Tibet, Everest Summit, Lhakpa Gelu, Cornice Taken At 8830m, 1995
Tibet, Everest Summit, Lhakpa Gelu, Cornice Taken At 8830m, 1995

Tibet, Everest Summit, Lhakpa Gelu, Cornice Taken At 8830m, 1995 - Lhakpa Gelu reached the summit first. I took this photograph of his second ascent of Mount Everest and his first ascent from Tibet. I was standing at about 28950 feet. We all used oxygen that day. But my oxygen bag was often blocked with ice! If you look closely in the lower left quarter quadrant of the photograph, you can see the old summit pole. Because the jet stream drops down on the summit, the cornice rolls over, over time. Once you reach the summit plateau from Tibet, it is a gentle walk to the top of the world. Nevertheless, you cannot let your guard down. Two days after I reached the summit, a climber lost his balance here, slid backwards and upside down and caught his hand on a rock just before plummeting 10,000 feet down the North Face.

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