The 2024 spring climbing season on Mount Everest has concluded, with all expedition agencies wrapping up their climbs of the world’s highest peak. The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee has commenced the work to close the Khumbu Icefall route, the only access point for Everest, Lhotse, and Nuptse.
According to the Department of Tourism, the last remaining expedition teams from Elite Exped, 8K Expeditions, and Pioneer Adventure have already returned to base camp after concluding their missions. The icefall doctors are starting to remove ladders from the icefall today.
Around 600 climbers, including guides, have summited the peak this season, although the exact number will be known after verification. The department issued 421 climbing permits to fee-paying clients for Everest this season. There were 656 ascents recorded in 2023 when Nepal issued a record 478 climbing permits.
Several new records were set this season. Veteran guide Kami Rita Sherpa achieved a milestone by completing a double summit of Everest, bringing his total summits to 30, extending his lead over Pasang Dawa Sherpa, who has 27 summits.
British climber Kenton Cool scaled Everest for the 18th time, marking the highest number of ascents by any non-Sherpa climber.
Nepali climber Phunjo Jhangmu Lama reclaimed the title for the fastest female ascent of Everest, reaching the summit in 14 hours and 31 minutes, surpassing the previous record held by Ada Tsang Yin-hung of Hong Kong.
Purnima Shrestha has made history by becoming the first woman to climb Mount Everest three times in a single climbing season. Shrestha, a photojournalist, has climbed eight of the 14 eight-thousanders.
Dawa Finjok Sherpa, a guide with Seven Summit Treks, summited Everest for the third time this season in just 8 days, 13 hours, and 35 minutes, and is reportedly making a fourth attempt.
Polish climber Piotr Jerzy Krzyzowski made history by becoming the first and fastest person to summit both Lhotse and Everest without supplemental oxygen, completing the feat in 1 day, 23 hours, and 22 minutes.
Despite the achievements, the season also witnessed its share of tragedies. The Department of Tourism confirmed the deaths of at least six climbers on the Everest route, with three others still missing.
The deceased include Nepali climber Binod Babu Bastakoti, 37, Mongolian climbers Usukhjargal Tsedendamba, 53, and Purevsuren Lkhagvajav, 31, Kenyan climber Joshua Cheruiyot Kirui, 40, Indian Banshi Lal, 46, and Romanian climber Gabriel Viorel Tabara, 48. Tabara was attempting to climb Lhotse.
The missing climbers include British climber Daniel Paul Paterson, 40, his Sherpa guide Pas Tenji Sherpa, 23, and Nawang Sherpa, a 44-year-old guide. The search for Paterson and his guide has been halted, and they are now presumed dead, joining dozens of others whose bodies have never been recovered on Everest.
