Guide to the Everest base camp trek

Everest had always been revered by Nepalis and Tibetans (the local names translate as ‘goddess of the sky’ or ‘goddess of the universe’), but no one had ever thought to climb it. Until the British came along in the 1920s, fresh from the horrors of WW1 and keen to bag a rousing, uncomplicated victory (and perhaps exorcise the massed ghosts of the British dead while they were at it).

Three expeditions sought to find a route up from the north, each a vast physical and logistical enterprise. (The supplies list for the 1924 attempt included, ‘60 tins of quail in foie gras and 48 bottles of champagne, Montebello 1915’!) The climbing parties, which all included the doomed George Mallory, saw Everest as an obstacle to be overcome, by sheer force of Britishness if necessary, but their ambition made zero sense to their Tibetan hosts, who believed that the spirits of the mountain, if not sufficiently appeased, would hurl the expedition party from its side. As well as taking a spiritual reading of these summiting attempts, the Tibetans also instinctively understood the folly and danger of them and simply couldn’t see the point of climbing the mountain.

Their scepticism proved well-founded. Neither of the two first attempts succeeded, although whether Mallory and his climbing partner Sandy Irvine made it to the summit in 1924 before falling to their deaths remains a subject of conjecture. What’s certain, though, is that their deaths were far from unique and, sadly, remain that way. In 1922, seven Sherpas were killed in an avalanche, becoming the first reported deaths on the mountain; a figure that by June 2016 had climbed to 282 people.

The 1930s were littered with further failed attempts to summit Everest from the north, including that of British eccentric Maurice Wilson in 1934. Wilson flew illegally into India, hiked through Darjeeling into Tibet and once at the mountain, expected to transport himself to the summit with spiritual help. He was then going to use his shaving mirror to signal to the monks at the Ronbuk monastery that he’d reached the top. Nice idea, Maurice – but no. He was found dead by climbers the following year.

It wasn’t until Nepal opened its borders in 1950 (the same year as Tibet, now under Chinese control, closed its) that climbing the mountain from the south became possible. On 29 May 1953 New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali Sherpa, reached the summit via the South Col route. The two heroes were part of a British expedition and news of their success reached London on the morning of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation on 2nd June.

Since then, people of all nationalities have raised their eyes to Everest’s peak and dreamed of reaching it. In recent years, that has meant dangerous overcrowding at bottlenecks, as well as a lot of mess on otherwise pristine snowy surfaces, from empty oxygen canisters to human waste. And of course as climbing Everest has become such a commercial industry, there is increased pressure on businesses to get their clients to the summit. That can lead to corners being cut, and unacceptable risks to Sherpa guides.

Most serious climbers spend time at Everest Base Camp South, a simple campsite amongst a rocky landscape next to the Khumbu Icefall, before making their ascent. It’s here that they rub shoulders with trekkers who’ve tackled the trail up from Lukla and are happy to simply stand in this famous spot for a while, before heading back down.

Around 40,000 people trek to Everest Base Camp each year, taking on average 12 days to complete the hike, spending time acclimatising as the trail climbs and the air thins. This spectacular route, climbing from blue pine forests and river valleys and finishing in high altitude, rocky terrain is not without its challenges. Altitude sickness can kick in on the upper reaches and in April 2015, an avalanche triggered by an earthquake swept through Base Camp, with at least 19 people killed. So there are risks, and even tragedies, associated with Everest Base Camp, but for most trekkers, a few blisters, sore calves and several pairs of sweaty socks are the only price to pay to experience this unforgettable place.