We packed our bags this morning and are ready to march on Mount Everest! The altitude at the foot of Mount Everest has reached more than 5,000 meters. This gives me mixed joys and sorrows. Hi, I never dared to think that we could also climb Mount Everest (at the foot). Worry is that the body cannot bear the altitude sickness. In this mood, we are driving on the mountain road, the highest peak in the world. According to online information: Mount Everest, which means “Our Lady” in Tibetan, is the highest peak in the world at 8,848 meters above sea level. It is located on the border between China and Nepal in the middle section of the Himalayas, just south of Tingri County, Xigaze Region, Tibet. The peak is covered with snow all year round, a holy sight. The Mount Everest region has 4 peaks above 8000 meters and 38 peaks above 7000 meters, which is known as the third-class of the earth. We drove off at 6:00 in the morning to take a photo of the sunrise at the foot of Mount Everest. We put on thick down jackets, hats and gloves, fully armed in the cold morning, waiting patiently for the sunrise, half an hour later, the sun will not Reluctantly rising from the east, suddenly the reddishness of the snow-capped mountains was reflected, and it was fleeting. We chose the location of Mount Everest to be poor, and we were afraid of physical exhaustion, so we didn’t dare to go too close and too far away , I feel that the photo effect of Mount Everest is not very ideal. On the top of the mountain opposite to Mount Everest, an old Tibetan woman came to us. She was holding a basin in her hand. There were many ancient fossils in it, shaped like shells. According to her, this was buried underground on Mount Everest. Fossils formed over thousands of years are sold to everyone. One costs 80-100 yuan. I’m afraid it is fake, so I didn’t buy it. I regret it now, even if it is fake, what about? It is not easy for the elderly to live on the plateau, even if it is to help the poor, even if it is to buy a souvenir, alas, I don’t know how they had that idea at the time. The top of Mount Everest is covered with snow and ice all year round. The glacier covers an area of ​​10,000 square kilometers. Although we did not photograph the magnificent beauty of Mount Everest, it is also a rare experience in life to witness the true face of Mount Everest with our own eyes! At this moment, the sun was already hanging high in the sky, and we put away the photographic equipment and rushed to our place. All the girls and the driver Ali Wang (middle) took a group photo in front of Mount Everest. When we arrived at the new place of residence, we all allocated our rooms and arranged our luggage. A team of people went to the famous Mount Everest base camp to check in and shoot without worrying about the fatigue. For the sake of environmental protection, I can only go to Mount Everest Base Camp by horse-drawn carriage. This makes me happier. It has been a long time since I took a horse-drawn carriage. It’s also very interesting to feel the sound of ticking horseshoes echoing on the mountain road in the wild. . Sitting on the carriage, the wind was very strong, and a chill was blowing towards me, but this couldn’t conceal my excitement. We followed the carriage driver to sing a familiar Tibetan folk song, and the beautiful tunes were flying in the sky… The carriage drove for about an hour and a half, and finally arrived at the Everest Base Camp, the so-called Everest Base Camp, but it was a canvas tent built by the Tibetans here. Somewhat disappointed me, the excitement came down immediately, and I had no choice but to Take a picture in front of the stone stele that was erected. The stele reads in various words: “Mount Everest Base Camp, elevation: 5200m”. In the Everest Base Camp, there are attentive Tibetan girls waiting for the arrival of tourists in front of every tent, welcoming you to enter the tent and drink sweet tea. We have been running outside for so long, and our bodies have long been frozen. Drink a cup Hot sweet tea is very necessary to warm the body. After staying in the base camp for an hour, we went down to the Rongbuk Monastery residence to shoot the sunset. In the evening, everyone was photographing the sunset on the mountain outside the residence. At about eight o’clock, the teammates who photographed the sunset came back. Everyone went to a small restaurant for dinner. The small restaurant was opened by Tibetan compatriots. The environment was not very good and there were too many people. , The meal is simple, it can fill the stomach on the plateau, and there can be no too high requirements. We stayed in the inn at Rongbuk Monastery. The accommodation conditions were very poor. The room only had two small wooden beds. The quilts covered were not cleaned for a long time. Fortunately, everyone prepared sleeping bags and could get in to sleep. I looked up at a small light bulb that was flickering on and off from the ceiling of the roof. There was no electricity in the middle of the night, so I could only use my flashlight to illuminate. The night on Mount Everest was a painful experience for me. Due to altitude sickness, I felt like I was suffering all night, too sad. I couldn’t sleep all night, I had difficulty breathing, and I needed to gasp to feel a little bit better. Once I lay down, it was difficult to breathe. I could only sit or stand all night, and couldn’t lie down at all. There is no way, in the end I have to go outside to see the stars and observe the twinkling starry sky. Only in this way can I turn the pain into pleasure, so that my breathing seems to be smoother. Because of sleepless night, I will never forget it! There is another thing worth remembering in Mount Everest, and this thing makes me especially touched! The spirit of friendship is carried forward in a difficult environment! One of our teammates in the three cars is a boy from Hong Kong. He is 1.8 meters tall and tall and burly. Unexpectedly, he just got down on the way to Mount Everest. When he arrived at the base camp, he remained unconscious at night. The three male team members who were in the same room kept bringing him water, feeding medicine, picking up urine, and looking for a doctor. They were so busy that they stayed up all night. In fact, everyone has different degrees of reaction on the plateau, and many people did not know each other before they came, and the common hobbies have come together. They do their best to take care of others regardless of their personal safety. This kind of selfless dedication and friendship Spirit is worth learning! Early the next morning, everyone was panicked when they saw the poor health of this teammate, and agreed to send him back to Lhasa for treatment. Since there was no car to go down the mountain at night, they had to wait until dawn. At dawn, after we waited for the eco-car to arrive, a Tibetan compatriot helped him put him on the eco-car, and the eco-car immediately set off to run down the mountain… Later, the Hong Kong guy was treated in the hospital and recovered. He returned to Hong Kong and his physical condition improved greatly. At that time, the doctor diagnosed him as suffering from pulmonary edema. He also said that if he came late for a while, his life would be in danger. Unforgettable day and night experience on Mount Everest! I think that I don’t know if I will come here in this life. The magnificent scenery of Mount Everest is indeed unforgettable, but the body’s endurance has reached its limit, which makes me feel lingering fears every time I remember! Goodbye, Mount Everest! I have imprinted your majesty and majesty deeply in my mind……..

The first blind Asian to climb Mount Everest. Photo: InHope Pictures “It doesn’t matter if you are disabled or normal, whether you are blind or have no arms or legs, as long as you have a strong will, you can always accomplish something that others cannot ,” Zhang told Reuters news agency. Zhang conquered the 8,849m high Himalayas on May 24 with three guides and returned to the camp on May 27. Born in Chongqing City, Zhang lost his sight at the age of 21 due to glaucoma. He was inspired by Erik Weihenmayer, an American blind climber who climbed Mount Everest in 2001. After that, Zhang started climbing with the guidance of a friend, Qiang Zi. Nepal reopened Mount Everest to foreigners in April after a period of closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic. “I was still scared because I couldn’t see where I was going and couldn’t find my center of gravity, so sometimes I would fall. However, I still think that even if it’s difficult, I still have to face it. It’s part of climbing. There is difficulty, there is danger, and this is what climbing means.”

Someone once said that “everyone has a dream of Mount Everest”. This may be a bit exaggerated, but there are indeed many people who want to see the beauty of the world’s highest peak. After traveling by car to Lhasa, Tibet, many friends would choose to spend four more days to visit the Everest Base Camp. After careful planning, our itinerary was shortened by one day. The car is driving along the G219 highway and you will see the arch-style building of “You have entered the Everest National Nature Reserve” close to the Mount Everest Service Center, but it still takes a long way to get to the place where you bought the ticket. There are more than 100 kilometers from the Everest Service Center next to the national highway to the base camp. We are traveling by car. In addition to buying tickets, we also need to buy car tolls. After entering the scenic spot, private vehicles cannot directly reach the base camp. You need to transfer to the bus in the scenic spot at Jingjiao Station. If you live at the foot of Mount Everest at night, you can tell the driver the specific location in advance when you return, and you can get off at the nearest intersection. Since the Everest Base Camp is located in the border area, a border control permit is required to travel here. The border defense permit can be processed in the urban area of ​​Xigaze, and it usually takes about half an hour to get it. It takes about an hour for the car to enter the Mount Everest scenic spot to reach Jingjiao Station. The high-altitude areas along the way, except for the surrounding villages where you can see grass, most of the other locations are very desolate. The circling and curved road is like the intestines in the human body, which is particularly shocking when viewed from a height. Go towards Jingjiao Station and pass the Gaura Pass Observation Deck on the way. The altitude here is more than 5200 meters, because at the same time you can see Makalu, Lhotse, Everest, Cho Oyu, Shishapangma Five snow peaks with an altitude of more than 8000 meters are called “the world’s most spectacular viewing platform”. We entered the mountain in the afternoon. The clouds and fog were relatively heavy, and we could only see the nearby hills and roads. We couldn’t clearly see the true appearance of the five snowy peaks. It was a little regrettable. Mount Everest is 88.886 meters above sea level, and the base camp that tourists can reach is 5200 meters above sea level. There is no vegetation here, only endless gale, dense sand and steep rocks and mountain peaks. Due to the bad weather, we can only vaguely see half of the mountainside of Mount Everest. We originally thought that the base camp was a scientific research base lined with buildings or tents. Only when we came here, we found that it was just a relatively flat and empty hillside. The base camp is the nearest place for ordinary tourists to appreciate the true beauty of Mount Everest and take pictures. The wind is strong because it is a vent. Due to the high altitude, you need to take adequate warmth to stay here, focusing on protecting your head and neck to avoid high resistance caused by strong winds. If you have had high-risk symptoms before going up the mountain, don’t go up the mountain. An unknowing friend asked me “Can ordinary tourists climb Mount Everest?” The answer is of course no. The climatic conditions on the top of Mount Everest are complicated. Only scientific expedition teams, professional mountaineering teams, and professionally trained and reported teams can climb. Moreover, it is necessary to choose seasons with relatively good natural conditions. It is not always suitable to climb the summit. Now that I have come to the base camp, no matter what the scenery is, a few group photos are still necessary. There are two main photo spots in the base camp, one is the survey monument at an altitude of 8844.43 meters (new data has not been updated), the other is the base camp monument at an altitude of 5,200 meters, and there is a sign with the words “318 Must Drive in This Life” on the left, starting from west Sichuan 318 line walking, there are many such brands along the way. Next to Mount Everest Base Camp, there is a Rongbude Temple with an altitude of about 5,300 meters. It is the highest temple in the world. It is hard to imagine that there are temples in such a barren and oxygen-deficient place. We stayed in the village at the foot of Mount Everest for one night, and prepared to leave the scenic spot with regret the next day. Unexpectedly, the visibility was high in the morning. We actually saw the true beauty of Mount Everest and drove the car excitedly all the way to the Wula Pass. I stayed at the viewing platform for half an hour, taking various photos. The light in the morning is soft, and the peaks are particularly serene under the shining of the sun. Is Mount Everest beautiful? In terms of personal feeling, it’s not really good-looking, and it’s not particularly shocking. The main reason is that it’s far away and doesn’t have the feeling of falling directly at the foot of the mountain. From the perspective of scenery alone, it is even better to admire Nanga Bawa in the Yarlung Zangbo River Grand Canyon, or to admire the Yulong Snow Mountain in the Blue Moon Valley of Lijiang, but some people say that the scenery of Mount Everest is very magnificent and worthwhile. Different people have different opinions on beauty. If there is water embellishment here, I believe it will look much better. No matter what, Mount Everest is here. It is characterized by height and unique king spirit. It is fortunate to see the true face, which will be unforgettable in a lifetime. Special suggestions: Self-driving tours, chartered tours and group tours are better, pay attention to the problem of high reaction, and go according to your ability.

For almost a month, he had been waiting there while a group of Sherpa guides scouted the route and fixed the climbing rope from the assembly point to the summit. This year’s climbing season has about 1,500 people joining the support staff. Along with more than 400 other people present at the foot of Mount Everest, the young man hopes to make his lifelong dream come true. At that time, a climbing friend carefully brought some rapid test kits for SARS-CoV-2 virus antigen due to the pandemic raging in Nepal and India. Joshi also participated in the testing. However, a bad news interrupted Joshi’s excitement: he tested positive for Covid-19. Not believing his ears, the guy tested himself again but it still showed the same results. “The scene was actually quite noisy. The team still had to continue the journey without me no matter how much the trip meant to me,” he said. Covid-19 climbing season This year’s climbing season took place under the most extraordinary circumstances. Despite concerns about a second wave of the epidemic, Nepal decided to reopen Mount Everest and other mountains after a year of closure. At the end of March 2021, Joshi arrived in Kathmandu (Nepal) and set out to the meeting point at the foot of the mountain. Around mid-April, the first whispers of Covid-19 in the campground began to appear. Meanwhile, Nepalese officials continue to deny that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was present at the highest mountain in the world. Harshvardhan Joshi started his passion for climbing 10 years ago. “Isolation rules are in place but no one is monitoring. Some people flew to the assembly point after only a few days of isolation,” Joshi said. Due to the lack of testing facilities, no one can tell the difference between Covid-19 disease and the persistent “khumbu dry cough” – a symptom most climbers experience at this altitude. . Only major climbs are equipped with doctors and testing equipment. “We also only got tested after a teammate asked his wife to bring a rapid test kit from India.” In the village of Dibuche near the campsite, one of Joshi’s teammates tested positive for Covid-19 and decided to fly home. Not long after, 5 other people also contracted the virus and Joshi was the 6th. Joshi’s priority is to isolate himself in a tent alone for 10 days. Due to his lack of symptoms, he decided to stay instead of evacuating by helicopter with the other patients. The young man still hopes that he can continue his journey after the isolation period ends. “I consulted the doctors in my hometown. They sent me the treatment plan. Then I asked the person who organized this trip in Kathmandu to buy and send the medicine by helicopter.” During the quarantine, Joshi spent many hours practicing breathing and chanting. “I spend most of my time in the tent. Meals will be delivered from the kitchen to my tent. It was really lonely having to dine alone in the cold weather,” he recalls. Joshi’s medication was delivered from the capital of Nepal via helicopter. In mid-May, Joshi’s dream was further threatened by Cyclone Tauktae, which killed more than 100 Indians and blew away at least 30 tents at the campsite. Faced with this situation, Nepalese authorities have extended the time so that tourists can wait for better weather, conquering the “roof of the world” again, although the climbing season usually ends in May. ‘Steering’ of the unexpected trip By dinner on May 19, things finally got better for Joshi. The weather forecast in the coming days will be better and his latest test came back negative. Joshi’s original plan was to climb Everest first and then to Lhotse, Everest’s “neighbor” and the fourth highest mountain in the world. Anup Rai (left) and Furte Sherpa accompany Joshi to climb Everest. However, he decided to try Lhotse first because it would be deserted in the coming clear days. Moreover, he was also worried about his lung condition after the illness. At midnight, Joshi set out with two climbing guides, Furte Sherpa and Anup Rai – who he assessed as “inexperienced but healthy”. Other more experienced guides have left the mountain because of Covid-19. “Therefore, I asked two people to go with me to maximize safety, in case something happened,” he said. Mount Everest and Lhotse share a major climb. Thus, on the way, Joshi’s group met an Everest climbing team. With the weather forecast to get worse due to the effects of another storm, Joshi realized the short time ahead was the best opportunity to visit Everest once. So he changed his mind again and went back to the original plan. “Winds will get stronger and the chances of climbing in good weather will become increasingly limited. However, I still decided to go,” he said. After 2 days, despite all the harsh weather conditions, Joshi reached the summit of Everest. Joshi doesn’t feel too excited about climbing the “roof of the world”. Standing from the “roof of the world”, he can see the glacier in northern Tibet glowing in the morning sun, Mount Lhotse and the majestic Himalayas. “There were at least 20 people on the top of the mountain before our group. I just sat there and basked in the beautiful surroundings. After that, I bowed my head to thank my two guides – who brought me up here safely. On the other hand, Joshi wasn’t as excited as he had thought. With the next storm coming, he didn’t have much time to linger on Mount Everest. “It feels like the problems I faced before reaching Everest were much more difficult than climbing to the top,” he said.

A person with COVID-19 has appeared on the top of the world’s 7th highest mountain Dhaulagiri. Photo: Nepal Travel Guide According to Sputnik, in the past two days alone, at least 19 people have been evacuated from the main stop on the top of Dhaulagiri after some showed signs of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. After testing, 7 of the evacuated climbers tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Mr. Mingma Sherpa – Chairman of Dhaulagri Seven Summits travel agency confirmed the latest developments. Located in western Nepal, Dhaulagiri is the 7th highest mountain in the world. The second wave of COVID-19 is causing extremely heavy damage to India and neighboring South Asian countries. Nepal – a country with a population of 30 million people similar to the Indian capital New Delhi – has begun to record more than 2,000 new infections a day. In April, a Norwegian climber was the first to test positive for COVID-19 after being taken from the Everest base station to a hospital in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, for testing. The climber said he had symptoms similar to high-altitude pulmonary edema, which is common among people 2,500 meters above sea level. To date, Mount Everest has seen at least 30 climbers infected with COVID-19. Despite consistently recording COVID-19 cases on top of the world’s highest mountain, Nepal remains open to expeditions to balance its economy hit by the pandemic. The Ministry of Tourism of Nepal has issued permits for 377 climbers to climb Mount Everest. After detecting positive cases of COVID-19 at the Everest and Dhaulagiri rest stops, the Nepalese military began to conduct tests on the remaining climbers. Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountain range, China suspended tours to explore Everest before the pandemic.

Mount Everest. Photo: Reuters Camping sites on the slopes of Mount Everest on the Nepal side have been affected by a series of COVID-19 cases since late April. The Nepal government, not wanting to cut off revenue from tourism, has yet to cancel the spring climbing season, which usually runs from April to early June, before the rainy season. According to the Xinhua News Agency , a group of Tibetan climbing guides will climb Everest and set up a “boundary” to prevent any contact between climbers from both sides. It is not clear how the divider will be set up on Mount Everest – which is only the size of a dining table, and has an extremely harsh climate. And it’s not clear whether the Tibetan guides will just put up a fence, or have to stay in the area of ​​Mount Everest to keep the divider. This is known as the “death zone”, where many people died due to lack of oxygen. According to the Reuters , the 8,848m high peak is just a small snow mound, with just enough space for about 5-6 climbers and guides. China has not allowed any foreign climbers to climb Everest from the Tibetan side since the COVID-19 outbreak last year. China on Sunday recorded 12 new COVID-19 cases, all imported cases. Meanwhile, Nepal reported 9,023 new cases on Friday – a record increase in the country.

China drew a line on Mount Everest to prevent Covid-19. Photo: NatGeo Reuters news agency, citing Chinese national media, said so on May 9. According to Beijing, it is a precautionary measure. Everest base camp on the Nepal side was hit by a spike in Covid-19 infections in late April. The Nepal government, which lacks tourism revenue, has yet to cancel spring climbing, which usually starts in April and lasts until early June, before the monsoon. It is not immediately clear how the upper boundary will be established on the small, dangerous, hard-to-navigate mountaintop and about the size of a dining table. A small group of climbing guides in Tibet will climb Everest and set up a divider at the summit to prevent any contact between climbers on both sides of the peak, Xinhua reported. said the head of the Tibet Sports Authority. A group of 21 Chinese nationals were on their way to Mount Everest on the Tibetan side, Xinhua reported. The group of Tibetan guides will set up a divider before the group of 21 arrives. It is not clear whether the Tibetan guides were the ones enforcing the separation, or whether they stayed in the so-called “death zone”, where many people have died due to lack of oxygen, to maintain this boundary no. The summit of the 8,848m-high Mount Everest is a small snow mound, with only enough space for half a dozen climbers and guides to be on it at the same time. China has not allowed any foreign climbers to climb the mountain from the Tibetan side since the Covid-19 outbreak last year due to concerns about contagion. Tourists in the scenic Everest region in Tibet are also prohibited from visiting the base camp on the Tibetan side.

Kami Rita and 11 other guides reached the summit of Everest around 6 p.m. after hours of climbing. Mira Acharya, an official with the Nepalese Ministry of Tourism, said that Kami Rita and his group were climbers of Everest this year. The climbing team fixed ropes on the icy route for hundreds of other climbers to climb to the top in late May. Last year, the routes to Mount Everest in the south, in Nepal, because of the epidemic. This year, 408 foreign climbers were issued with climbing permits. Admire the 51-year-old man who conquered Mount Everest 25 times. Kami Rita, 51 years old, first climbed Everest in 1994. Since then, he has conquered the roof of the world almost every year. He is considered as one of the Sherpa guides with expertise and good skills, contributing to the safety and success of hundreds of people to conquer the 8,848.86 meter high Everest. In addition to reaching Mount Everest 25 times, Kami Rita has conquered several other peaks among the highest in the world, including Mount K2, Cho-Oyu, Manaslu and Lhotse. He was also present at Everest base camp in 2015 when an avalanche swept through, killing 19 people. After that tragedy, he came under great pressure from his family to give up climbing. Good weather on Mount Everest only appears for a few days in May, favorable for climbers to conquer the world’s highest peak.

“ When I got a positive result, I was shocked. And then I realized that my adventure was over “Ness said.” My dream is to go to the top of the mountain and enjoy the scenery there “. Some climbers have tested positive for COVID-19, but the Nepalese government says no infections have been reported on Everest. (Photo: CNN) Polish climber Pawel Michalski then posted on Facebook an article “30 people have been evacuated” from the campsite and found positive for COVID-19. Some climbers are quarantined in their tents, as there have been a few confirmed cases of COVID-19 in early childhood, Everest ER, a volunteer organization that provides aid to climbers. canopy off the campsite. Nepalese government regulations prohibiting climbers from sharing photos of others without consent restricted information coming from the mountain, but rumors are spreading as more cases are reported. infected, and not just at Everest. At least 19 people have been evacuated from the climbing camps in Dhaulagiri – the world’s seventh highest peak – 345 kilometers west of Everest, according to Mingma Sherpa, president of the Seven Summits Trek Company. Seven people had a positive result and another 12 had to be tested after symptoms appeared, he added. Nepalese Army spokesman Major General Santosh Ballave Paudel said three cleaners at the Dhaulagiri campsite had COVID-19. One person was evacuated on Wednesday and the other two will be evacuated during clear weather. Climbers are worried that Nepal will close Everest again, said Lukas Furtenbach, an expedition chief. “ I guess there will be more infections ”Furtenbach told CNN from his campsite at Mera Peak, south of Everest. “ Everyone is worried about a message from the Department of Tourism that says: ‘You all have to go home’ “. Patient number 0 on Mount Everest According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, Nepal’s economy is mainly based on tourism revenue, generating 240.7 billion rupees ($ 2 billion) in 2018. Those who want to climb mountains must have a license. from the Nepal Tourism Board in Kathmandu and the cost falls to around 11,000 USD. Many Nepalese people depend on tourism and climbing services for a living. In 2018, Nepal’s tourism industry supported more than 1 million direct and indirect jobs. After canceling last year’s mountaineering tours due to the pandemic, Nepal’s Tourism Ministry granted 408 permits to Everest climbers this year. But there will be more than 408 people making their journey of exploration stopping at the campsite and along the mountainside, followed by a climbing support team consisting of chefs, guides and geographic assistants. Phuong. This will complicate the efforts to create “bubbles” and social distance. “ The campsite is a miniature city ”, Said Alan Arnette, veteran observer, who reached Mount Everest in 2011 and now runs a climbing website. Furtenbach estimated there were about 1,200 people staying at the campsite this year. These conditions make the stretching more difficult. “ Usually there will be lots of social activities, events, campsites, groups visiting and making new friends. ”, Said Furtenbach. Now, most travel agencies are trying to maintain the “bubble” of isolation. Some Sherpas and local staff have to give up their usual habit of going home on holidays. Many expedition teams have had to travel longer distances without a break to spend as little time as possible at Everest. Some climbers have tested positive for COVID-19, but the Nepalese government says no infections have been reported on Everest. (Photo: CNN) Viruses can attack quickly Ness – the first case of COVID-19 infection on a publicly identifiable Everest – said he began to feel sick five days after the group’s trip to the campsite. “ I feel sick … I have a headache in the mountains, maybe a little fever, I don’t know, but the oxygen in my blood is very low “. “ At the campsite, my health got worse every day “, Ness said, adding that doctors finally asked to take him to the hospital and there he knew he had COVID-19. The positive results beat Ness’s three years of training for the journey, but he considers himself lucky for making a quick recovery. “ I thought if I got COVID-19 in Kathmandu, I wouldn’t get seriously ill – because I recovered very quickly after leaving the mountain. “, I said. “ But it’s terrible to be infected at 5,500 meters above sea level “. Confronted with confusion Reports of COVID-19 infections have resulted in a tense atmosphere at the Everest campsite. “ We get emails from other teams, trying to decide whether to go home or not, because it’s clear things are getting serious. “, Said Adrian Ballinger, an expedition leader who withdrew from the Everest expedition because of concerns about COVID-19. “ I heard the guide, the Sherpas and one of the helicopter companies talk about how many COVID-19 rescues they were doing. “, I said. As the rumors swirled, concerns also increased due to the lack of in-site test kits. “ We hope the government will confirm cases, keep things transparent, maybe even send a support team to the campsite to do mass testing to find the super people. infection “, Said Furtenbach, head of the expedition. “ I think every travel agency will be happy to pay for this. It will probably save the climbing season, because it would be risky to have more and more infections causing this season to end sooner. “. A sign encourages those outside to stay away from the camp. (Photo: The Washington Post) Everest ER, an aid service run by the Himalayan Rescue Nonprofit, wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday that there have been reports of nagging coughs during this climbing season. . “ This year has been a difficult year due to the COVID-19 pandemic “, Said Everest ER. “ We cannot afford rapid on-site tests at this time “. Talking about the Seven Summit Treks expedition at Everest, Mingma Sherpa said his group has departed from Camp 2 and is expected to arrive at Camp 4 on Thursday. “ If we run the Covid-19 test among climbers, some of them will probably be positive for the virus. But until now no one has any serious health complications except the common cold and cough “Mingma said. Lukas Furtenbach at the beginning of the journey to conquer Mount Everest. (Photo: CNN) Seven Summit Treks Company has 130 customers registered to climb Mount Everest this spring. According to CNN, many Everest climbers do not want to talk to journalists about the COVID-19 situation because they fear they will be denied a climbing license in the future. This has made it more difficult to estimate the number of people infected, and rumors continue to circulate, even among mountain climbing groups. “ I know people who used to have COVID-19, those infected have come to Kathmandu and now they are recovering, and I know there are people who have not had any cases in their camps. “, Says Arnette, describing his conversations with climbers in recent weeks. “ We were all trying to figure out what was going on and we were all confused “, He added. Ethical issue Of all the parts of the world that are facing COVID-19, Mount Everest is probably the worst. “ Everyone’s respiratory system is having difficulty and overactive, so it is much more susceptible to upper respiratory tract disease. ”Said Ballinger, the head of the expedition. Climbers face an intense physical warfare with every step of the mountain, he said. “ You cannot sleep in the highlands, so you will feel tired for many days without sleep. You cannot eat, because the digestive system is considered unnecessary because anything you put in your stomach makes you feel nauseous. “, I said. Persistent coughing spells that are so common during journeys at Everest – known as the Khumbu cough, named after the valley leading to Everest – make detecting COVID-19 especially difficult. “ Your entire body is working to the limit, so the virus will be a real threat to your health and even life. “, expedition chief Furtenbach said. And evacuation can become more dangerous once the teams have left the campsite and continue on up. “ If the weather worsens and someone begins to have complications, evacuating without a helicopter would take days and be very dangerous. ”, Said Furtenbach. For now, however, the spirit for the journey is still intact. “ Everyone was delighted “, Furtenbach said.” We had customers who waited for two years and it was their life’s dream “. Furtenbach’s team brought their own COVID-19 test kit to Everest and regularly checked team members. (Photo: CNN) But Nepal and its neighbor India are being engulfed in a dire second wave of COVID-19. Nepal recorded the highest number of cases per day on Wednesday. So some climbers are also considering whether or not to continue. “ I think we’ll start to see some climbers leave because they only feel they are doing it morally wrong, when the Kathmandu outbreak was too strong. ”Ballinger predicted. “ The villagers are sitting there with thousands of oxygen tanks “. “ If more and more cases come to a campsite, the authorities in Nepal will have to do something about it “, Added Furtenbach, again proposing an early end of the climbing season. “ I think they tried to do the right thing, they tried to save the climbing season. But maybe that’s not the right thing to do “.

Nepal reopened the spring mountaineering season in early April after closing mountaineering activities for a year. However, just a few weeks later, at least one mountaineer has been diagnosed with new crown pneumonia.

The climber’s name is Erlend Ness, from Norway. He was diagnosed just last Friday and is currently in hospital isolation. He is not sure where he contracted the virus, but it is very likely that he contracted it in a tea shop in the Khumbu Valley under Mount Everest.

Erlend Ness feels unwell at base camp

While preparing for the climb at the base camp, he experienced intense discomfort and difficulty breathing. On April 15, a helicopter took him from the base camp and taken him to the hospital in Kathmandu. Fortunately, he purchased new crown insurance in advance, including the rescue cost.

“Not many climbers used masks.” He recalled to an Associated Press reporter. According to a report by the mountaineering website Explorersweb, all climbers currently in the base camp have undergone two new coronavirus tests before leaving Kathmandu.

A Sherpa in his team has also been diagnosed with the new crown.

Erlend Ness in the hospital

In response, a senior mountain guide Austrian Lukas Furtenbach warned that Nepal should immediately check all climbers, guides and Sherpas and take safety measures. The virus is likely to have spread to hundreds of others and is now on Mount Everest. Spread among climbers camped in the base camp.

“We now urgently need to conduct large-scale testing in the base camp. Everyone must be tested, each team must be quarantined, and no contact between teams is allowed.” Furtenbach said. “Start now, otherwise it will be too late.”

He complained that only members of his team were still following the epidemic prevention guidelines, washing hands as usual, keeping a safe distance, doing virus tests every few days, and wearing masks. But the other climbers in the base camp didn’t care, and often invited people from other teams to parties.

Nepal’s economy is heavily dependent on Mount Everest climbing activities. According to the Kathmandu Post, the Nepalese government earns 4 million U.S. dollars each year by issuing Mount Everest climbing permits. According to data from the Nepal Mountaineering Association, 80% of Nepalese income comes from mountaineering activities and the tourism industry surrounding it. In 2019, 54,000 were directly employed by climbers who came to Mount Everest, including cooks, drivers and Sherpas who assisted in climbing.

Mount Everest is the “food and clothing parent” of many Nepalese

The traditional spring mountaineering activities start in April, and about 40 mountaineering teams come to Mount Everest at this time each year. And last year, due to the new crown epidemic, Mount Everest was closed, which was also a heavy blow to Nepal.

This year, after Nepal announced the resumption of spring mountaineering, hundreds of climbers are expected to try to reach the summit. The Nepal Immigration Department stated that all travelers entering Nepal must present a negative test report for the new coronavirus within 72 hours, or a certificate of completion of the new crown vaccination. Tourists from countries with variant strains need to be quarantined at the hotel for an additional 10 days.

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Mount Everest may no longer be immune to COVID-19. Photo: DW Even the highest peak in the world is no longer immune to the SARS-CoV-2 virus. There has been at least one confirmed case of COVID-19 from a base camp on the southern edge of Mount Everest in Nepal. After suffering from high-altitude cerebral edema syndrome (HAPE), this person was taken by helicopter to a hospital in the capital Kathmandu, tested and diagnosed positive for SARS-CoV-2 virus. The members of the group immediately had to undergo quarantine. A mountain climber with COVID-19 is identified as a Norwegian citizen. He said he may have been infected during the climb from the foot of the mountain to the main camp mentioned above. It is reported that at least three people in the climbing crew were infected with SARS-CoV-2. For its part, the Nepal Tourism Board intends to deny this, saying that the incident is still under investigation and that information about the infection is just rumors. As of April 21, Nepal has granted licenses to 377 individuals who want to climb mountains and conquer Mount Everest in 2021, only slightly less than the record number of 2019. With a population of 30 million, Nepal has recorded approximately 285,000 cases and 3,000 deaths from COVID-19 since the outbreak of the pandemic. At the end of March, the government loosened restrictions on tourists. To gain entry, international travelers only need to present a certificate of vaccination against COVID-19 or a PCR test negative for SARS-CoV-2 within 72 hours of arrival. If an additional negative test is performed at the capital airport, the traveler is free to travel in Nepal.