What? Just google for instance "Pasang Lhamu Sherpa" or "Lhakpa Sherpa"…
Both were born after Hillary summited, and well after the Mallory/Irvine expedition.
The post #147 "How come the Sherpas never thought to climb Everest on their own?" I replied to was not specific to the first ascent talks, so my answer was related to contemporary climbing, and to the fact that some Sherpas do also climb for the love of the mountains and because it is there.
Historically, the mountain was well known by Tibetans and Sherpas under the name of Chomolungma long before the first British surveyors observed it. However, climbing glaciated mountains for the sake of climbing wasn’t part of the local culture neither in the high Asian ranges nor in the Alps nor in North America. In the early ages of mountaineering, locals living in the Alpine or Himalayan valleys were hired as porters and guides for a wealthy elite, and later developed their own drive for the sport. Some locals working in the outdoors industry still consider it just as a job, many combine their profession with their passion, regardless whether they are from a remote Alpine valley or from the Khumbu region.
Took the white man to show the Nepalese and Tibetans the gold mine they had in their back yard.
Just like diamonds in Africa and pearls in Ceylon.
Quite uninformed and off topic comment. Diamond were first recognised, mined and treasured as gemstones in the Indian subcontinent for several millennia. Pearl hunting has been historically practiced by most native populations wherever natural pearls are found. And cultured pearl industry was developed in Japan. Find some better examples if your purpose is to derail this thread.
And not every treasure in someone’s backyard has to be exploited like a goldmine. Bhutan took the decision to outlaw high altitude mountaineering, while others promote their most pristine destinations for commercial heliskiing. There are other values in this World than the "drill, baby, drill" obsession.
The climber who died was not a member of Nick's climbing team. He was from a different group. Check your own link. Doesn't really matter though as it is sad that this climber died after reaching Camp IV in preparation to summit the mountain.
The use of xenon gas may help cut the usual trip time from weeks to days. But not all members of the climbing community approve of the potentially speedy climb.
