Posted on 12/30/2017 4:21:30 PM PST by nickcarraway
Tourist board criticised for new regulations, which also prohibit solo ascents with the aim of reducing the number of accidents
Solo climbers, blind people and double amputees have been banned from climbing Everest under new rules the Nepalese tourism ministry believes will reduce the number of deaths on the mountain.
The changes have provoked criticism from the US ambassador to Nepal and a former Gurkha soldier planning to scale the peak after losing both legs in Afghanistan.
The new rules have been under discussion for a month and were implemented this week, Nepalese officials told the Himalayan Times.
British cancer patient reaches Everest summit Read more Individual climbers will need to be accompanied by a mountain guide, and high-altitude workers who accompany expeditions to the summit are eligible to receive summit certificates under the revised regulations.
A suggested upper age limit of 76 for climbers which Nepalese alpine associations had lobbied for after the death of an 85-year-old climber in May has not been implemented, but the government maintained the ban on climbers under 16.
Everest once attracted only elite climbers, but as the relative cost of scaling the peak has fallen the mountain has drawn record numbers of aspiring mountaineers, including many from China and India.
Experienced climbers have raised concern that the mountain is becoming dangerously overcrowded and that new companies with lower safety standards have rushed to fill demand in the market.
The Nepalese government tightens the eligibility criteria for permits to scale the 8,848m (29,029ft) peak from the Nepal side before each spring climbing season, but enforcement is patchy and rules are frequently overlooked.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
Then how are the going to enjoy the view from up there?
Can ya blame em? Kinda silly trying to prove how brave you are. Might work here but not there.
Sounds good to me.
I bet it only took ONE TIME of 15 sherpas walking a dude up to the top, only to find out he was blind to make this rule.
-The Government of Nepal
Kyle Maynard is a speaker, author, and mixed martial arts athlete, known for becoming the first quadruple amputee to ascend Mount Kilimanjaro without the aid of prosthetics.
Well that’s a shame! Can they still do Macchu Pichu?
Well, thats off my bucket list for 2018. I suck wind at about 20 feet above sea level.
Everest is so dangerous for anyone, regardless of ability or group size. I was part of a climbing team on an expedition to Cho Oyu which is a 8,000m peak just west of Everest. A South Korea team was just ahead of us and they had Sherpas out fixing ropes higher on the mountain. A huge wind came up and blew several Sherpas off the mountain. I never heard that any of them were found.
This is devastating. And I’m still not over Macho Grande.
Welcome to my world LOL
Do it while you can LOL
One of the funniest Monty Python skits involved a mountaineering expedition of British hairdressers attempting to climb Everest.
“Well we had to use the oxygen tanks to keep the hair dryers running”
It would seem to me that they may be able to make the climb, but at a slow rate. That would create blockages on the mountains, slowing everyones ascent and descent.That would prove dangerous when there is sudden weather changes. I am not a mountain climber, but I did trek there. Miserable experience as I got altitude sickness.
I have a hard time with the Rock Wall at the Mall.
The Gurkha would manage it.
It’s their country, they can make their own rules.
Used to cost over US $250,000 for a small party. On the way up tourists get to see the frozen bodies of unsuccessful climbers as well as all the human waste in 5 gal pails accumulated since climbing began.
No mention of banning 60+ yr old, couch-potato cigarette smokers?
Whew! Still good to go.
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