Mountain climbing Dangerous is sometimes called mountaineering, it is the attempt of reaching the peak of mountains using both feet and hands. It involves the use of the strength of both arms and legs combined with the use of sophisticated tools and the knowledge of some technical skills to get to the peak of mountains.
Over the years many people have climbed mountains for different reasons- hunting, surveying, and even for spiritual purposes but most mountaineers do mountain climbing as a recreational activity or as a hobby which may involve mountain biking, as well as rock climbing. It is just a few of them that take mountain climbing as an occupation where they are being hired as a guide by recreational climbers or they are being paid by companies and tertiary institutions to climb mountains.
Climbing the highest mountain in the world has drastically changed over the years as improvement in technology, knowledge and the provision of significant infrastructure has inspired several people to take both the risks and the price attached.
Mount Everest is the tallest and the most popular mountain in the world of about 29,029 feet (8,848 meters high). It has been scaled by thousands of people due to its accessibility although claiming an average of three lives per year. Nevertheless, its popularity continues to grow over the years as it is becoming safer due to improved gears, weather forecast and better technical skills.
How Was Mount Everest Formed?
The mountain was formed when the collision between Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates occurred resulting in an upward force pushing up the rocks that form the highest mountain in the world. This force did not just stop there but still at work pushing the mountain peak of Everest every year to about an inch high.
Where is Mount Everest is Located?
Mount Everest straddles the border that is between Nepal and Tibet which at the peak of the Himalayan Mountain Chain. It is widely known and accepted in Nepal as Sagarmatha and in Tibet as Chomolunga. It lies close to the equator and at latitude of 280 approximately.
How crowded is Mount Everest?
In the 1990s when the international guides began to sponsor and pioneer commercial trips up the mountain despites the risk, its popularity aloft drawing several mountaineers from around the globe to conquer its peak year after year. According to the Nepal Ministry of Tourism, their record shows that they issued 347 individual climbing permits to foreign climbers in the year 2018 and reported that 261 of them reached the peak or summit of the mountain.
How Long Does It Take To Climb Mount Everest?
The best climbing season is usually the second half of May between the winter and the regions summer monsoons. But for a successful summiting, preparations would have begun even months before that short climbing season. Most of the mountaineers will converge at Kathmandu around late March in order to acclimatize (to acclimatize means to get used to the new climate).
In April, mountaineers make several surveys or overnight forays so as to successfully erect camps on the mountain to acclimatize. Trekking towards their base camp will take about ten (10) days, then the support staff and workers that work on high altitude are already on the mountain moving loads and making routes to the summit.
Then by the second week in May, mountaineers would have formed an established track of several miles of fixed ropes leading from base camp to the peak, alongside well-stocked camps all along. Then they take a while to rest while some of the mountaineers decamp from the mountain to lower elevation to recover fully whilst the summit push will normally take place for about four to five days. Therefore climbing Everest Mountain is done on their way home at the beginning of June.
How Many Routes Are There To Reach the Peak?
Routes that have been used to pioneer the summit of Everest are though 17 in total but almost everyone climbs it using one of two routes (Nepal and Tibet). Many mountaineers that are experienced testify that the sum of the difficulty of the two routes is able to compare as their challenges differ.
The Southeast Ridge (Nepal), has a slightly shorter summit day and it is quicker when descending especially in cases of emergencies and mountaineers will have to race through the Khumbu Icefall whilst the North Ridge (Tibeth) is so much different that you can drive a car to the base camp nevertheless mountaineers have to climb several heights of 27,000 feet to reach the peak or the summit.
What does the Everest summit look like?
The summit of Everest actually looks like a dome of snow about the size of a standard dining table. It can contain about 6-8 mountain climbers conveniently to stand and enjoy their view from the top but sometimes Mount Everest gets very busy and crowded such that mountaineers would have to wait for their turn to climb and then stand to have their own view.
How Dangerous it is?
Mount Everest summit has an approximately 1/3 (at 29,035 feet) of the air pressure that is at the sea level thereby reducing the climbers ability to take in enough oxygen resulting in asphyxiation of most climbers. This is why scientists postulated that the human body cannot be remaining without limit when it is above 19,000 feet.
Then as the mountaineers move up the mountain and their oxygen intake becomes low, at this point their bodies are more susceptible to a wide range of ailments such as blood embolism, pulmonary edema and even the heart finds it difficult to pump blood around the body circulatory system at such altitude.
Many times climbers of the mount Everest will make use oxygen tanks to reduce the impact of such altitude. Nevertheless, oxygen trapped in bottles has its own consequences and risks asides the cost and weight of the bottle oxygen, breathing gas alone can only supplement the oxygen level and if it runs out then the body has no choice than to give in to the pressure.
Final Thoughts
Mountain climbing, like rock climbing, is a dangerous sport that should not be taken lightly, no matter how simple or innocuous your selected peak seems. Appearances may be misleading. The mountains are fraught with peril and drama, and lightning strikes may pierce the clear sky. Thunderstorms arise swiftly and soak you with rain and sleet: avalanches and rockfall cascade down mountainsides. Difficulties might slow you down and force you to camp out in the open. Accidents may happen to you or your climbing companion, resulting in various issues.
