Died Trying

Everest Sunrise  (Photo by Sebastian Werner)

Whereas the wilderness used to be a place to get away from it all, it’s now a place to get in line and take a number.

And the numbers are growing.  There are traffic jams in the desert, traffic jams in the mountains, and traffic jams even on top of the world.

While waiting (and waiting) on the so-called balcony of Mount Everest, climber Nihal Bagwan recently died at age 27.  It’s one thing to wait on line for a movie ticket, and quite another to wait on line with a fully loaded backpack at 29,000 feet.

Photos taken near the summit show a jam-packed line of climbers snaking their way up snow-covered peaks.  Every delayed moment increases the risk of “frostbite and altitude sickness.”  When such moments turn into hours, people die trying.

Resources

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/three-more-dead-everest-amid-concerns-about-congestion-near-summit-n1009586

Copyright May 24, 2019 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved