Mount Everest is still the ultimate mountaineering adventure. As the highest mountain in the world, Everest has immense appeal to mountaineers and fascination for non-climbers, but it also has tremendous allure because of its position in Nepal's Khumbu, one of the world's most beautiful mountain regions, and because of its remarkable climbing history. An ascent of Everest provides immense personal challenge, a rewarding cultural experience on approach, and a personal connection with a rich history of exploration.

The spectacular West Face of Everest. Guy Cotter

An attempt on Mt Everest is also a major undertaking which requires significant climbing experience, solid alpine skills, good mountain judgment, excellent physical conditioning, and a huge amount of dedication and determination. If you see Everest as a definite or possible climbing goal for yourself, we can help you through all the stages of your preparation, from technical skills development to training in cold weather survival skills and the gaining of climbing experience at high altitude.

High on Everest with Makalu in the background. Guy Cotter

View and download our detailed expedition notes for the Everest Expedition.

We climb Everest via the South Col route from Nepal in the spring season because this route and timing offer the absolute best chance of success. Routes from the north are technically more difficult, especially high on the mountain, and in the spring climbing season, we gain the dual advantages of getting progressively milder weather as we move closer to the summit and of climbing more stable slopes because the winter winds have scoured away much of the snow, significantly reducing the avalanche hazard.

This expedition is a joint American Alpine Institute / Adventure Consultants undertaking. The Institute has the most extensive and successful high altitude guiding record in the world, and Adventure Consultants has the highest success rate guiding on Mt. Everest (with 167 climbers reaching the summit). Both companies are committed to meticulous preparation. From expert Sherpas and support staff, to careful menu planning, oxygen support, satellite communication, environmental protection, and a mountain clean-up plan, our expedition is finely tuned to Leave No Trace while offering you the highest possible chances for success.

Camp I (5900m / 19,500ft) at the entrance to the Western Cwm, or the Silent Valley.

By the time you arrive at the base camp at the foot of the Khumbu Icefall, a route will already be established with ropes and ladders through the icefall to Camp 1, and our strong Sherpa team will be ferrying loads of equipment up the mountain. On your first acclimatization foray, you'll spend several days at and above Camp 2. On your second foray, you'll spend several days and nights at Camp 3, and on your summit attempt, we will climb through the established camps with lightweight packs to Camp 4 on the South Col. All climbers will be sleeping on bottled oxygen before setting out for the summit, carrying only very lightweight Russian oxygen bottles.

The expedition will be organized in such a way to allow members to concentrate largely on their own health and performance, without the burden of load carrying or dealing with logistics. A doctor, who is experienced in high altitude medicine, will be resident at base camp throughout the expedition to monitor your acclimatization and provide for your health care.

To gain a full understanding of your body's response to altitude and to gain experience with Himalayan conditions, we recommend you join us for two expeditions prior to Everest (Alaska's Denali and Tibet's Cho Oyu are our top choices for your preparatory steps to the summit of Everest). Please see our web site for more details on all these expeditions or call us to discuss our high altitude program.

The top of the Hillary Step.