Spring climbing season begins

KATHMANDU: This year’s Spring mountaineering expedition, including to Mount Everest, has begun.

Fixing ropes on the world’s highest peak by a group of Sherpa climbers has completed on Saturday, it has been said.

As part of the rope fixing, mountaineer Kami Rita Sherpa, 52, scaled the world’s highest peak (8,848.86 meters) for a record 26th time, breaking his own previous record for climbing Mt Everest most times.

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and the Department of Tourism confirmed the beginning of the mountaineering season from Saturday.

At present, around 90 percent mountaineers in the Mt Everest Base Camp are waiting for a green signal to climb the peak, said Surya Prasad Upadhyay, director of the Department’s mountaineering section.

“As part of the rope fixing, Kami Rita Sherpa reached atop the peak for a record 26 times, it has been heard. We will officially announce the news after verifying it,” he said.

The Department is expected to get the highest number of Mount Everest climbing as this season is favorable. A team of 11 Sherpa summiteers from the Seven Summit Treks Pvt. Ltd. successfully scaled the peak as per of the rope fixing.

The team on Saturday evening at 6:55 pm announced the beginning of the climbing season.

Last year, spring climbing season began from 27 April, 2021.