A massive, unstable chunk of ice is blocking the route up Mount Everest from Base Camp in Nepal, just as the peak climbing season begins in the Himalayas.
“Icefall doctors” – who fix ropes and ladders along the lower part of the world’s highest peak – have been unable to find a way around the 100-foot-high (30-metre) ice block located just below Camp 1, according to the BBC.
They say the only solution is to wait for the ice block, known as a serac, to melt – something they hope will happen in the coming days.
The delay is pushing preparations weeks behind schedule for the spring season, when Everest typically sees the best climbing weather. There are growing concerns that climbers will once again face long queues on the way to the summit.
Purnima Shrestha, a well-known Nepali climber and photographer, is currently acclimatizing for her sixth Everest summit.
“We usually move back and forth between Camp 1, Camp 2, and Camp 3 during acclimatization. Delays in opening the route have raised concerns about possible ‘traffic jams’ this year,” she told the BBC from Base Camp.
The icefall doctors work for the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC), which is responsible for fixing ropes up to Camp 2 on Everest, which stands at 8,848.86 metres (29,031 feet) above sea level. They arrived at Base Camp three weeks ago.
By this point in April, they would normally have fixed the route as far as Camp 3, but they remain blocked by the ice chunk about 600 metres below Camp 1.
“We haven’t found any artificial way to melt it yet, so we have no choice but to wait for it to melt and collapse on its own,” said Tshering Tenzing Sherpa, SPCC base camp coordinator.
Ang Sarki Sherpa, a veteran icefall doctor, said he expects the serac to melt because its lower section is weak.
“We reached it on 10 April. The crevasse below is melting,” he said, adding that other Sherpas have since reported further melting and that it is close to collapsing.
He and other climbers have found no safe way around the serac, and a potential alternative route to Camp 1 would be very difficult to establish this year. Climbing directly over the huge serac has been deemed too risky.
“There’s no other option. We spent four days exploring the area, checking every possible spot left and right from the mountain,” Ang Sarki Sherpa said by phone from Base Camp.
Nepal’s Department of Tourism says it is exploring various options, including airlifting teams to Camp 2.
“We’re considering helicopter airlifts for the rope-fixing team and their gear to Camp 2, so they can open the route above that altitude for now,” said Ram Krishna Lamichhane, the department’s director general.
“We’ll wait for the ice to melt where the blockage is and work there once it’s safe.”
Favourable weather is expected only until the end of May. With the ice currently blocking the route melting, Sherpas hope rope-fixing to Camp 2 will be completed within a few days – and the summit within a week.
Despite the war in Iran and its impact on fuel costs and travel, large numbers of climbers are still expected to attempt Everest this year.
According to the Department of Tourism, 367 people have obtained climbing permits so far, most of them Chinese. Climbing organisers say China has not issued permits for foreign nationals from its side this year.
Most Everest ascents take place from Nepal, rather than via the easier route from Tibet. Last year, more than 700 people, including guides, summited from the Nepalese side, while only about 100 climbed from China.
This spring, climbing fees for foreign nationals on Everest have been raised from $11,000 to $15,000. For Nepalis, the fee has doubled to $1,000.
