Nope. 32% was the # of death vs successful summit by 2012. Currently the ratio has lowered to approx 20%.
The 43 deaths were not caused by a single avalanche on the mountain and are not accounted in the number of deaths while climbing Annapurna. They relate to snowstorms in October 2014 in the Annapurna region that killed 43 trekkers, guides, porters and herders. I don’t think a single Annapurna climber died during the event.
Perhaps I read that wrong? Still the 43 deaths in one storm in 2014 skewed the death toll percentages.
The were only 4 climbers deaths on Annapurna I in the 12 year period between 2013 and 2024. Two fell and two died of AMS, all four on the descent. None died in an avalanche.
To compare with, Nanga Parbat has a death/summit ratio of 21%.
The were only 4 climbers deaths on Annapurna I in the 12 year period between 2013 and 2024. Two fell and two died of AMS, all four on the descent. None died in an avalanche.
To compare with, Nanga Parbat has a death/summit ratio of 21%.
Good stuff. I wonder if the stats made it too risky? Obviously K2 is still an attractive risk.
Difficult and dangerous aren’t the same thing. The difficulty of climbing Everest is lower than something like running a 3 hour marathon. The risk of dying (or some serious frost bite) is orders a several orders of magnitude higher.
I highly doubt that. I climbed Mt Whitney last summer and that was infinitely more difficult than any marathon I’ve ever done (which includes many sub-3s). Everest must be 10x+ harder than Whitney.
Only mountains I want to climb are San Gorgonio, Shasta, Whitney, and Rainier.
A few years ago they lifted up a guy in a wheelchair to the summit.
It was a long trip, and honestly wish I had thought of it earlier. I wanted to stand up on the top, but was worried I would have to hike back down. Plus the people helping felt good about helping me so didn’t want to take that away from them.
Last posted cameo video was on April 24, 2025 from EBC. In the video he said he's going for the summit in two weeks, so should be any day now.
Discus
There is a lot of debate here about how difficult Everest is. If your being assisted all the way. Have your belongings taken are of. Helped over the hard parts and handed a new bottle of oxygen every time you run out, it is not THAT difficult. That is why many people who really do not belong on a high mountain are able to do it due to the professional mountain guides. If ya got the money they will get you to the top. (maybe)
BUT if your climbing it mountain climber style with only minimal assistance and depending on your strength, conditioning and experience, then reaching the peak and returning is a tremendous achievement.
I give him props for doing it. It's cool he continues to be so active.
His ex doesn't think it's that cool.
Is he already divorced?
I guess he is. Didn't realize that. Google says this: Nick Symmonds married Tiana Baur in 2020. They celebrated their wedding at home in Oregon. Symmonds filed for divorce from Baur in September 2024.
Last posted cameo video was on April 24, 2025 from EBC. In the video he said he's going for the summit in two weeks, so should be any day now.
Discus
There is a lot of debate here about how difficult Everest is. If your being assisted all the way. Have your belongings taken are of. Helped over the hard parts and handed a new bottle of oxygen every time you run out, it is not THAT difficult. That is why many people who really do not belong on a high mountain are able to do it due to the professional mountain guides. If ya got the money they will get you to the top. (maybe)
BUT if your climbing it mountain climber style with only minimal assistance and depending on your strength, conditioning and experience, then reaching the peak and returning is a tremendous achievement.
Lots of deaths on the Big E happen on the way down...
There is a lot of debate here about how difficult Everest is. If your being assisted all the way. Have your belongings taken are of. Helped over the hard parts and handed a new bottle of oxygen every time you run out, it is not THAT difficult. That is why many people who really do not belong on a high mountain are able to do it due to the professional mountain guides. If ya got the money they will get you to the top. (maybe)
BUT if your climbing it mountain climber style with only minimal assistance and depending on your strength, conditioning and experience, then reaching the peak and returning is a tremendous achievement.
Lots of deaths on the Big E happen on the way down...
yep you gotta be damn careful and not descent when it's dark. I've watched a number of mountain documentaries, it's serious business when they get up there.
Difficult and dangerous aren’t the same thing. The difficulty of climbing Everest is lower than something like running a 3 hour marathon. The risk of dying (or some serious frost bite) is orders a several orders of magnitude higher.
I highly doubt that. I climbed Mt Whitney last summer and that was infinitely more difficult than any marathon I’ve ever done (which includes many sub-3s). Everest must be 10x+ harder than Whitney.
And for reference how many hours did you spent training to climb Mt Whitney. How many hours did you train for running in the 5 years before your marathon?
I haven’t done Whitney but I have done other long uphill hikes. Yeah they are tiring. I also did zero training and expect to get sore from doing a new activity. Go run a marathon off zero training and let me know how it goes.
now the people doing Everest are doing some training. But for the tourist climbers it is pretty minimal. Go look at what is considered intensive training and it isn’t much. It isn’t a technical climb. Now some people really suck at altitude. But that is like really sucking at running. it happens .
Didn't read this whole thread, so not sure if anybody posted this, but Ed Viesturs, one of America's greatest high altitude climbers ran the NY marathon in 3:15 in 2006 at age 47, a bit after he was at the peak of his powers as a mountaineer. Ed was the first American to climb all 14 8000 meter peaks with no oxygen.
This post was edited 2 minutes after it was posted.
Getting killed in an avalanche, storm, freezing to death, even murdered by an ice axe don't make a climb "difficult." Those forms of bad luck take no effort at all.
That's difficult like running a road marathon with the course not fully closed and cars randomly driving through it. You might get ran over but it's still just a marathon.
but if that sht is advertised or known as it is with everest it becomes significantly more difficult
I need some hill climbing for training purposes. RUN training, that is. Without snow or ice or much elevation and with oxygen galore. I'll make it a distance over that Symonds distance of 800 meters, for sure.