Why do climbers climb Everest despite the dead bodies on the mountain?

Thick, dark clouds fill the sky, with icy winds carrying snow at more than 100 miles per hour. The freezing temperature of -34ºC, snowfall and avalanches increase the risk of death for those who climb the largest mountain in the world.

These are typical conditions for the highest mountain in the world: Mount Everest.

The giant rises to 8,849 meters between Nepal and Tibet in the Himalayas, with its peak surpassing most clouds in the sky.

An attempt to climb Everest requires months, sometimes years, of training and conditioning – even then, reaching the summit is far from guaranteed. In reality, more than 300 people have already died on the mountain.

And yet, the mountain still attracts hundreds of climbers who are determined to reach the peak each spring. Here's what it takes to make the climb and what motivated some climbers to reach the world's highest summit.

“I thought I was in really good shape.”

Dr. Jacob Weasel, a trauma surgeon, successfully climbed Everest last May after conditioning for nearly a year.

“I would put on a 50-kilo backpack and spend two hours climbing stairs without any problems,” Weasel told CNN . “So I thought I was in pretty good shape.” However, the surgeon said he was shocked to discover that his physical conditioning was no match for the high level of athleticism required by the mountain.

“I would take five steps and it would take me 30 seconds to a minute to catch my breath,” Weasel recalled of his struggle with the lack of available oxygen while climbing Everest.

Climbers aiming for the summit often practice an acclimatization rotation to adjust their lungs to the dwindling oxygen levels once they reach the mountain. This process involves climbers traveling to one of four designated camps on Everest and spending one to four days there before descending.

This routine is repeated at least twice to allow the body to adapt to the decline in oxygen levels, which increases the chances of survival to reach the summit.

“If you took someone and just dropped them on the high camp of Everest, not even at the (top), they would probably go into a coma within 10 to 15 minutes,” Weasel said.

“They would die within an hour because their body is not adjusted to these low oxygen levels.”

Although Weasel has successfully climbed dozens of mountains, including Kilimanjaro at 5,895 meters, Chimborazo (6,263), Cotopaxi (5,896 meters) and, most recently, Aconcagua (6,960 meters) in January, he said none of them compare to the altitude of Mt. Everest.

“Because no matter how well you are trained, once you reach the limits of what the human body can handle, it's just hard,” he continued.

At its highest altitude, Everest is almost incapable of supporting human life and most climbers use supplemental oxygen above 7,000 meters altitude. Lack of oxygen poses one of the biggest threats to climbers trying to reach the summit, where levels drop to less than 40% once they reach Everest's “death zone”.

“It’s hard to survive up there”

The first target for climbers is Everest base camp, at approximately 5,200 meters, taking about two weeks. Then go up to the three remaining camps parked along the mountain.

Camp four, the last before the summit, lies along the edge of the death zone at 7,924 meters, exposing climbers to extremely thin air, sub-zero temperatures and strong winds powerful enough to knock a person off their feet. from the mountain.

“It’s hard to survive up there,” Weasel told CNN . He remembers passing bodies of climbers who died on the mountain — not uncommon. The bodies of the fallen mountaineers are well preserved, showing little or no decomposition due to the intense cold.

“I'm probably more familiar with death and loss of life than most people,” the surgeon said. “For me it was just a reminder of the gravity of the situation and the fragility of life, even more motivation to value the opportunity.”

High-altitude cerebral edema (HACE) is one of the most common illnesses climbers face when trying to reach the summit. “Your brain is starved of oxygen,” Weasel said.

HACE results in swelling of the brain while trying to regain stable oxygen levels, causing drowsiness and difficulty speaking and thinking. This confusion is often accompanied by blurred vision and sporadic episodes of delirium.

“I had auditory hallucinations where I heard voices [de amigos] which I thought were coming from behind me,” Weasel recalled. “And I had visual hallucinations,” he added. “I was seeing my children’s and my wife’s faces coming out of the rocks.”

Weasel remembers crossing paths with a friend, Orianne Aymard, who was trapped on the mountain due to an injury. “I remember looking at her for like five minutes and just saying, 'I'm sorry,'” Weasel said.

“I spent over a decade of my life training to help people as a surgeon, and being in a position where there is someone who needs your help and you are unable to offer any assistance… That feeling of helplessness was difficult to deal with,” Weasel I told CNN.

Aymard survived. She was rescued and suffered several broken bones in her foot, as well as severe burns to her hands. Despite all her injuries, Aymard is considered one of the lucky ones.

“Their bodies will be frozen on the mountain”

Everest has long been a tomb for climbers who succumbed to harsh conditions or accidents on its slopes.

When a loved one or fellow climber is seriously injured or dies on the mountain, it's routine to leave them behind if they can't be saved, according to Alan Arnette, a mountaineering coach who climbed Everest in 2014.

“What most teams do out of respect for the climber is move the body out of sight,” he said. And that's only if they can.

“Sometimes that’s just not practical because of bad weather or because their bodies will be frozen on the mountain,” Arnette told CNN . “So it’s very difficult to move them.”

Seeing a dead body on Everest is comparable to seeing a terrible car accident, according to the mountain's trainer.

“You don’t turn around and go home,” Arnette said. “You respectfully slow down or say a prayer for that person and then continue.”

It has been 10 years since the deadliest accident on the world's highest mountain, after an avalanche killed 12 Sherpa guides. And 2023 was recorded as the deadliest year on Everest, with 18 deaths on the mountain – including five people who are still missing.

The process of recovering bodies is extensive, sometimes impossible. Helicopter rescues and search missions are challenging due to the high altitude and often treacherous conditions, resulting in the deaths of some rescuers trying to save others.

“Watch the sunrise at 8,800 meters”

The 914 meter climb from Camp Four to the summit can take 14 to 18 hours. Therefore, mountaineers typically leave camp at night.

“That whole night was cold,” Weasel remembers. “It’s dark, it’s windy.” But it proved worth it in the morning, he said.

“Watching the sunrise from almost 30,000 feet and having that pyramid of Everest’s shadow projected into the valley below you…” Weasel told CNN. “It was probably one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen in my life,” he continued.

“It’s strange to be up there and know that everything else on the planet is below where you are.”

The size of the mountain is humbling, said the surgeon. “I never felt so small,” he recalled. “This mix of humility and connection to something greater than yourself is the appropriate place from which we should approach our existence on this planet.”

Like Weasel, Arnette climbed to the summit at sunrise and experienced the same feeling of “smallness.” At the top were “more mountains than you can count,” Arnette recalled. “It was a feeling of enormous gratitude and at the same time I knew I had to go back.”

After about 20 minutes to an hour, climbers typically begin their descent back to the base of the mountain.

“Bigger than yourself”

Before leaving for Nepal, Weasel was given an eagle feather as a beacon to his Native American heritage.

He was determined to plant the feather atop Everest “as a symbol of our people and what we have suffered over the last few hundred years,” Weasel told CNN . “To show that our spirit is not broken, but that we are capable of overcoming the things that have happened to us,” she added.

“I remember planting that eagle feather on top of the world and the feeling of true privilege I felt representing our people.” And that's why he decided to climb Everest, to be an example that anything is possible for native children and their culture.

“Knowing what it’s like up there, for me personally, the only real justification for going and putting your life, and other lives, at risk is if you’re climbing for a reason much bigger than yourself,” Weasel said.

Arnette attempted to climb Everest three times before successfully reaching the summit.

“My first three tries, I didn’t really understand why,” Arnette said. When his mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, he looked at the purpose of climbing differently.

“I wanted to do this to raise money for Alzheimer’s and honor my mom,” Arnette said.

About 300 people have received permission from the Nepalese government to climb the mountain this year, according to Arnette. And he said the number was down compared to previous years.

“I think one of the reasons is because we had 18 deaths last year and people realized that Mount Everest is a dangerous mountain.”

However, he doesn't believe this should stop climbers from trying to reach the summit. “I’m a firm believer that when you climb these mountains, you come home a better version of yourself,” Arnette told CNN .

“Everest has become very commercialized with 'you're stepping on dead bodies' and 'it's full of rubbish',” the mountain trainer said. “The reality is that this is all to a very small degree, but there is a lot of joy that people get from doing this,” he continued.

“And that’s why we climb mountains,” he concluded.