Everest 2009: Park Young-seok Returns To Everest’s South West Face, Tribute Climb To 2007 Accident

April 6, 2009

Park Young-seok is one of very few people in this world who have conquered all 14 8,000 meter peaks, the 7 Summits, and reached both, the North and South Poles. This season, Park Young-seok is returning to Everest to try to help himself overcome a tragic ending to his 2007 expedition. In 2007, Park Young-seok was an expedition leader leading two of his close friends up Mt. Everest. His climbers became lost on Everest’s South-West Face. After more than 13 hours without communication, Oh Hee-joon and Lee Hyeon-jo were both found dead. Park Young-seok blamed himself.

I have nothing to say as an excuse. I’m responsible for the accident because I was the leader of the expedition. A defeated commander has nothing to say.

Park Young-seok will be heading back to the same route where tragedy first struck his team. His climb will be his solemn tribute to his fallen friends from that fateful 2007 expedition. Park young-seok was recently profiled on Donga.com. His personal story is pretty interesting. The first mountain he climbed was at age four. He grew up idolizing another famous Korean climber, Goh Sang-don, the first Korean to conquer Mt. Everest in 1977.

The Adventurist actually covered portions of Park Young-seok’s original 2007 expedition up the South West Face of Mt. Everest. Here is the original report of what this expedition would consist of, followed by the tragic news of the accident. Let’s hope that Park Young-seok can find some solace in this season’s climb.

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