The Ethics of Everest Expeditions

 

The Ethics of Everest Expeditions 

Back in the early 90’s, Rob Hall began offering commercial expeditions to climb Mt. Everest with his then company Hall and Ball Adventure Consultants.  He was at the forefront of an industry that was to flourish into the multi-million dollar one that exists today. Many expedition leaders today hardly have the passion that Rob had then (climbing the 7 summits in 7 months, before his Everest season), nor a similar love for mountains that Gaston Rébuffat made popular in the late 70’s with his books and movies. In fact, most of them today are businessmen (some even present themselves as such on their calling cards – ‘Expedition Climber/Businessman’) – and they will use the same ethics that are common in this world while they guide you into the Death Zone.

Gaston Rébuffat, who was part of the French Annapurna team in 1950

The offering today is also very different. The biggest companies in the business are not from Western operators anymore – they are in fact, Nepalese, and the demographics of the climbers have also changed, with many now coming from India and other Asian countries. In some ways the climbs are safer, but as we saw in 2019, deaths in large numbers still occur.

Sadly, Rob lost his life on Everest in 1996 during the incident made famous by Jon Krakauer in his book Into Thin Air.  The author gave us a close look as to what went on at Everest when expeditions were competing for clients, and sad to say, things have not gotten any better.  Inexperienced climbers still continue to die on the mountain and in 2019 alone, 11 people died while on Everest, many from exposure and dehydration, as we all witnessed in the now famous picture taken by Nimal Purja.

Nimal Purja’s famous Everest 2019 Picture 

A Little More History

In 1952, Sir John Hunt was employed to lead the British Mount Everest Expedition which would allow the UK to be the first team to reach the summit. Sir Hunt, who had a military background, replaced Eric Shipton who had led an unsuccessful expedition to Cho Oyu the year before. His book, The Conquest of Everest is a must-read for anyone who has been or plans to go to Everest. In it he explains the three challenges that he had as the expedition’s leader: 

1.       The Mountain itself (topography, ideal route, risks related to the mountain).

2.       Meteorology

3.       Medical issues

The Conquest of Everest, by Sir John Hunt. A must-read for any Everest wannabe

Dealing with Everest’s topography these days is a bread-and-butter task for most expeditions. They have a clearly defined route, and as one expedition leader told me once – “I can place a rope from any client’s tent to the summit. All the client has to do is walk up with a Jumar (a device attached to the climber’s harness that once connected to the rope, allows one to advance, but never fall) and we take care of the oxygen.” It really is that simple.

With regards to meteorology, everybody seems to be using the same service these days, and it’s no surprise that with good weather days, one sees the lines that are so common on Everest. Forget the feeling of communion with the mountain. You feel more like standing in line for your TSA check before your trip to Kathmandu (just riskier) unless the season has many windows and your leader finds a less crowded day. Remember when Rob Hall and Scott Fischer in the Everest 2015 movie argue with other expeditions about who goes up first so as to keep crowding down to a minimum? This still goes on even to this day.

Medical issues are of course a pet peeve of mine, and on the mountain, you will be surrounded by “experts” on the subject. Most of the knowledge going around is anecdotal, and most of the talk will center around oxygen. But a big issue pretty much ignored is respiratory infections which are very common since climbers in an expedition usually spend much time very close to each other. One climber with a respiratory infection can take down an entire team pretty quickly, yet surprisingly, most measures that we take in hospitals to prevent these are non-existent at base camp. Point in case, the COVID infections last year at basecamp were mostly preventable with simple rules. Some expeditions managed these properly and summitted all their clients. Others went home crying foul, even though I saw pictures of expedition leaders doing covid tests in a manner in which they were probably spreading the virus, not containing it. If in hospitals, we have infection control staff that enforce guidelines to prevent such issues, at Everest BC it’s a free-for-all, regardless of how much you pay.

As for the management of oxygen, we have today systems that are as reliable and useful as those in hospitals. If your expedition leader is knowledgeable about high altitude physiology, expect no problems. If he is playing doctor, expect gimmicks to hide his lack of knowledge.

An expedition leader doing COVID tests without gloves or eye protection

Current Marketing Practices

Since most people that sign-up for Everest expeditions have moderate climbing experience, what these individuals are really buying is a selfie at the summit. These customers are not paying for T. S. Elliot’s “the journey, not the arrival”.  And the expedition leaders know this…

Long gone are the cultural treks to basecamp, such as the one described by Maurice Herzog in his best- selling book Annapurna. Nobody is really interested these days in Sherpa or Tibetan culture, their language, or for that matter, their beliefs.

And so, you are practically sold a summit guarantee. No differently than when you buy a used-car, some expedition leaders will do everything in their power to talk you into signing up and buying their VIP packages. You will be offered fine food, French wines, European chocolates, free wi-fi, hot showers, wide-screen TV with countless DVDs, unlimited oxygen, and even massages while you wait at basecamp for the right summit window. You will be told, even with a personal visit from the expedition leader, that “you can make it – look at me in the eye – I am sure you can make it,” even if you have never seen a pair of crampons in your life.

Everest 2022 VVIP Offering

The next phase of your decision pathway will be to decide if you want the basic offering, or the VIP one, when in fact there is little difference in these once you are on the mountain. Granted, the VIP option will offer you unlimited oxygen (why would someone say no to this?), two Sherpas on summit day (I guess Nimal’s picture was mostly Sherpas and a few climbers?) and that you have priority over the low paying commoners as to when you leave for the summit. Pay $80,000 less and the basic package still buys you a trip to the summit with perhaps less oxygen and fewer Sherpas to baby you.

How will you also be enticed for the upsell? High tech and much fluff. While I don’t know of a single expedition leader who has a bio-engineering or physiology degree, some will boast that their gadgets plus $160K will get you to the top. (Remember the used-car salesman telling you that you can start the car he’s selling you from a distance?)

Finally, some will remind you of their past 100% success record, even when they were unable to summit any of their customers last year since many fell ill due to COVID. (I don’t know of a single expedition outfit, by the way, with a perfect record.) Some will argue COVID doesn’t count. If you went to a hospital during the pandemic, and got a COVID infection when you were there for an ingrown toe-nail, would you not care? Respiratory infections management is a major part of any expedition, and most handle these poorly! With regards to years prior to COVID, the same expeditions are claiming 100% success when I know they have quietly sent climbers home.

Screenshot taken on October 18, 2021 – Clickbait for Everest 2022…

 

Expedition’s retreat from Everest, as documented by the NYT in June 2021

 

Pricing

How did we get to such exorbitant prices? Rob Hall charged $65,000 back in 1996 for one single reason: Because he could. And that is the way it is today. Wealthy individuals are willing to pay up to $160K (or more) for an Everest summit selfie these days. In fact, over the last several years, expedition companies have been competing as to who can charge the most, and the Nepalis have not lagged behind! There have been efforts at price-fixing this upper number from certain expeditions, but as far as I know, they have not succeeded since the price I had heard floated was some $250K.

Again, I wish to stress that once you are on the mountain, the differences in service that you will get are minimal, at least from the Western expeditions. If you are not doing well, I don’t think any expedition is going to deny you O2 up there.

 

Buyer Beware

Medical Boards in the United States do not allow doctors to advertise in the way that Everest expeditions do. I would have a serious fine if I placed an ad where I advertise 100% success for my anesthetics as a way to entice patients away from other doctors. In fact, I’m not allowed to advertise my services. And yet, taking somebody up a big mountain and having an anesthetic for a surgical procedure, are both similar in nature. The patient is placing his or her life in my hands. In medicine, medical boards seek multiple confirmations that doctors are proficient in the services that they offer. They make the doctors take lengthy tests, they corroborate their training, they enforce continuous education requirements every 1-2 years, and one is checked for good behavior even in one’s driving record! Of course, none of this exists in the world of climbing big mountains, and therefore the number of deaths each year at Everest. Your expedition leader may be honest and qualified, or disreputable or even a swindler, and you won’t ever know the difference. If your leader has had bad outcomes, he may hide it. This is pretty much impossible in the practice of medicine in the United States.

We are left with the buyer beware or caveat emptor from Roman times. If you are looking into climbing Everest, I suggest you carefully look into who you are doing this with. Look for expedition leaders with years of experience. Beware of exaggerated climbs or gimmicks. Don’t buy the VIP climbs since they’re just a way to milk you for services you won’t receive. If you want more O2, just buy a few extra bottles, bring them with you, and you’re set. You’ll still get the wine, chocolates and massages – don’t worry. But remember, no fee will allow you to cut ahead of others on the summit ridge at 28,000 feet.

Finally, remember the end of the Squid Game? Some of these expeditions are following the explanation coming from the old man in the last episode as to why he set it up. Certain unscrupulous leaders have realized that some wealthy individuals are bored, and that some of these will pay anything to get out of this condition. And like in the Squid Game, they will also play with their lives… 

About the Author

Dr. Leo Montejo is a medical doctor. He did his specialty training at Harvard Medical School in anesthesiology and critical care medicine. He has been a Professor at Stanford University in this specialty, and is an extreme sports enthusiast.

He has participated in multiple Himalayan expeditions, and is the creator of telemedical solutions for the outdoors. Thuraya Communications awarded him the best app solution for the Himalayas in 2016.