Sherpa: more than just a guide

On April 18 the Mt. Everest avalanche took 16 Sherpa lives; 13 bodies were found and three are still missing.

The next morning’s news included no names, no ages, no backgrounds, no stories. It simply referred to them as the Sherpa people.

Sherpa is an ethnicity. Their ancestors immigrated from eastern Tibet hundreds of years ago. The name Sherpa means “people from the east.” They are well-known for their mountaineering skills and tolerance to high altitudes. When Mt. Everest opened up to explorers they took the opportunity to make

Courtesy: Magnus Manske

money as guides.

With many difficulties Sherpa people already face while living in a third-world country such as Nepal, guiding tourists and climbers on Mt. Everest does not make their lives any easier.

They make a living with this job, but they do more than that. Not only the physical work, but the trust and family-like relationships they build with climbers.

“They work with us, alongside us, and for us. They are just some of the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life. I got to know a lot of them pretty well, and they became family members,” said Ben Jones, a senior guide from Alpine Ascents, in a documentary called “Everest Avalanche Tragedy” on the Discovery Channel.

Foreign climbers don’t often meet their Sherpa guides until they arrive at the base camp. Everest Base camp is 5,364 meters (17,598 feet) above sea level. According to Discovery, this base camp is higher than any mountain in Europe, but the camp is only two-thirds of the way to the peak. Due to the fact that the base camp is built on a glacier the ice constantly shifts. This requires the Sherpa people to rebuild the base camp every year.

On top of rocky glaciers, the Sherpas shovel away pointy rocks to flatten the space needed to set up tents and lay out equipment.

Once building is complete, the base camp looks like a miniature facility. The Sherpa guides continue working their magic, bonding and making people feel like home by brewing hot tea and cooking traditional food. Before climbing the highest mountain on Earth, the Sherpas take time to have the Puja ceremony.

The Rongphu Monastery, with Mt. Everest in the background
Courtesy: Csearl

A Puja ceremony is performed to ask the mountain gods for permission and blessings. The Sherpa people believe the mountain gods reside in the mountain and no one should step onto the mountain
before pursuing them.

The goal of the expedition on April 18 was to make sure Joby Ogwyn reached Everest’s highest peak before flying down in his wingsuit. However, to climb higher, they first have to pass the Khumbu Icefall.

Khumbu Icefall is another glacier-structured area at the bottom of the mountain. Above this area ice is more stable, but at Khumbu ice is constantly moving. The Sherpas who climb up first to this area are called the icefall doctors. Their job is to find the route and set the ladders and ropes. Due to the glacier’s instability they have to redo this every year. Other Sherpas who set up and maintain camps along the upper route carry heavy gear on their backs. They climb through the Khumbu Icefall at least 20 times before they notify the foreign climbers the route is ready.

Every year Sherpas die during such expeditions. This year 32 Sherpas from Joby’s expedition were on the mountain when the avalanche hit. Only half of them survived. It’s unfortunate that the Sherpas have to make their living doing this dangerous job, and even more unfortunate,their stories are neglected
in mainstream medias.

Foreign climbers pay more than $100,000 for expeditions to summit Everest but climbing Sherpas make only $5,000 a year. Other Sherpas who occupy non-climbing positions make even less.

“Without them, men like me will never be able to get up there,” Joby Ogwyn noted in the same
Discovery Channel documentary.

History chronicles the exploits of Edmund Hillary, Jim Whittaker, Willi Unsoeld and Tom Hornbein and other mountaineers, but the heroic deeds of the Sherpas and their names are nowhere to be seen.

To help the Sherpa community:

Donation site: www.sherpafund.bigcartel.com

Sherpa Education Fund: www.sherpaedfund.org

For more info: www.facebook.com/pages/2014-Mount-Everest-avalanche/268151980025149#