Nepal’s mountaineering community celebrates 72nd anniversary of Mount Everest conquest

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepal’s mountaineering community celebrated the conquest of the world’s highest mountain with a rally of climbers, guides and others who gathered for International Everest Day.

The event Thursday marked the 72nd anniversary of the first summit climb of Mount Everest on May 29, 1953, by New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay.

Nepal’s minister for culture and tourism led the celebration in the capital, Kathmandu, that included a walk around the city and a gathering at the old palace.

“We are celebrating May 29 as the international Sagarmatha (Everest) day because the world needs to continue to recognize the achievement and contribution of Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay,” said Ang Tshering, who runs Kathmandu-based Asian Trekking.

The event was not just a celebration for the mountaineering community but also a festival for Nepal and the world, said Tshering, who has helped hundreds of clients scale the Himalayan peaks.

Nepal contains eight of the highest peaks in the world and every year hundreds of foreign climbers fly to the country in South Asia to tackle the mountains. The climbers hire thousands of people in Nepal to assist their climbs by carrying gear, cooking food and generally taking care of them as they spend weeks in the mountains.

Nepal’s government collects money from the climbers through permit fees.

The end of May also marks the end of the popular spring mountaineering season, when climbers finish their adventures and retreat from the peaks before the monsoon season brings foul weather.

“This day is celebrated also to mark the end of the climbing season where we gather climbers and the community,” Jiban Ghimire of Shangri-La Nepal Trek said.

According to Nepal’s Department of Mountaineering, 468 foreign climbers from 57 countries received permits to climb Everest by the end of May, along with a roughly equal number of Nepalese mountain guides.

Many were able to scale the peak, but officials were still working to verify how many reached the 8,849-meter (29,032-foot) summit. Climbers must report to the department with proof they reached the summit and cleared their garbage before they are issued the official certificate.

Famed Sherpa guide Kami Rita reached the Everest summit for the 31st time Tuesday, breaking his own record for the most climbs to the top of the famed mountain.