2008 Fall Himalayan Climbing Season Begins

September 21, 2008

It seems like only yesterday that teams were packing it in from the 2008 spring Himalayan season. Everest was interesting with the Chinese presence felt on and around the world’s highest peak this past spring, but spring isn’t the only time that climbers venture to the Himalayas. In an effort to lure climbers back for the fall season, Tibet and Nepal lowered their climbing permit prices. This has opened up the doors to some of those that were waiting in the wings to catch a good deal.

A few days ago, ExplorersWeb posted their Expedition list of teams heading to the Himalayas this fall. This list looks to be quite larger than last season’s, and also offers up a perspective from a few of the climbers that we are now familiar with.

Everest will be hosting a Korean expedition, led by Park Young-seok. This team will be attempting the SW Face of Everest. Some of you may remember Park Young-seok from his earlier attempt on Everest last year. That one had a tragic ending as Park’s two climbing partners were killed.

Skydive Everest will also be kicking off this fall. You may have seen some of their ads floating around on ExplorersWeb over the past year. This company will take you above the height of Mt. Everest, then let you jump out of a plane and skydive to a grassy field at 5,200 meters. This is being dubbed as one of the world’s highest, legal (yes, they have been approved a special permit) skydiving ventures in existance.

Aside from the action setting up to take place on Mt. Everest this 2008 fall climbing season, there are many other peaks looking to have some good action. Manaslu leads the pack with 10 separate expeditions taking place. Some of those more notable and familiar to my readers include Kari Kobler (who i covered in 2007), Project Himalaya, Altitude Junkies, Richard Hidalgo, Nives Meroi and Romano Benet, as well as a few others.

Kangchenjunga, Annapurna, Makalu, and Cho Oyu are also all seeing a nice turn-out of climbers that will be atempting these magnificent peaks.

For a complete list of the expeditions taking place this fall Himalayan season, you can still checkout ExplorersWeb’s nice rundown. I will also be following along with these teams as their climbs progress. Let’s just hope that everyone stays safe this season and keeps in mind that the summit will still be there tomorrow-

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