From Mont Blanc to Everest, building your route to climbing Everest
16 January 2024Himalayas, Mountaineering, Seven Summits
You've successfully climbed Mont Blanc in good conditions, you've had a lot of mountaineering experience in the Alps or you're a well-trained beginner, and the call of high altitude is winning you over. You've climbed the highest peak in Western Europe at 4,809 metres and now you're dreaming of the highest peak... on the planet: Mount Everest at 8,849 metres. There are 4040 metres separating these two summits, an extraordinary adventure requiring an absolute commitment in terms of physical strength, technique, time, experience and budget. Everest can't be bought, it has to be earned through passion, talent and mental strength. One of Expeditions Unlimited's missions is to support you in this extraordinary challenge. This article describes how you can prepare to climb Everest over the coming months and years.
Here, we won't talk about those who achieve their master stroke without experience. It is said that ‘the innocent have their hands full’. For a few who have been lucky enough to set foot on the roof of the world without any experience, thanks to oxygen galore, a very attentive personal sherpa and a particularly favourable weather window, most run the risk of failure, with the risk of never coming back. And then, what's the fun in such an adventure?
Attempting Everest in the right conditions requires you to develop your mountaineering experience, to have been on one or more expeditions lasting several weeks with rotations between altitude camps, to know your body and to understand how it acclimatises to hypoxia. Hypoxia is the reduction in available ambient oxygen with altitude, linked to the reduction in atmospheric pressure and therefore in the oxygen available to the body. While oxygen is 100% available at sea level, it is only 50% available at the summit of Mont Blanc and 30% at 8849 metres.
It's also a question of developing your alpine technique, despite using fixed ropes on the mountain, getting to know your basic and high-altitude equipment and building up your confidence as you progress. You need to know the objective dangers of the mountain and of high altitude in order to understand, and even anticipate, the decisions of your guide or expedition leader: risk of serac falls, avalanches, glacier conditions, etc. You need to be able to understand and detect for yourself the symptoms of potentially fatal AMS - Acute Mountain Sickness - and to deal with the cold and its consequences of serious frostbite, which can even lead to amputation.
Contrary to popular belief, the success rate for climbing Everest is well below 50%, particularly on the Nepalese side.
Starting from Mont Blanc, you will need a minimum of two to three intense years of preparation to attempt Everest. Only then will you be able to arrive at Everest base camp more confident in your ability to seize the best opportunities on the mountain.
Everything in our approach to preparing for Everest is acquired through a selection of mountain experiences which, taken one after the other, enable you to acquire the knowledge, reflexes and routines necessary for this fabulous project.
Only two or three physical and psychological elements seem to be prerequisites for Everest. To put it another way, if they are not ticked, these elements will at best require much more time to attempt the climb of your life:
excellent sporting condition: this depends on innate or acquired elements, usually young, which it will be complicated to change radically, especially after a certain age;
correct acclimatisation to high altitude: this criterion is difficult to assess on the plains, and only experience at increasingly higher altitudes will enable you to answer this essential question;
acceptance of a very rustic lifestyle and of risk: this means accepting an extremely rustic lifestyle, for long weeks on end, and the risks inherent in such an undertaking. Here too, experience of longer and longer expeditions will tell you more about your psychological capacity in this area.
Note that a VO2 max test in hypoxia at a specialised centre in France can be an interesting indicator of aptitude for high altitude. In simple terms, VO2 max is the quantity of oxygen that the lungs are able to breathe in and transmit to the bloodstream, and that the muscles will be able to absorb in order to perform the task in question. It's easy to see that, particularly in hypoxia, the greater this capacity, the greater the chances of succeeding under the right conditions. Experience shows that a VO2 max of over 50 ml/min/kg is a good start, but it is not the only criterion.
All the other elements are acquired with experience and the increasing power of high-altitude ascent projects, in particular :
Develop your mountaineering experience and culture wherever and whenever opportunities arise,in the Alps or on smaller, more technical peaks. It seems like a no-brainer. Being comfortable lower down on 40° or 50° slopes is a minimum. Develop your climbing and mixed climbing skills. Use a jumar handle with the attitude of a mountaineer, in safety, well anchored on your front points and with the ice axe in your hand, and not hung like a puppet climbing by the strength of your arms. Gain a better understanding of the forces at work and the consequences of the weather on the objective risks of the mountain. Of course, you won't be making your own decisions, but you will be involved in making them;
Get to know yourself better and develop your knowledge of high-altitude pathologies: the aim is to gradually get to know yourself in the face of hypoxia and intense cold. Our partners at Ifremmont will help you to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms at work in acute mountain sickness and frostbite, as well as in many other areas, throughout your experiences and as part of short training courses. You'll gradually push back your limits in terms of safety and increase your knowledge of these vital issues. You will know how to react in the event of symptoms to protect yourself and your chances of reaching the summit;
Taking part in one or more ascents to over 7000 metres will enable you to experience your first real long expeditions, from 15 days to 3 weeks base camp/base camp, your first acclimatisation rotations, waiting in the cold, sometimes in a storm, in a tent at 5000 or 6000 metres. Sleeping at -20°C in your frail shelter, eating meals based on freeze-dried dishes, purées and soups, knowing which recipes you like and which you can't stand! Finally, it's a question of managing your body and mind under stress and commitment, understanding what high-altitude team spirit is, and the relationship with an expedition leader ;
Make one last ascent as high as possible before attempting Everest: Mustagh Ata in China, at 7,546 metres without oxygen, is a good last preparatory summit. It's not very technical and can be done on skis, so it's a good test of whether you don't need oxygen before camp 3 on the Nepalese side of Everest (7,300 m) or even as far as the South Col, camp 4 on the Nepalese side of Everest (7,900 m). Taking oxygen further down does not seem reasonable to us.
The ideal, of course, and this was still the normal progression in the 80s and 90s, would be to make an accessible 8000 a little lower, of the Cho Oyu (8188 m) or Manaslu (8163 m) type. In fact, the Chinese authorities are expected to ask for the first 8000m as a condition of obtaining a permit to climb Everest from the Tibetan side. It's true that climbing another 8000m would require an additional budget. But why not give yourself more time to find that budget and make the climb with untold satisfaction?
In terms of stages at the end of your ascent of Mont Blanc, let's say in the summer of 2024, with a view to progressing in a relevant way and as quickly as possible, a 6,000-metre ascent is essential. Why not Nepal the following autumn? Then a 7000 in the summer of 2025. Autumn 2025 could be the time for an 8000 for those with the budget, or you might have to wait until summer or autumn 2026 for a 7000 that's a little more technical than the previous one, or even the Mustagh Ata we mentioned earlier. An 8000 in autumn 2026 in the best case scenario, and then the ascent of Everest in spring 2027. It goes without saying that, between these main stages of the project, you should take every opportunity to get out into the mountains to improve your technique and your mountaineering culture.
And above all, don't forget to have fun!
To make things even more practical, here's what we have to offer in terms of ascents to 6000, 7000 and 8000 metres. Of course, other choices are possible, but on our side these expeditions are guaranteed to take place at least once a year, which takes the guesswork out of your preparation.
For those who would also like to take on the 7 Summits challenge, we recommend that you read this article published recently. They will be able to adapt their choice according to the summits on the challenge itself. The fact remains that a real mountaineer's 7000 (compared with Aconcagua), or even a ‘small’ 8000, is still an essential step on the road to Everest.
Before attempting an ascent above 7000 metres, a climb above 6000 metres is essential. At the limit, Elbrus at 5,642 metres via the north face is a fine, rustic climb, but Russia is currently closed. Kilimanjaro, at 5,892 metres, offers a 1,000-metre rise in altitude compared with Mont Blanc, but offers nothing in terms of mountaineering. It can be considered as part of the 7 Summits challenge.
In Nepal, at altitudes of over 6,000 metres, the classic Mera Peak at 6,461 metres, the slightly more technical Island Peak at 6,189 metres, and even Thorong Peak at 6,150 metres are the choices. With less regular departures, we also offer Lobuche East at 6119 metres and Pachermo at 6272 metres. However, some of these peaks require a good deal of mountaineering experience and are not accessible to beginners.
An Andean summit at over 6,000 metres is also an option, although we feel that immersing yourself in the Sherpa and Nepalese culture as much as possible is part of the progression itinerary: these include of course Aconcagua in Argentina, at 6,962 metres, the highest peak in South America, an interesting peak trek, especially in the context of the 7 Summits, Cotopaxi (5,897 m) and Chimborazo (6,268 m) in Ecuador, if the country is open...
Finally, Mount Denali at 6190 metres in Alaska, also a 7 Summits, offers an extraordinary ascent, but its commitment does not predestine it to be a summit just after Mont Blanc.
This part of the preparation below 6,500 metres allows for a greater diversity of themes in the trips, since most of the summits can be done in a few days, whereas the higher altitudes will require you to spend more time on the mountain.
We offer around ten summits over 7000 metres, mainly autumn peaks, such as Himlung Himal at 7126 metres, the only Nepalese summit accessible to the greatest number, or the more challenging Baruntse at 7129 metres. Generally speaking, the 7000m peaks of Nepal are not for beginners. We also sometimes offer Kun at 7077 metres in Ladakh.
To find more accessible summits, you need to go to Central Asia in the summer with the first summits of the Snow Leopard challenge, in particular Peak Lenin at 7134 metres. Then there's Mustagh Ata at 7546 metres, which we mentioned earlier. These two peaks pose no technical problems and are ideal for a long expedition at high altitude.
If you have the time and if your budget allows it, starting with a ‘small’ 8000-metre climb seems to us to be a must. As mentioned above, Cho Oyu in Tibet and Manaslu in Nepal are ideal. A little more challenging, Broad Peak and Gasherbum II in Pakistan are also good targets, although they are more difficult than the first two.
What budget do you need to attempt an ascent of Everest?
With one or two ascents of more than 6,000 metres, one or two ascents of more than 7,000 metres and, potentially, an 8,000-metre summit, you would need to spend between €20,000 and €70,000 for preparation. To this must be added some €5,000 worth of equipment: high-altitude mountaineering boots, high-altitude wetsuits, duvets, etc. Part of this budget can be saved by hiring out some of the equipment.
Finally, climbing Everest from the Nepalese or Tibetan side has cost around €55,000 to date.
All in all, starting from the summit of Mont Blanc, you will need to spend between €80,000 and €150,000 to have a chance of putting your crampons on the roof of the world.
This large budget also raises the question of timing. Rather than 2 or 3 years to complete the project of a lifetime, why not give it a little more time? Our progression programme is also perfectly conceivable between 3 and 10 years. And the pleasure will be tenfold.
Join one of our Everest expeditions
And share this article if you like it. Depending on your enthusiasm, we'll soon be able to give you the information you need to decide which side to choose: the Nepalese side climbed by the victorious Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953, or the Tibetan side climbed by the extraordinary Andrew Irvine and Georges Mallory in 1924. Because every side of Everest is mythical!
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Island Peak summit © Luc Oberli
To the summit of Manaslu at 8163 metres in Nepal © Eric Bonnem
