KATHMANDU, April 12: In the spring season of this year, the construction of the route to the second camp (Camp 2) has been completed for those who will climb Mt Everest. The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) chief executive officer Tshering Sherpa said that the construction of the route to climb Mount Everest that started on March 3 was completed on Thursday, April 6.
The route construction work up to the second camp was completed in about a month by a group of 11 members including eight technicians and three staff under the leadership of Ang Saki Sherpa. Eight of those technicians are icefall doctors and the remaining three are assistants. Stating that it was difficult to build the route due to insufficient snow this winter, Sherpa, the executive officer of SPCC, said, "This year, it did not snow during the winter season." Snowfall started only from the end of March, which made the route construction a bit more difficult than other years.
He added that the snow that should fall in the winter fell during the construction of the route. “Building a route freshly after a snowfall is a challenge.”
Icefall doctors at Everest Base Camp
"If the route had been constructed only after the previous snow had settled, there would have been no chance of flooding," he said.
He said that the route construction work will be challenging as one should lead all the groups who will be climbing Mt Everest.
He also said that it is very difficult to make a route because there are more snow pits and rocks on the route from the base camp to the second camp than elsewhere. He said, “The structure up to the second camp keeps changing every year. Similarly, if the weather is different than expected, the danger increases. If you don't act with high caution, there is a possibility of death.”
Every year in spring and autumn, routes are prepared for climbing Mt Everest. As the routes opened for climbing are blocked by snowfall and there are potholes, new routes have to be prepared every year in both seasons. Once the route is made, it needs to be repaired from time to time.
The main purpose of constructing the route is to make it easier to climb the mountain. This work is done by a group of icefall doctors. A group of icefall doctors also work on finding climbing routes and setting up infrastructure for climbing. From placing ladders on the route to preparing the route for the climb, there are ropes and more. Climbers reach the summit via a route discovered by icefall doctors. For this reason, this pre-climbing task is considered critical and risky. A group of experienced and expert climbers are deployed for this task.
By the first week of March of this year, a total of 178 climbers including 18 groups of 150 men and 28 women have taken permission to climb Mt Everest from the department, according to Dipendra Regmi, an official of the department.
According to him, climbers have taken permission to climb 17 mountains and among them the most are those who have taken permission to climb Everest. Till now, the highest climbing fee has been collected from Mount Everest. So far around Rs 240 million have been collected from this mountain. This is 86 percent of the amount collected so far," said Regmi. According to the statistics of the department, the government has collected about Rs 280 million of revenue for mountain climbing till the first week of March this year.
In collaboration with the Department of Tourism, since 2054 BS, SPCC has been building routes to the second base of Mount Everest. After the SPCC prepares the route leading to the second camp to climb Mt Everest, the construction of the route above it is done in conjunction with the climbing professionals.
