Craziness on Everest Southside Continues

P.S. It remains to be seen whether ascents of Everest and Lhotse from Camp 2 can count as full summit successes. A case for Elizabeth Hawley, the 90-year-old legendary Himalayan chronicler in Kathmandu.

More keen to conquer Everest

RAJAN POKHREL

KATHMANDU: Attempts to climb Mt Everest and Mt Lhotse by two legendary female mountaineers have emboldened other climbers, who have shown interest in scaling the peaks this season itself.

Climbers from Malaysia, China, Peru and Romania have shown interest in scaling the world’s highest peak, officials at the ministry of tourism and civil aviation told THT. “Azim Afif Bin Ishak–led six-member Ever Quest, Malaysia UTM, Everest Exp 2014 and a few others from China, Peru and Romania want to resume climbing.”

Meanwhile, Wang Jing, 40, from China, who is attempting to scale Mt Everest, yesterday flew to Camp 2 from the Base Camp. American climber Cleonice Weidlich, 51, had already flown to Camp 2 from Gorak Shep in her solo bid to scale Mt Lhotse. Both are expected to complete their climbs in the last week of May.

However, their bid to scale the peaks has kicked up a row, as liaison officers assigned by MoTCA for both the climbers — Arjun Shrestha and Laxman Sharma — are in Kathmandu and have no idea what the two women are up to; none of the Sherpas earlier assigned for their expeditions are with them; the agencies that obtained climbing permit for them have no idea about their latest bid; on top of this, the two have flown to Camp 2 on helicopters without taking the ministry’s permission.

“Russell Reginald Brice of the Himalayan Experience (Himex) that got the permit to scale Everest for Jing and others has already approached ministry, raising serious objection over Jing’s move,” sources said.

Murari Sharma, MD at the Everest Parivar, which got the permit for Cleo, is also miffed at her. “We have no idea about Cleo’s latest activities. All other climbers have already been informed about the cancellation of season’s climbing.” Both Brice and Sharma are worried that if the two women succeed in scaling the peaks, the permits for others in their expeditions might become invalid.

MoTCA officials say they will try to settle the disputed issues at the earliest. “We are positive to settle the disputes and also appeal to other climbers to resume climbing if they wish so,” Joint Secretary Madhu Sudan Burlakoti at MoTCA said, hinting that they will be allowed to land at Camp 2 if they wish so.