The Mountain Behind The Mountain
In the 1940s, it was known as "The Mountain Behind." It has sat in its alpine solitude for 3.2 million years, a majestic peak among mountains. This is the true name of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth’s surface where climbers from all over the world have risked their lives to reach. But even located in such an inaccessible position and lofty altitude, Everest has never been so difficult to get to as it is now.
As more people have attempted to reach this summit and conquer it ever since Edmund Hillary’s successful ascent in 1953, a number of mountain-related disasters have already taken place there due to these expeditions. It reminds us of the tragic deaths of so many climbers and the tragic accidents that have happened, like the famous Everest avalanche in 1996 when eight climbers were killed by a huge avalanche, or more recently, New Zealand’s two-day blockade where climbers got caught in an avalanche while they were trying to escape the avalanche. These are only a few examples showing just how dangerous it is to lay claim to Mount Everest. There are risks everywhere.
In this high-tension climbing season every year from May to September, most people claim that it is even more dangerous than usual when some of these disasters happen there; however, this does not mean that all mountaineering expeditions are dangerous. On the contrary, mountaineering expeditions are the most thrilling experiences, and people sometimes go on these expeditions for the most fun, or to see the most beautiful places in the world.
While some mountain climbers often communicate with each other through their blogs to share their experiences, others compete with each other in their desire to climb higher and hit new peaks among mountains. Nowadays there is a trend of extreme sports among young people. We can see that many people want to become professional mountaineers or exotic skiers, as well as other extreme sports athletes who want to show off how skilled they are by participating in dangerous sports where they put their lives at risk every day.
In addition to being highly skilled, mountaineers and extreme sports athletes need to be mentally tough. They must be brave enough to scale the highest peaks on Earth, as well as being able to focus on their missions at any cost even in the face of potential dangers. Even if they are killed during their missions or encounter accidents, they still try to overcome their difficulties and risks with their strong spirits.
For example, American mountaineer Melissa Arnot reached the summit of Mount Everest in May 2010. In the next year she decided to try a solo summit in Tibet, where there are many high-altitude mountain peaks. However, she fell off the edge of a cliff and broke her leg. She was then rescued by American mountaineers after spending several days stranded in the mountains. Her injuries were so severe that she had to undergo surgery. In April 2011 Arnot was again on Everest, this time with two other women as part of a group expedition, when a sudden snowstorm hit them with strong winds and hail stones that almost killed all three climbers.
Arnot was then also accused of stealing some items from the tents near her campsite during her summit attempt with other mountaineers in 2012. But she denied the accusations and said that she had been robbed at gunpoint by a Sherpa. However, no one believed her. In order to defend herself, Arnot posted a video of an interview with the Associated Press where she described her side of the story. She said that she didn’t know how to respond at first because it was such an unbelievable experience. She also claimed that the first thing that attacked her was the avalanche of rock and ice when they were descending from the top of Everest; this avalanche killed many other climbers who were making their way down Everest through different routes at that time.
When she was awarded with the 2010 Audie Award for Best Audiobook Narration, she said: "At first I thought that what I had experienced was a dream. We were walking down the mountain. It had appeared to be an easy descent… Suddenly it was utter chaos. The world had come apart, and I didn't know what to do."
Arnot’s ordeal is not just an example of a mountaineer's survival story; it also shows how mountaineering expeditions can be dangerous but at the same time rewarding and fun as well.
Whether they are experienced mountaineers or not, people want to experience the most dangerous mountaineering experiences they can. They want to get closer to Mount Everest so that they can experience climbing up mountains and other dangerous adventure sports like skydiving, rock climbing, and mountain biking.
There are so many risks involved with these extreme sports that it's almost impossible to never get hurt or die whenever you go on such expeditions. The same can be said about riding a roller coaster: no matter how foolproof the engineering of the roller coaster and its safety measures, riders still could get hurt or even killed every time they go on a trip to the amusement park.
Mountaineering expeditions are not only dangerous, but they are also very expensive. In order to have more opportunities to climb higher and reach new peaks, people have been using new technologies in order to create more advanced climbing equipment as well as completely new ways to train mountaineers and improve their climbing skills. Sometimes accidents happen and people die even though we expect them not to.
However, these mountaineers often die doing what they love to do; therefore, it is fair to say that these mountaineers are the heroes of humanity. These heros are the people who reach new heights and scale the highest peaks where our ancestors were afraid to tread. It is also worth mentioning that these heros are not only men but also women; there are many female mountaineers as well who want to prove themselves as well-equipped for such expeditions because climbing is also one of their dreams.
There is a Chinese proverb which says: “To be trained in war is not shameful”. This can be observed in the Chinese history, since Chinese people have been training their soldiers and soldiers were even executed if they did not meet the military standards. This is why Chinese people trained their warriors so that they could be executed in case of failure.
Similarly, mountaineering training is a similar process for those who want to participate in such dangerous expeditions. In order to prove themselves capable of climbing high mountains, mountaineers have been exercising and adopting extreme sports practices. This is why there are many sections in mountain climbing courses which focus on practicing these sports.
Conclusion
Mountaineering is not just another sports activity. If you have ever wondered why mountain climbers climb mountains, the best answer I am willing to give you is that they want to achieve something which can’t be achieved by simply sitting in a chair or lying in bed all day and waiting for their lives to end.
When people are not aware of what lies beyond the horizon, they often tend to get bored and die out of boredom. The same applies to mountain climbing; when people get tired of sitting in their chairs all day, they sometimes decide to hike or climb up a mountain as well in order to enjoy the fresh air and feel alive again.