It's the time of year when the national press prints at least one story bemoaning the media circus surrounding Everest and questioning whether it's 'real mountaineering'. This year it's the Observer's turn.
Seems like a bit of an Everest week here on OUTDOORSmagic, so it's
perhaps no surprise that the annual 'Oh woe, Everest is a commercial
media fest and not proper mountaineering' article appeared at the
weekend.
This year's offering, titled 'Has mighty Everest been reduced to a
playground?' appeared in the weekend's Observer and was put together
by Peter Beaumont and Ed Douglas, two respected mountaineering
reporters.
It's the story that mountaineers never tire of - a sort of feeble
gestural wave to make it clear that we - real climbers - know that
commercial expeditions on Everest mean that things simply aren't what
they used to be.
'...the modern Everest experience is far removed from rugged
romance of pioneers such as George Mallory. Broadband satellite
communications let climbers access the internet at base camp.
Hand-held satphones allow contact with the outside world, even when
high up on the mountain.
'And it does not stop there. There are hot showers and a temporary
clinic at the mountain's foot. For most, crucial decisions about
safety and the weather are made by the corps of expert
professionals.'
Okay, there's more to the article than that. It questions why
Everest has such a high general media profile and points out that to
many climbers, the attention given to 'individuals who are far from
the cutting edge of a sport' is baffling.
A Cash Cow...
Chris Bonington, the public face of mountaineering, chips in to
point out that part of the attraction of Everest is that 'it is so
easily quantifiable. If you say to people I've been to Everest, they
immediately know what you are talking about'. He goes on to say that
the mountain has become a 'cash cow'.
The article goes on to bemoan the lack of credit given to Sherpas,
one of whom, Apa Sherpa, climbed Everest for the 16th time last week
and three died in a serac collapse in the icefall virtually
unreported.
Finally, the authors speak to top British climber Kenton Cool, who
had no great desire to climb the mountain and questions the motives
of many of the guided clients on the hill - 'A lot of people should
not really be here. I ask myself, are they really mountaineers? Do
they love the mountains?'
Isn't It Ironic?
There's a curious irony here, of course, that the annual Everest
article is something of a cash cow for freelance journalists. It's an
easy formula - wait for summit season and the accompanying publicity
then cobble together yet another article about how things aren't what
they used to be and it's not real mountaineering.
I always recall asking a leading Everest guide if Krakauer's
tragic 'Into Thin Air' book had put people off attempting the mountain.
On the contrary, he said, the publication had sparked a mini-boom in
clients wanting to stand on the highest point on earth... Maybe that
tells you something.
You can read the Observer article at observer.guardian.co.uk
