Mt. Everest’s route to the summit is an increasingly well-trodden path

One of the best climbing guides on Mount Everest, Kami Rita, broke his own record on Sunday after scaling the world’s highest mountain peak, at 8,849 meters above sea level, for the 29th time. As part of his ongoing competition against fellow guide Pasang Dawa (who’s conquered the peak 27 times), Kami Rita has climbed Everest almost every year since his first ascent in 1994, including twice in 2023.

The news of Rita’s record comes at a pivotal moment for the mountain. The soaring number of would-be-Everest-summiters has prompted Nepal’s Supreme Court last month to place limits on the number of mountaineering permits being issued, after a record 478 permits in 2023 heightened concerns about overcrowding worsening the already perilous trek and affecting the mountain’s environment.

Last year, more than 1,200 people attempted the climb, though only 656 successful ascents were tracked, down from the all-time high of 877 five years before — a reported client success rate of ~52%. As conversations around the danger of overcrowding on the mountain intensified, 2023 also saw the deadliest season on record and, sadly, the first fatality of the year was reported on Friday as the search for a second missing climber continues.