The question might arise in the mind as “Can I climb Everest Without Prior Experience?” Mountaineers who attempt to climb Everest without prior experience are not only risking their own lives but also those of their teammates and Sherpa guides who accompany them on the climb.
Mount Everest is the tallest peak in the world, and its highest point lies 8848 meters above the sea-level. This sentence makes it clear that climbing Everest takes work. If you ask professional climbers, they suggest you attempt 8000 meters of peaks.
We do not say it is impossible to ascend Everest peak without prior, but climbing similar expeditions before heading out for the highest peak will make your climbing experience easier. Furthermore, there are several more reasons why prior experience is preferred before climbing Mount Everest. This blog will enlighten you about the benefits of having prior experience in mountaineering or base camp trekking.
What are the risks of climbing Everest without prior experience?
Getting to the top of Everest is a challenging task for sure. So, one must be highly prepared for several obstacles during the trial. With prior experience in a similar activity, climbers might find it easier to adapt to the nature and environment of Everest. Furthermore, there are many other risks of climbing Everest without prior experience.
Problems in Adapting to the Temperature
The Himalayan region of Nepal is very cold throughout the year. Besides, Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, has extreme temperatures and weather changes. Suppose you walk straight to ascend Everest Peak without prior experience. In that case, the sudden weather changes and extreme climatic conditions might make it difficult to have a safe and successful journey to the top of the 8848 meters peak.
You need to have prior experience before ascending Mount Everest so your body can adapt to the temperatures at the higher altitude. Furthermore, the oxygen level is also very low at higher altitudes because of the low temperature, which might increase the risk of altitude sickness and other health-related problems. As a result, climbers will face many difficulties because of the higher altitude while climbing Everest without prior experience.
Health issues
Many climbers who tried to climb Everest without experience have suffered from several health-related problems. The peak of Mount Everest is situated 8848 meters above the sea-level, so to reach the top, your body requires a lot of strength and activeness. If you have no prior experience and are trying to climb Everest after some domestic exercises and workouts, your body might not be ready to face the challenges at the higher altitude and low oxygen level.
Climbing Everest without prior experience might lead the climbers to suffer from several illnesses and health issues, such as altitude sickness, frostbite, hypothermia, and many other health-related issues. Furthermore, one thing that everyone should know is that physical experience teaches a lot more than any blogs or walk-through videos, so even if you have read many mountaineering blogs and watched many videos, and feel like you are ready to climb Everest, remember that you might be making a wrong decision.
Cultural and Traditional Misunderstanding
The Himalayan region of Nepal is densely populated by the Sherpas, whose lifestyle and traditions are completely different from the people you meet in the country’s urban areas. Climbing Everest without prior experience in the mountainous region might lead the climbers to misunderstand the culture and traditions of the Sherpa people. The Everest region’s locals have unique cultures, languages, and religious practices, which might be unfamiliar to foreign or domestic climbers.
One of the major things to remember while going into the Sherpa community is that the Sherpas consider mountains very sacred and greatly respect the peaks. So, loitering and making the trials dirty is equivalent to hurting the cultural and traditional beliefs of the Sherpa people. Moreover, inexperienced climbers might also need to respect the Sherpa community’s religious significance and the Everest region’s locals.
Training to climb Everest
Climbing Everest requires hardcore training and preparation because of the difficult terrain, certain weather change, extreme temperature, and many other factors. You need to be mentally and physically strong to climb the Everest successfully. In this section, we will help you understand some of the major training you need to do before climbing Mount Everest.
Physical Workouts and Mental Peace
Physical exercise is one of the major things to be done before climbing Mount Everest. The climbers must ascend highly challenging trials, snowy paths, rocky terrain, extreme temperature, etc. Therefore, the climbers need to be physically prepared.
Besides, mental peace is also equally important along with physicality. For that, climbers can do yoga and meditation, play several outdoor sports, and do many other tasks that can make them physically and mentally strong. One thing to remember is that with preparation physically and mentally, climbing Everest will be easier for any climber, especially those without prior experience.
Climbing some other peaks
Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world, with an altitude of 8848 meters. However, there are several other 8000 meters tall mountains in Nepal that you can climb to be prepared for the Mount Everest expedition.
Some recommended mountain climbs before ascending Mount Everest are Kilimanjaro, Mount Cho Oyu, Island Peak, Mount Kanchenjunga, and Mount Annapurna. Successfully climbing these mountains before ascending Everest will help the climbers understand the difficulty and challenges. The climbers can also adapt to the weather and climate of the higher altitude. Besides, climbing these peaks before climbing Mount Everest will make you physically and mentally strong and prepared.
Consult the experienced climbers
One of the best ways to know about anything is by consulting experience in the same field. Therefore, we recommend all newbies climbers meet and talk to some experienced climbers who have ascended Mount Everest.
They will help you to know about all the positive and negative aspects of Mount Everest, the training needed, the perfect time to visit Everest, and several other important things that one might not find on the internet.
Final Words
Mount Everest is one of the most beautiful mountains worldwide because of several factors. Any climbing enthusiast would want to reach the peak of Everest before anything else, as it is an achievement in itself. In this blog, we learned about several factors that make climbing Everest without prior experience pretty challenging. Besides, the blog has also tried to suggest some alternative mountains to climb as training to climb the highest peak in the world.
Therefore, climbers need to understand that climbing Mount Everest without any prior experience is not impossible, but experienced climbers or mountaineers very rarely recommend this.
FAQs
What is the altitude of Mount Everest?
Mount Everest has an altitude of 8848 meters, the tallest peak in the world. Besides, Mount Everest (Sagarmatha) is also known as the “roof of the world.”
Should I hire a guide or a Sherpa to ascend Everest?
As per the latest Nepal Government and Tourism Board rule, foreign trekkers or climbers can only ascend peaks or treks if they hire a licensed guide.
What is the best time to climb Mount Everest?
Ascending any peaks of Nepal is best if done in the spring or autumn. The spring season runs from March to May, and the autumn season exists from Mid-September to Mid-November.
