Jun 18th, 2013 at 1:30PM: AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the first summit of Mount Everest, a feat that's been attempted by thousands of climbers since. Although we all understand ascending the world's highest peak is one of the most grueling challenges on the planet, few people also know that summiting the mountain is only one risk climbers take; they also often fly in via one of the ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Kathmandu posts
Everest Climbers Also Face Dangerous Runway
Jun 18th, 2013 at 1:30PM: AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the first summit of Mount Everest, a feat that's been attempted by thousands of climbers since. Although we all understand ascending the world's highest peak is one of the most grueling challenges on the planet, few people also know that summiting the mountain is only one risk climbers take; they also often fly in via one of the ...Spring Climbing And Trekking Season Begins In Nepal
Mar 28th, 2013 at 8:00AM: The streets of Kathmandu are bustling with traffic today as the spring climbing and trekking seasons get underway in the Himalaya. Over the next few days, hundreds of mountaineers and backpackers will descend on the capital of Nepal before setting out for the country's legendary hiking trails and unmatched alpine settings. For many, this will be a trip of a lifetime, taking them on a grand ...Plane Crash Kills 19 In Nepal
Sep 29th, 2012 at 8:00AM: A plane bound for the infamous Lukla airport in Nepal crashed yesterday, killing all 19 people on board. It is believed that the aircraft struck a bird shortly after takeoff from Kathmandu, resulting in the crash minutes later. This is the sixth such accident in the past two years, calling into question the level of air safety in the country.
The plane, operated by Sita Air, set off with 16 ...Fall Himalayan Climbing Season Begins
Sep 11th, 2012 at 8:00AM: Most mountaineers, both actual and armchair, know that for two months each spring, Everest and the other big Himalayan peaks become the epicenter of the climbing world. From April to June, hundreds of mountaineers from around the globe descend on Nepal and Tibet with the expressed goal of scaling one of the tallest mountains on the planet. As a result, Base Camps across the region can become ...Everest Encounter Possible A Number Of Ways
May 24th, 2012 at 3:30PM:
Climbing Mt. Everest is often a lifetime achievement for many travelers. Each spring, some of the most adventurous, daring and physically fit among us attempt the risky undertaking. But summiting is not the only way to experience the highest peak on the planet. One eco-travel company suggests Everest travel strategies that can considerably lower the danger, cost, time or exertion required of ...Ultrarunner sets new Everest to Kathmandu speed record
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, ...82-year old plans to climb Everest
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 ...Legendary Sherpa to attempt 21st summit of Everest
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 ...Mountain biker set to ride up Everest
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 ...48 Hours in Kathmandu
Mar 4th, 2011 at 3:30PM: Few city names roll off the tongue quite like Kathmandu. Maybe it's the unusual spelling, the exotic string of vowels or the simple fact that it's located on the far side of the planet at the base of the Himalayas. Whatever it is, the mere mention of Nepal's legendary capital is enough to make you want to pack your bags and jump on the next flight.
Kathmandu is one of the famed stops on the ...Himalayan High: Lukla's Tenzing-Hillary Airport
Jun 1st, 2010 at 8:00AM: While Kathmandu is a unique and interesting city, it certainly isn't a destination that draws you to Nepal. For most travelers to the region, myself included, it was simply a stop over until we could get on with our real journey, namely the trek to Everest Base Camp. After spending a day in the noisy Nepali capital city, I was more than anxious to get out of town, and get started with our hike.
...Himalayan High: Kathmandu - Gateway to the Himalaya
May 27th, 2010 at 8:00AM: Whether you're headed to Everest Base Camp, hiking the Annapurna Circuit, or continuing your journey on to Bhutan or Tibet, you'll invariably have to go through Kathmandu, the colorful, chaotic, and at times confounding, capital of Nepal. It is truly the gateway to the Himalaya, offering travelers, backpackers, and climbers access to a host of adventure opportunities, with the world's most ...Letter from Kathmandu: Brokedown Palace
Apr 21st, 2010 at 1:00PM:
Waiting at the ticket booth to Narayanhiti -- Nepal's Royal Palace -- I felt like a Chinese commoner entering the Forbidden City for the first time. It's not too much of a stretch. Nepali Kings, like Chinese Emperors, were touted as divine rulers: avatars of the Hindu god Narayana, the Great Preserver.
Ever since my first visit to Kathmandu in 1979, I had glimpsed Narayanhiti only through its ...The Indomitable Miss Hawley
Apr 10th, 2009 at 8:00AM: There are a number of legendary men who cast large shadows over the world of mountaineering. Men like George Mallory, Sir Edmund Hillary, and Reinhold Messener, whose exploits in the mountains are told around campfires from the Karakorum to the Andes. But there is a woman who stands with these legends and casts a large shadow of her own. Her name is Elizabeth Hawley, and even the most accomplished ...The Logistics of Everest
Apr 7th, 2009 at 8:00AM: As we mentioned last week, the Himalayan climbing season is in full swing, and the first teams of mountaineers should be arriving in base camp on Mt. Everest this week. BC on Everest falls at approximately 17,500 feet, higher than most mountains in the world, but it is only the beginning of the climb that hundreds of people have paid as much as $65,000 each, and devoted two months of their spring, ...Ed Viesturs, America's Top Mountaineer, Returns To Everest
Mar 28th, 2009 at 8:00AM: Yesterday we mentioned that Kathmandu has become a very busy place this week as climbers and trekkers heading to the Himalaya arrive in the city before setting out on their various adventures in the more mountainous regions of Nepal. Amongst those making the journey once again this year is Ed Viesturs, who many consider to be America's premiere mountaineer. Viesutrs has a long, and storied career ...Spring Climbing Season Begins in the Himalaya
Mar 27th, 2009 at 8:00AM: The arrival of spring means different things in different parts of the world. In northern Alaska it marks the end of the long darkness, with the returning of the sun. Further south, in the Mission at San Juan Capistrano welcomes the swallows home, while in the Midwest, the last of the winter snows give way to blooming flowers. Likewise, each spring in the Himalaya is marked with a ritual of its ...Seeking Enlightenment in Kathmandu
Feb 10th, 2009 at 8:00AM: Kathmandu is a vibrant, noisy, colorful city, whose name alone elicits thoughts of adventures in far flung places. It is the Gateway to the Himalaya, and the home of more than 700,000 people. For nearly 2000 years it has been a cradle of civilization in Nepal, and the spiritual center for many practitioners of Hinduism and Buddhism as well. Although steeped in tradition, in many ways this ancient ...Letter from Nepal: Watching HBO with a living goddess (part 2)
Jul 3rd, 2008 at 9:00AM: Patan, Nepal--On this blistering May day, the royal kumari, Preeti, doesn't bother to show up at the third-story window. And why should she? Last year, the independent girl refused to give tika – a blessing in the form of a red mark on the forehead – to the prime minister, who was attempting to take over from the unpopular king the annual ceremonial duty of receiving a blessing for ...Letter from Nepal: Watching HBO with a living goddess
Jul 2nd, 2008 at 9:00AM:
Patan, Nepal--Like any typical schoolgirl, 13-year-old Chanira Bajracharya struggles to finish hours of homework each day. That doesn't stop her from stealing away to watch TV (she enjoys HBO; her younger brothers often change it to Nickelodeon) or use the computer. She even has Barbies, but now that she's older, painting has replaced organizing tea parties as her favorite pastime.
The ...
