a person loses resistance to the effects of altitude and develops altitude sickness. Symptoms of this disease were observed in Pavel, Arnold and Strydom who died this weekend. Mountain sickness is calledoxygen starvation (hypoxia), caused by a decrease in oxygen pressure in the inhaled air. Climbers find it difficult to adapt to dry mountain air and gusts of wind that make breathing difficult. Hypoxia is aggravated by physical fatigue, dehydration and ultraviolet radiation. Staying at high altitude for a long time, the climber becomes lethargic, his coordination is gradually impaired, and speech disorders are observed. The mind and body seem to turn off: at this moment a person can make an ill-considered decision, overestimating his physical capabilities. The climber, stricken by altitude sickness, is in a state of euphoria and actively resists the attempts of his comrades to interrupt the ascent and lower the patient down. He may be unable to act quickly in a dangerous situation.

It is still unknown when the bodies of the three dead climbers will be lowered from the mountain peak. Returning a body to the family of the deceased costs tens of thousands of dollars and requires the efforts of six to eight Sherpas, whose lives are at great risk.

“Even picking up a candy wrapper on a high mountain is very difficult because it is completely frozen and you have to dig around it,” says Ang Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association. “A dead body that normally weighs 80kg weighs 150kg under these conditions. In addition, it has to be dug out along with the surrounding ice.”

In addition, some climbers wish that if they die, their bodies remain on Everest - this is a tradition. However, their followers, who have to step over human remains, find this tradition creepy. Sometimes the bodies of the dead are placed in cracks or covered with stones, forming something like a mound. Since 2008, the Nepal Mountaineering Association has been sending expeditions to the peak to dispose of garbage, human waste and deal with burials.

Conquering Everest is no longer a conquest in the truest sense of the word. There are few corners left on Earth that can be conquered. You can climb Everest to scatter the ashes of a loved one to the wind, draw the name of your beloved girl on the ice, and feel omnipotent.

The main thing is to remember the person whose body now shows the way for others. He hardly wanted such a fate for himself.

Mira stores not only piles of garbage, but also the remains of its conquerors. For many decades now, the corpses of losers have adorned the most high point planets, and no one intends to remove them from there. Most likely, the number of unburied bodies will only increase.

Attention, impressionable people, pass by!

In 2013, the media obtained photos from the very top of Everest. Dean Carrere, a famous climber from Canada, took a selfie against the background of the sky, rocks and heaps of garbage brought earlier by his predecessors.

At the same time, on the slopes of the mountain you can see not only various garbage, but also unburied bodies of people who remained there forever. The summit of Everest is known for its extreme conditions, which literally turn it into a mountain of death. Everyone who conquers Chomolungma must understand that conquering this peak may be the last.

Night temperatures here drop to minus 60 degrees! Closer to the top, hurricane winds blow at speeds of up to 50 m/s: at such moments the frost is felt by the human body as minus 100! Plus, the extremely rarefied atmosphere at such an altitude contains extremely little oxygen, literally on the border of deadly limits. Under such loads, even the most resilient people’s hearts suddenly stop, and equipment often fails—for example, the valve of an oxygen cylinder may freeze. The slightest mistake is enough to lose consciousness and, having fallen, never rise again...

“The corpses on the route are a good example and a reminder to be more careful on the mountain. But every year there are more and more climbers, and according to statistics, the number of corpses will increase every year. What is unacceptable in normal life is considered normal at high altitudes.”

There are terrible stories among those who have been there...

Local residents - Sherpas, naturally adapted to life in these harsh conditions, are hired as guides and porters for climbers. Their services are simply irreplaceable - they provide fixed ropes, delivery of equipment, and, of course, rescue. But in order for them to come to
help needs money...

Sherpas at work.

These people risk themselves every day so that even moneybags unprepared for difficulties can get their share of the experiences they want to get for their money.

Climbing Everest is a very expensive pleasure, costing from $25,000 to $60,000. Those who try to save money sometimes have to pay extra on this bill with their very lives... There are no official statistics, but according to those who returned, not less than 150 people, and perhaps as many as 200...

Groups of climbers pass by the frozen bodies of their predecessors: at least eight unburied corpses lie near the common trails on the northern route, ten more on the southern route, recalling the serious danger that befalls a person in these places. Some of the unfortunate people were just as eager to reach the top, but fell and crashed, someone froze to death, someone lost consciousness from lack of oxygen... And it is highly not recommended to deviate from the trodden routes - you will stumble, and no one will come to your rescue , risking his own life. Death Mountain does not forgive mistakes, and people here are as indifferent to misfortune as rocks.

Below is the supposed corpse of the very first climber to conquer Everest, George Mallory, who died on the descent.

“Why are you going to Everest?” - Mallory was asked. - “Because he exists!”

In 1924, the Mallory-Irving team began an assault on the great mountain. The last time they were seen was only 150 meters from the top, seen through binoculars in a break in the clouds... They did not return back, and the fate of the first Europeans who climbed so high remained a mystery for many decades.

One of the climbers in 1975 claimed that he saw someone's frozen body to the side, but did not have the strength to reach it. And only in 1999, one of the expeditions came across a cluster of bodies of dead climbers on a slope to the west of the main route. There they found Mallory lying on his stomach, as if hugging a mountain, his head and arms frozen into the slope.

His partner Irving was never found, although the bandage on Mallory's body suggests that the pair were with each other until the very end. The rope was cut with a knife. Probably, Irving could move longer and, leaving his comrade, died somewhere lower down the slope.

The bodies of the dead climbers remain here forever; no one is going to evacuate them. Helicopters cannot reach such a height, and few people are capable of carrying the substantial weight of a dead body...

The unfortunate are left lying without burial on the slopes. The icy wind gnaws the bodies to the bones, leaving an absolutely terrible sight...

As the history of recent decades has shown, extreme sports enthusiasts obsessed with records will calmly pass by not only corpses, but on the icy slope there is a real “law of the jungle”: those who are still alive are left without help.

So in 1996, a group of climbers from a Japanese university did not interrupt their climb to Everest because their Indian colleagues were injured in a snow storm. No matter how they begged for help, the Japanese passed by. On the descent they found those Indians already frozen to death...

In May 2006, another amazing incident occurred: 42 climbers passed by the freezing Briton one after another, including a Discovery Channel film crew... and no one helped him, everyone was in a hurry to accomplish their own “feat” of conquering Everest!

Briton David Sharp, who climbed the mountain on his own, died due to the fact that his oxygen tank failed at an altitude of 8500 meters. Sharpe was no stranger to the mountains, but suddenly left without oxygen, he felt ill and fell on the rocks in the middle of the northern ridge. Some of those who passed by claim that it seemed to them that he was simply resting.

But the media around the world glorified New Zealander Mark Inglis, who that day climbed to the roof of the world on prosthetics made of hydrocarbon fiber. He became one of the few who admitted that Sharpe was indeed left to die on the slope:

“At least our expedition was the only one that did something for him: our Sherpas gave him oxygen. About 40 climbers passed by him that day, and no one did anything.”

David Sharp didn't have much money, so he went to the summit without the help of Sherpas, and he had no one to call for help. Probably, if he were richer, this story would have had a happier ending.

Climbing Everest.

David Sharp shouldn't have died. It would be enough if the commercial and non-commercial expeditions that went to the summit agreed to save the Englishman. If this did not happen, it was only because there was no money or equipment. If he had someone left at the base camp who could order and pay for evacuation, the Briton would have survived. But his funds were only enough to hire a cook and a tent at the base camp.

At the same time, commercial expeditions are regularly organized to Everest, allowing completely unprepared “tourists”, very old people, the blind, people with severe disabilities and other owners of deep wallets to reach the summit.

Still alive, David Sharp spent a terrible night at an altitude of 8500 meters in the company of “Mr. Yellow Boots”... This is the corpse of an Indian climber in bright boots, lying for many years on a ridge in the middle of the road to the summit.

A little later, guide Harry Kikstra was assigned to lead a group that included Thomas Weber, who had vision problems, a second client, Lincoln Hall, and five Sherpas. They left the third camp at night under good climatic conditions. Gulping oxygen, two hours later they came across the body of David Sharp, walked around him with disgust and continued on their way to the top.

Everything went according to plan, Weber climbed on his own using the railing, Lincoln Hall moved forward with two Sherpas. Suddenly, Weber's vision dropped sharply, and just 50 meters from the top, the guide decided to end the climb and headed back with his Sherpa and Weber. They slowly descended... and suddenly Weber became weak, lost coordination, and died, falling into the hands of the guide in the middle of the ridge.

Hall, who was returning from the summit, also radioed to Kikstra that he was not feeling well, and Sherpas were sent to help him. However, Hall collapsed at a height and could not be revived for nine hours. It was beginning to get dark, and the Sherpas were ordered to take care of their own salvation and descend.

Rescue operation.

Seven hours later, another guide, Dan Mazur, who was traveling with clients to the summit, came across Hall, who, to his surprise, was alive. After he was given tea, oxygen and medicine, the climber found enough strength to talk on the radio to his group at the base.

Rescue work on Everest.

Since Lincoln Hall is one of the most famous “Himalayans” of Australia, a member of the expedition that opened one of the paths on the northern side of Everest in 1984, he was not left without help. All the expeditions located on the northern side agreed among themselves and sent ten Sherpas after him. He escaped with frostbitten hands - a minimal loss in such a situation. But David Sharp, abandoned on the trail, had neither a big name nor a support group.

Transportation.

But the Dutch expedition left a climber from India to die - just five meters from their tent, leaving him while he was still whispering something and waving his hand...

But often many of those who died are themselves to blame. A well-known tragedy that shocked many occurred in 1998. Then a married couple died - Russian Sergei Arsentiev and American Frances Distefano.

They reached the summit on May 22, using absolutely no oxygen. Thus, Frances became the first American woman and only the second woman in history to conquer Everest without oxygen. During the descent, the couple lost each other. For the sake of this record, Francis already lay exhausted for two days on the descent on the southern slope of Everest. Climbers from different countries. Some offered her oxygen, which she refused at first, not wanting to spoil her record, others poured several sips of hot tea.

Sergei Arsentyev, without waiting for Francis in the camp, went in search. The next day, five Uzbek climbers walked to the top past Frances - she was still alive. The Uzbeks could help, but to do this they would have to give up the climb. Although one of their comrades has already climbed the peak, and in this case the expedition is already considered successful.

On the descent we met Sergei. They said they saw Frances. He took oxygen cylinders - and did not return; most likely, he was blown away by a strong wind into a two-kilometer abyss.

The next day there are three other Uzbeks, three Sherpas and two from South Africa, a total of 8 people! They approach her lying down - she has already spent the second cold night, but she is still alive! And again everyone passes by, to the top.

British climber Ian Woodhall recalls:

“My heart sank when I realized that this man in the red and black suit was alive, but completely alone at an altitude of 8.5 km, just 350 meters from the top. Katie and I, without thinking, turned off the route and tried to do everything possible to save the dying woman. Thus ended our expedition, which we had been preparing for years, begging money from sponsors... We did not immediately manage to get to it, although it was close. Moving at such a height is the same as running under water...

Having discovered her, we tried to dress the woman, but her muscles atrophied, she looked like a rag doll and kept muttering: “I am an American. Please don’t leave me”... We dressed her for two hours,” Woodhall continues his story. “I realized: Katie is about to freeze to death herself.” We had to get out of there as quickly as possible. I tried to pick Frances up and carry her, but it was no use. My futile attempts to save her put Katie at risk. There was nothing we could do.

Not a day went by that I didn't think about Frances. A year later, in 1999, Katie and I decided to try again to reach the top. We succeeded, but on the way back we were horrified to notice Frances' body, lying exactly as we had left her, perfectly preserved by the cold temperatures.
No one deserves such an end. Kathy and I promised each other that we would return to Everest again to bury Frances. It took 8 years to prepare the new expedition. I wrapped Frances in an American flag and included a note from my son. We pushed her body into the cliff, away from the eyes of other climbers. Now she rests in peace. Finally I was able to do something for her."

A year later, the body of Sergei Arsenyev was found:

“We definitely saw him - I remember the purple puffer suit. He was in a sort of bowing position, lying...in the Mallory area at approximately 27,150 feet (8,254 m). I think this is him,” writes Jake Norton, a member of the 1999 expedition.

But in the same 1999 there was a case when people remained people. A member of the Ukrainian expedition spent a cold night almost in the same place as the American. His team brought him down to the base camp, and then more than 40 people from other expeditions helped. As a result, he got off lightly with the loss of four fingers.

Japanese Miko Imai, veteran of Himalayan expeditions:

"In such extreme situations everyone has the right to decide: to save or not to save a partner... Above 8000 meters you are completely occupied with yourself and it is quite natural that you do not help another, since you have no extra strength.”

Alexander Abramov, Master of Sports of the USSR in mountaineering:

“You can’t continue climbing, maneuvering between corpses, and pretend that this is in the order of things!”

The question immediately arises: did this remind anyone of Varanasi - the city of the dead? Well, if we return from horror to beauty, then look at the Lonely Peak of Mont Aiguille...

Be interesting with

All the media in the world went around the selfie taken on the top of Everest itself! Canadian climber Dean Carrere captured himself on the “roof of the world” - against the backdrop of rocks, clouds and piles of garbage brought by his predecessors...

But the slopes of the majestic Everest (or Chomolungma) are strewn not only with waste, but also with the bodies of those for whom the ascent turned out to be their last. The extreme conditions at the top of the world's tallest mountain make it a literal mountain of death. And everyone who goes on an assault remembers that they may not come back.

At the same time, you can hardly expect that someone will come to your rescue. The climb to the legendary peak is fantastically difficult, and only true fanatics meet here. As one of the participants in the Russian Himalayan expedition, Master of Sports of the USSR in mountaineering Alexander Abramov, put it, “The corpses on the route are a good example and a reminder to be more careful on the mountain. But every year there are more and more climbers, and according to statistics, the number of corpses will increase every year. What is unacceptable in normal life is considered normal at high altitudes.”

These people risk themselves every day so that even moneybags unprepared for difficulties can get their share of the experiences they want to get for their money.

Climbing Everest is a very expensive pleasure, costing from $35,000 to $100,000. Those who are trying to save money sometimes have to pay extra on this bill with their very lives... There are no official statistics, but according to those who returned, not less than 150 people, and perhaps as many as 200...

High-quality dry bags from the manufacturer

The unfortunate are left lying without burial on the slopes. The icy wind gnaws the bodies to the bones, leaving an absolutely terrible sight...

But the media around the world glorified New Zealander Mark Inglis, who that day climbed to the roof of the world on prosthetics made of hydrocarbon fiber. He was one of the few to admit that Sharpe had actually been left to die on the slope: “At least our expedition was the only one that did something for him: our Sherpas gave him oxygen. About 40 climbers passed by him that day, and no one did anything.”

David Sharp didn't have much money, so he went to the summit without the help of Sherpas, and he had no one to call for help. Probably, if he were richer, this story would have had a happier ending.

Often, many of those who die are themselves to blame. A well-known tragedy that shocked many occurred in 1998. Then a married couple died - Russian Sergei Arsentiev and American Frances Distefano. They reached the summit on May 22, using absolutely no oxygen. Thus, Frances became the first American woman and only the second woman in history to conquer Everest without oxygen. During the descent, the couple lost each other. Frances fell exhausted on the southern slope of Everest. Climbers from different countries passed by the frozen but still alive woman. Some offered her oxygen, which she refused at first, not wanting to spoil her record, others poured several sips of hot tea.

On the descent we met Sergei. They said they saw Frances. He took oxygen cylinders - and did not return; most likely, he was blown away by a strong wind into a two-kilometer abyss.

British climber Ian Woodhall recalls: “My heart sank when I realized that this man in the red and black suit was alive, but completely alone at an altitude of 8.5 km, just 350 meters from the top. Katie and I, without thinking, turned off the route and tried to do everything possible to save the dying woman. Thus ended our expedition, which we had been preparing for years, begging money from sponsors... We did not immediately manage to get to it, although it was close. Moving at such a height is the same as running under water...

Having discovered her, we tried to dress the woman, but her muscles atrophied, she looked like a rag doll and kept muttering: “I am an American. Please don’t leave me”... We dressed her for two hours,” Woodhall continues his story. “I realized: Katie is about to freeze to death herself.” We had to get out of there as quickly as possible. I tried to pick Frances up and carry her, but it was no use. My futile attempts to save her put Katie at risk. There was nothing we could do.

Not a day went by that I didn't think about Frances. A year later, in 1999, Katie and I decided to try again to reach the top. We succeeded, but on the way back we were horrified to notice Frances' body, lying exactly as we had left her, perfectly preserved by the cold temperatures.

No one deserves such an end. Kathy and I promised each other that we would return to Everest again to bury Frances. It took 8 years to prepare the new expedition. I wrapped Frances in an American flag and included a note from my son. We pushed her body into the cliff, away from the eyes of other climbers. Now she rests in peace. Finally I was able to do something for her."

Too much human excrement on Everest, Nepal says

Waste from the 700 climbers and guides who attempt the summit each year is becoming a health hazard

A Sherpa collects trash left by climbers on Everest. Officials in Nepal say human waste left on the mountain now poses a serious problem. Photograph: Namgyal Sherpa/AFP/Getty Images

Human waste left behind by climbers on Everest has become a problem, polluting the world's tallest mountain and threatening to spread disease, the head of the Nepal Mountaineering Association said on Tuesday.

The more than 700 climbers and guides who spend nearly two months on the slopes of Everest each season leave huge amounts of feces and urine behind and the problem has not received enough attention, Eng Tshering told reporters.

He also said that the Nepalese government should force climbers to dispose of waste properly to keep the mountain clean.

Hundreds of foreign climbers will attempt Everest during the current climbing season, which began in Nepal this week and runs until the end of May. Last year's season was canceled after 16 local guides died in an avalanche in April.

Climbers spend several weeks acclimatizing at four camps located between the base camp (at 5,300 m - 17,380 ft) and the top camp (8,850 m - 29,035 ft). The camps have tents and some vital equipment and supplies, but no toilets.

“For toilets, climbers usually dig holes in the snow, use them, and leave excrement there,” Tshering said, adding that “waste” has accumulated around the four camps “for years.”

At the base camp, where porters, cooks and technical staff are stationed during the season, there are toilet tents with barrels for storing feces. Once filled, the barrels are taken to the foot of the mountain where the waste is properly disposed of.

Doa Stephen Sherpa, who has been leading Everest clean-up expeditions since 2008, said some climbers carry disposable backpacking toilet bags for use at higher camps.

“This poses a health hazard and the problem must be addressed,” he said.

The Nepalese government has not yet come up with a plan to deal with the problem of human excrement. But starting this season, officials at the base camp will strictly monitor the garbage situation on the mountain, said Paspa Raj Katuwal, head of the government's mountaineering department.

Last year, the government set new rules requiring that every climber descending to base camp must bring 8kg (18lb) of rubbish, the amount of rubbish a climber is estimated to typically leave along a route.

Climbing groups must leave a $4,000 deposit, which they forfeit if they don't follow instructions, Catuol said.

More than 4 thousand climbers have conquered the peak since 1953, when New Zealand climber Edmund Hillary and his guide, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, were the first to climb it.

Hundreds of climbers died trying to reach the summit, while others were able to reach it only with the help of porters and Sherpa guides and the use of oxygen tanks.

Corpses on Everest

December 25th, 2012

It is estimated that more than 200 people died trying to reach the summit of Everest. The reasons for their death are as varied as the weather at the top. Climbers face a variety of dangers - falling off a cliff, falling into a crevice, asphyxiation due to low oxygen levels at high altitudes, avalanches, rockfalls and weather that can change radically in a matter of minutes. Winds at the summit can reach hurricane force, literally blowing climbers off the mountain. Low oxygen levels cause climbers to suffocate, while oxygen-deprived brains leave them unable to make rational decisions. Some climbers who stop for a short rest fall into a deep sleep, never to wake up. But ask any climber who has conquered the mountain and reached the 29,000-foot summit, and they will tell you that apart from all these dangers, the most memorable and most disturbing part of the climb was the many perfectly preserved bodies of those who died on the way to the summit. .

Some of them

David Sharp's body

David Sharp's body still sits near the summit of Everest, in a cave known as Green Shoe Cave. David was climbing in 2005 and near the top he stopped in this cave to rest. Ultimately, he became so cold that he could no longer get out of it. More than 30 climbers passed by him, freezing to death. Some heard his faint groans and realized that he was still alive. They stopped and talked to him. He was able to identify himself, but was unable to move. The brave climbers, trying to warm him up, moved him into the sun, but eventually realizing that David was unable to move, they were forced to leave him to die. His body still sits in the cave and is used as a guide for other climbers to the summit.

David Sharp's body is still near the summit of Everest.

“Green Shoes”

Corpses in the Advanced Base Camp.

The bodies of those who died at the Advanced Base Camp are also left to lie where they froze.

The perfectly preserved body of an Everest victim (1924) by George Malory

George Mallory died in 1924, the first person to attempt to reach the top of the world's tallest mountain. His corpse, still perfectly preserved, was identified in 1999.

Trying to protect the body from destruction

Climbers often place rock debris and compacted snow around their bodies to protect them from the elements. Nobody knows why this body was skeletonized.

A corpse frozen in time

The bodies lie on the mountain, frozen in the position in which death found them. Here a man fell off the path and, not having the strength to get up, died where he fell.

The man is supposed to have died sitting, leaning on a snowdrift, which has since disappeared, leaving the body in this strange elevated position.

Bodies rolling down the mountain

Wind and snow often turn clothes into rags, as can be seen in this “collection” of bodies lying at the base of a dangerous cliff.

The sun and wind dried out this body, leaving a “mummified” corpse.

The body of climber Frances Arsenyeva

Feeling great remorse, they returned eight years later, vowing to find her body and cover it with an American flag (which they both succeeded in doing).

After details of the dramatic ascent became known, it became clear that Frances Arsenyeva was the first American woman to reach the summit of Everest without oxygen tanks.

The bodies of other people who gave their souls to God on Everest.

Climbers continue to die on Everest

Unfortunately, even with modern mountaineering technology, the list of climbers who have died on Everest is growing. In 2012, the following climbers died while attempting to climb Everest: Doa Tenzing (collapsed due to thin air), Karsang Namgyal (collapsed), Ramesh Gulve (collapsed), Namgyal Tshering (fell into a glacier crevasse), Shah -Klorfine Shriya (loss of strength), Eberhard Schaaf (cerebral swelling), Song Won-bin (fall), Ha Wenyi (loss of strength), Juan Jose Polo Carbayo (loss of strength) and Ralph D. Arnold (broken leg led to loss of strength ).