EverestBaseCamp posts
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (7 days ago)
May 19th, 2012 at 8:00AM: It will be a very busy day today at the top of the world. After months of planning and weeks of preparation, today is the day that the climbers on Everest will begin heading up to the summit en masse. For most it will be the culmination of a lifelong dream to climb the highest mountain on Earth, for others it will simply be the latest climb in their pursuit of mountaineering greatness.
The road ...
by Grant Martin (RSS feed) (20 days ago)
May 5th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
Far above a trip to the Caribbean or Antarctica on my bucket list is a journey into the depths of Nepal, and I can't help but feel jealous that my friend Bassam Tarazi beat me to it. Tucked above the northeast corner of India through a seam of the Himalayas, Nepal is the definition of adventure. It seems far enough away from the western world to be free of any nonsense like reality television ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (23 days ago)
May 3rd, 2012 at 8:00AM: A dramatic rescue took place on Mt. Everest this past weekend where photographer and filmmaker Corey Richards had to be evacuated from the mountain by helicopter. Much of the incident was captured on film, which offers insight into high altitude mountaineering rescue operations that can be employed to save a climber's life.
Richards was climbing the world's tallest mountain as part of the ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 month ago)
Apr 7th, 2012 at 8:00AM: The 2012 climbing season on Mt. Everest officially gets underway today when the first climbers begin to arrive in Base Camp on the south side of the mountain. They'll spend the next six weeks or so acclimatizing on the slopes of the world's tallest peak before attempting to climb up to the 8848-meter (29,029-foot) summit.
Mountaineers first began arriving in Kathmandu, the gateway to the ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (6 months ago)
Nov 27th, 2011 at 8:00AM: For decades Mt. Everest has held sway over the imagination of adventurers everywhere. Standing 29,029 feet in height, it is the tallest mountain on the planet and the focus of countless books, television shows, and movies. But a new documentary entitled 40 Days at Base Camp looks to offer new insights into what it takes to climb the mountain and spend more than a month living in its shadow.
As ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (6 months ago)
Nov 26th, 2011 at 8:00AM: Last week, British ultrarunner Lizzie Hawker set a new speed record for running from base camp on Mt. Everest to Kathmandu, Nepal, besting her own previous record in the process. The 35-year old endurance athlete covered the 200 mile distance in just 2 days, 23 hours, and 25 minutes.
Hawker, who is considered one of the top long distance runners in the world, first made this run back in 2007, ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (6 months ago)
Nov 8th, 2011 at 9:00AM: Bad weather in the Himalayas has left many travelers stranded in a remote village in Nepal this past weekend, stretching supplies and accommodations to the limit. Fortunately, improving conditions allowed for many of them to be evacuated yesterday, with those remaining are expected to return to Kathmandu today.
Last week, heavy fog and rain descended on Lukla, a small village located at 9383 ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
May 7th, 2011 at 8:00AM: Yesterday we mentioned that the Sherpas had finished fixing the ropes to the summit of Everest, clearing the way for all the commercial climbing teams to soon follow. We predicted that the big push to the top of the mountain was still a week away, but a British climber took advantage of good weather and empty slopes, to rush to the summit yesterday. Once there, he not only savored the view from ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
May 6th, 2011 at 8:00AM: The first successful summits of Mt. Everest for the 2011 spring climbing season took place yesterday, and as you might guess, they were accomplished by a group of Sherpas. The six-man team stood on the highest point on the planet after fixing the ropes to the summit, the same ropes that will now be used by the foreign climbers who will soon begin the long, challenging climb for themselves.
Each ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
May 4th, 2011 at 8:00AM: The spring climbing season in the Himalaya is well underway, with dozens of teams climbing on a variety of mountains across the region. The busiest of those peaks is Mt. Everest of course, where in a few weeks time, a couple of hundred mountaineers will be hoping to stand on top of the highest summit on the planet. Many of them wouldn't have a chance of doing so however, if it weren't for the hard ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Apr 23rd, 2011 at 8:00AM: 82-year old Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya of Nepal is planning to climb Mt. Everest this spring in an attempt to show that even octogenarians can still be physically fit enough to accomplish such goals. If successful, he'll become the oldest person to reach the summit of the highest mountain on the planet.
Earlier this week, Upadhayaya set out from Kathmandu on the trek to Everest Base Camp. He is ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Apr 5th, 2011 at 8:00AM: Legendary Himalayan mountain guide Apa Sherpa has returned to his home country of Nepal once again this year, where he'll be attempting his 21st summit of Mt. Everest. If successful, he will extend his existing record as the man to accomplish that feat most often.
Apa, who now lives in Utah, left his friends and family last Friday, and set off for the Nepali capital of Kathmandu. That city ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Apr 3rd, 2011 at 8:00AM: The Nepal Tourism Board has joined forces with the Everest Summiteers Association (ESA) and Eco Himal to launch the "Save Mt. Everest Campaign," a project which is designed to clean up the world's tallest mountain, and the Khumbu Valley where it resides, by June of 2012.
Everest has always held a certain appeal with climbers and the general public alike, and over the past few decades, more and ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Apr 1st, 2011 at 8:00AM: In the world of high altitude mountaineering, there are few challenges bigger than Mt. Everest. Standing 29,029 feet in height, it is the tallest peak on the planet, remaining unclimbed until 1953 when Sir Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay finally reached the summit. Since then, literally hundreds of climbers have stood on top of the mountain, but not a single mountain biker has ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Mar 17th, 2011 at 8:00AM: Travelers looking to add a new dimension to their next journey may want to check out the Flying Kites Adventure Challenges, which are a series of great adventure travel opportunities that allow you to visit some fantastic destinations, while raising funds for charity at the same time.
Organized by Flying Kites, a non-profit that is dedicated to improving the standards for childcare in some of ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Mar 4th, 2011 at 8:00AM: At 29,029 feet (8848 meters) in height, Everest is the tallest mountain on the planet, and a significant challenge to any high altitude climber. For years, the mountain has held sway over the general public as well, despite the fact that most of us have no idea what it actually takes to reach to the summit. The video below helps to put it all into perspective however, demonstrating the process ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Feb 19th, 2011 at 8:00AM: In 2011, REI Adventures, the travel arm of outdoor gear retailer REI, is celebrating its 25th year of offering great outdoor and active journeys to adventure travelers. To commemorate the occasion, they're passing on a substantial discount to members of the REI Co-Op, giving them 25% off some of their most classic trips.
In all, there are seven trips that the discount is being applied to. Those ...
by Alex Robertson Textor (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Dec 7th, 2010 at 10:00AM:
We travel a lot, to destinations both well-known and unfamiliar. In our defense, it is our job to travel like mad, to explore the world and then write about our discoveries.
Though most travel writers find something or other of interest in most places we visit, there are always those personal favorites that rise above the rest. This year, we decided to scribble our favorites down for you. ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Oct 30th, 2010 at 12:30PM: Nepali cell phone company Ncell announced this week that they have activated a cell tower in Mt. Everest base camp, providing reliable 3G coverage on the mountain for the first time. To commemorate the launch of the service, the technicians completed the highest altitude video call ever from 5300 meters (17,388 feet) on the mountain.
Ncell's service will replace expensive, and often unreliable, ...
by Kraig Becker (RSS feed) (1 year ago)
Jul 1st, 2010 at 8:00AM: Over the past few weeks I've shared all kinds of thoughts on an Everest Base Camp trek, one of the best long distance hikes anywhere in the world. I've also shared my thoughts on the best ways to prepare for the trek and which gear items you should bring along with you to the Himalaya. In this, the final article in the Himalayan High series, I'll share some thoughts on the potential dangers of the ...
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