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Mount Everest 2015 Khumbu Icefall Route

The 2015 route through the Khumbu Icefall has been pieced together by a number of professional climbers and guides.

Garrett Madison is guide who runs Madison Mountaineering and recently posted a few photos of the Khumbu route on his blog. It sounds like the route is safer, but the climbing is more difficult as the there are stacked ladders to breach seracs.

Garret Madison's photo of the new route (on the right) through the Khumbu Icefield.
Garret Madison’s photo of the new route (on the right) through the Khumbu Icefall. More photos here.

“This morning a few members took a helicopter flight, and we had a look at the new route up the Khumbu Icefall to Camp 1 on Everest,” wrote Madison on his blog. “We were able to see clearly that the new route is in fact completely new, and veers to the ‘climbers right’ near Nuptse, avoiding the hanging ice on the West Shoulder that buried the 16 Nepali mountain workers last year.

“It appears that climbers will have to negotiate broken ice as before, and perhaps more vertical ladders. The red line on the right shows the new route (if you look closely you can see the footprints, ladders, fixed lines) while the red line on the left is the approximate old route from last year. There is at least one section that has four vertical ladders tied together to ascend up a very large ice cliff.”

There are 287 foreigners who have Everest permits and add another 300 Sherpas and 2015 is on track for 500 to 600 Everest summits, about the same as in previous years.

Most of the teams are all in route to Everest Base Camp with no issues reported. The weather is a bit cool with afternoon rain or sow showers. There seems to be lots of snow at Basecamp and on the mountain, but the real conditions will be seen once climbing begins.

On the approach to Mount Everest.
On the approach to Mount Everest.

Source: Alan Arnette, Garrett Madison

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