Mount Everest Climb: Mountaineers Attempting To Scale Peak Despite Dangerous Ice Block
Numerous climbers are trying to scale Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak, despite an unstable ice block dangerously hanging over the key trail, high travel costs and increased permit fees. Around 492 climbers and as many Nepali climbing guides are gearing up for the ascent to the nearly 29,000-foot-high peak during the much anticipated window of good weather on the mountain. Climbers began gathering in April at the base camp, which is at an altitude of 17,340 feet. But for more than two weeks a massive and unstable block of ice, or serac, stalled them from moving further up the peak. The serac is part of the Khumbu Icefall, a constantly shifting glacier with deep crevasses and huge pieces of overhanging ice that can be as big as a 10-story building. The section is considered one of the trickiest to climb.
Mountaineers' tents are pitched at the base camp before their ascent of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers ascend Khumbu Icefall on their way to the summit of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers ascend from Lhotse Face to Camp 1 on their way to the summit of Mount Everest in Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers ascend Khumbu Icefall on their way to the summit of Mount Everest in Kathmandu, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers' and guides' tents are spread over at the base camp of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Prayers flags furl over the guides' and mountaineers' tents at the base camp of the Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mount Everest is seen, center left, from base camp in Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Snow covers tents during a period of inclement weather at the Everest Base Camp, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers participate in a training session at the Khumbu Icefall as they prepare for their ascent to the summit of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Guides and mountaineers stand outside their tents during acclimatization period before attempting the Mount Everest ascent at the base camp, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
Mountaineers participate in a training session at the Khumbu Icefall as they prepare for their ascent to the summit of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
A trail of mountaineers' headlamps is visible from Everest Base Camp as climbers ascend toward the summit of Mount Everest, Nepal. | Photo: AP/Pasang Rinzee Sherpa
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