# Mt. Everest summit human traffic jam **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 26, 2019, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547 "2019-05-26T11:55:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2019, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/81 "2019-07-10T22:29:35Z")
Sorry to rez this thread, but John Oliver recently had a [show](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bchx0mS7XOY&t=1056s) about this very topic. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2019, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/82 "2019-07-11T02:08:28Z")
> [@Gray\_Ghost](#): > > … are there other 8000 m peaks in Nepal that are as easy for non-professional climbers to climb as Everest? The “easiest” is generally reckoned to Cho Oyu, about 20 km west of Mount Everest - summit is about 2165’ lower than Everest’s. Googling suggests that of the 14 mountains over 8000 m, Everest is the 3rd or 4th easiest (without allowing for possible crowding). ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2019, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/83 "2019-07-11T13:45:29Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Sorry to rez this thread, but John Oliver recently had a [show](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bchx0mS7XOY&t=1056s) about this very topic. I used his [https://www.thetopofmounteverest.com](https://www.thetopofmounteverest.com) tool to create a picture - the one with a dog. I did a good job of fitting my dogs face and using a picture where I actually was climbing and had the appropriate glasses and head gear on so the two images fit in well. The caption on the photo is “we are the first Human-Canine duo to the summit”. I posted it to social media with the intro “made it to the top of Everest…love crossing things off the bucket list” I got so many “congrats”, “great accomplishment”, etc. I don’t know if I have really dumb friends or they mega-wooshed me. I hope the latter. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2019, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/84 "2019-07-11T16:22:12Z")
How is it possible to build a cable up the mountain when humanity can not even get the last hundred years of corpses off the mountain? Really this is the first problem to grapple with. It will provide insight into the next challenge and help determine the feasibility. For one thing I have never heard of death zone technicians and repairmen. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2019, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/85 "2019-07-11T21:27:05Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > How is it possible to build a cable up the mountain when humanity can not even get the last hundred years of corpses off the mountain? We certainly _could_ remove the corpses. It’s just that nobody wants it done badly enough to pay for it. The government there can’t afford to do it, and no other philanthropists or charities have thought this important enough\* to invest the money. So we don’t do it. - And that’s a very arguable position. Those people are already dead, and don’t care that their bodies are lying on the mountain. There are lots more living people who desperately need help that we could spend this money on. Fore example, about 1,000 children die of starvation every hour (21,000 per day, in 2018). We could spend that money to buy food for them instead. [Personally, I’d think that was a better option.] ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/86 "2019-07-12T13:05:44Z")
> [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > … about 1,000 children die of starvation every hour (21,000 per day, in 2018). Here’s a [BBC article](https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22935692) that calls this seriously into question. TL;DR: A figure around 8000 per day is supportable provided you replace “starvation” with “pathologies linked to inadequate nutrition”. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/87 "2019-07-12T15:42:34Z")
some of the bodies are pushed off the mountain so they are not visible or block paths. In 1999 they found a body from 1924 ,he may have made the summit . They were specifically looking for his body and the body of his partner to see if there was evidence they made the summit. > **[George Mallory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Mallory)** > > George Herbert Leigh Mallory (18 June 1886 – 8 or 9 June 1924): 546–547  was an English mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest in the early 1920s. > Born in Cheshire, Mallory became a student at Winchester College, where a teacher recruited him for an excursion in the Alps and he developed a strong natural ability for climbing. After graduating from Magdalene College, Cambridge, he taught at Charterhouse School whilst honing his skills as a climber in t... ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/88 "2019-07-12T16:27:11Z")
> [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > We certainly _could_ remove the corpses. > > It’s just that nobody wants it done badly enough to pay for it. The government there can’t afford to do it, and no other philanthropists or charities have thought this important enough\* to invest the money. So we don’t do it. > > - And that’s a very arguable position. Those people are already dead, and don’t care that their bodies are lying on the mountain. There are lots more living people who desperately need help that we could spend this money on. Fore example, about 1,000 children die of starvation every hour (21,000 per day, in 2018). We could spend that money to buy food for them instead. [Personally, I’d think that was a better option.] Right. My point is we are not doing it so why speculate on things that are at least 15 steps into the future, in cost and feasibility. We can’t build a railway because we haven’t yet tried to get the bodies off the mountain. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/89 "2019-07-12T16:46:04Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > Right. My point is we are not doing it so why speculate on things that are at least 15 steps into the future, in cost and feasibility. We can’t build a railway because we haven’t yet tried to get the bodies off the mountain. The discussion is mainly about what would be theoretically possible with an unlimited budget and a desire to do so, not whether it’s something the governments of Nepal or China are able to take on right now. No one (except a few severe outliers) expects anything like this to actually get built. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/90 "2019-07-12T18:30:20Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > The discussion is mainly about what would be theoretically possible with an unlimited budget and a desire to do so … I think the answer has to be yes, and the budget need not be unlimited - something on the order of $100 million should suffice. I base this on the fact that a production helicopter (yes, with careful preparation) has landed on the summit, and that heavy-lift helicopters can comfortably operate at the altitudes of base camp (17,600’). > [@](#): > > No one (except a few severe outliers) expects anything like this to actually get built. Indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2019, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/91 "2019-07-12T19:51:04Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > I think the answer has to be yes, and the budget need not be unlimited - something on the order of $100 million should suffice. I think you’re off by an order of magnitude, if not more. And I doubt that it would work for any significant period of time before it failed catastrophically. But _something_ could be built. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2019, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/92 "2019-07-13T01:54:13Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > I doubt that it would work for any significant period of time before it failed catastrophically. Why do you think would it tend to do this? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2019, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/93 "2019-07-13T02:06:23Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > Why do you think would it tend to do this? Because of the incredibly harsh conditions and zero margin of error. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2019, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/94 "2019-07-13T12:16:15Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > Why do you think would it tend to do this? There’s ice and rockfalls on a regular basis. The routes cross glaciers which move unevenly and form cracks. New snow will cover some parts. Etc. Everest is a hellish place even ignoring the lack of oxygen and the cold. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2019, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/95 "2019-07-13T14:10:27Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > There’s ice and rockfalls on a regular basis. The routes cross glaciers which move unevenly and form cracks. The cable route would certainly avoid glaciers, heavy snow accumulations, and areas receiving rockfall. Possible options would be along the west or northeast ridge. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2019, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/96 "2019-07-13T22:45:16Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > The cable route would certainly avoid glaciers, heavy snow accumulations, and areas receiving rockfall. Possible options would be along the west or northeast ridge. I agree that cable car routes seldom follow footpaths. Also, cable car routes are normally shut in high wind, and require continous maintenance. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2019, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/97 "2019-07-14T00:03:42Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > … cable car routes are normally shut in high wind, and require continous maintenance. There’s little question that for a cable system on Everest (and indeed on much lower mountains) weather-related closures would be common. And certainly a sensible design would need to be robust and emphasize ease of maintenance. ---
**Author:** ![Kimera757](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimera757/32/3765_2.png) [@Kimera757](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimera757)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2019, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/98 "2019-07-14T00:30:59Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > Sorry to rez this thread, but John Oliver recently had a [show](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bchx0mS7XOY&t=1056s) about this very topic. It was difficult to view that video in Canada (I had to go through several Youtube downloader sites) but it was illuminating. Forty times!? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2019, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/99 "2019-07-14T15:06:26Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > And certainly a sensible design would need to be robust and emphasize ease of maintenance. Considering the environment it would be intended to operate in, I don’t think anything we can build today would last for long. ---
**Author:** ![A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a87d85/32.png) [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Dodgy_Dude)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2019, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547/100 "2019-07-14T17:39:47Z")
I ran across this piece of information the other day: from the Nepal side, base camp to the summit is 12.5 mile hike. from the Tibet side, base camp to the summit is a 22 mile hike. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mt-everest-summit-human-traffic-jam/834547.md?page=6)