Last spring, I climbed a couple of easy 6,000ers in Nepal with Howard Lister. When we returned to Kathmandu, we had dinner with Richard Salisbury and Rodolphe Popier of The Himalayan Database.&nbsp; For them, Nepal’s 2023 spring climbing season had not been very interesting. Although there was a record number of climbers on Mt Everest and many more on the other 8,000ers in Nepal, almost all fall into what László Pintér calls ‘of only statistical value’ -- commercial expeditions repeating the ordinary routes on 8,000ers.&nbsp; It could seem like Himalayan climbing (defined as making new routes and early repeats) is in decline. There are a couple of myths about Himalayan climbing, that should be dispelled: &nbsp; Myth 1: The Himalaya is Crowded The record numbers of permits given for Everest and the famous images of queues of climbers on the South-East Ridge might make a casual observer think that the Himalaya is crowded. This is far from being the case.&nbsp; In the 2023 pre-monsoon season, 1,176 climbers were granted permits for the 374 ‘open’ mountains, making an average of only three climbers per mountain. That does not sound too crowded, but the distribution of climbers is indeed unbalanced. László writes about ‘guided summit collectors who seek fame’, and these were massively concentrated on 8,000m peaks with 41% of the climbers on Everest. Even there, they were almost all on the South Col route.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest (Pvt) Ltd</a>, Vishad Onta Another 31% were on normal routes on Nepal's six other 8,000m peaks. Of the remaining 329, a quarter of the climbers were on Ama Dablam and a fifth on Everest’s near neighbour, Nuptse.&nbsp; That left another 187 climbers spread amongst 365 peaks, of which 346 had no visitors at all. If you want solitude in Nepal, it is not difficult to find. The magic 8,000m line has a massive influence on the choice of climbing objective. Whilst 847 people tried mountains of above 8,000m, with the exception of Nuptse, there were no attempts on any of the other 23 mountains between 7,500m and 8,000m.&nbsp; Myth 2: There Are No Climbing Challenges Left ‘Guided summit collectors’ tend to make up increasingly contorted claims to fame (‘first left-handed Zimbabwean’ or the ‘oldest dyslexic dentist’ to climb Everest). The casual observer might assume this is because there are no real climbing challenges left. That is absolutely not the case.&nbsp; Let us start with Lhotse, which essentially has three faces and three ridges. None of the ridges have ever been climbed, and almost all ascents have been by a single route on the North-West Face. The South Face was climbed 33 years ago, and waits for a repeat. This is a very wide wall on which multiple different lines would be possible. The North East Face of Lhotse has not even seen an attempt. Some of the other 8,000ers have had the most obvious routes picked off, but there are other climbing objectives to last a few centuries at the current rate of progress. The high 7,000ers in Nepal are mountains which differ from the 8,000ers only by being slightly below an arbitrary height line.&nbsp; Read also,<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/without-sherpas-there-is-no-mountaineering"> “Without Sherpas, there is no mountaineering”</a>, Bhadra Sharma Gyachung Kang, the world’s 15th highest mountain, is less than 50m short of being an eight thousander, but it has only had 10 ascents and no attempts for 18 years.&nbsp; Next is Annapurna II, which has been climbed only 5-6 times. For some Annapurna II may sound like a minor sub-peak of Annapurna, but being 30km away from Annapurna I and with a prominence of nearly 2,500m makes it indisputably a separate mountain.&nbsp; But these days hardly anyone attempts Annapurna II. There were 16 expeditions to it in the 1980s, three in the 1990s and three in the 2000s, but only one since 2008.&nbsp; Dhaulagiri, like Annapurna, is a name given to a series of mountains in a massif with Dhaulagiri II, III, IV and V -- all above 7,600m. Dhaulagiri III, IV and V may be considered subsidiary tops of Dhaulagiri II, but Dhaulagiri II is every bit as independent as Annapurna II, yet has received only 10 ascents, the last in 1986. None of Dhaulagiri III, IV or V have been attempted since the 1970s.&nbsp; If you Google ‘what is the most dangerous mountain in the world?’ you will get an answer based on the somewhat nonsensical measure of dividing the number of deaths by the number of successful summit climbers. It is declared to be Annapurna I followed by K2 and Nanga Parbat.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/letters-from-everest-base-camp-1-vfqcer0e">Letters from Everest Base Camp 1</a>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240223060240_e4eb40276b95d06a98879c513b6e2d327ace35092e7b108b61497887e9fade3f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20240223060240_e4eb40276b95d06a98879c513b6e2d327ace35092e7b108b61497887e9fade3f" data-rendition-name="original" width="595" height="842" loading="lazy" alt="Dangerous mountain"> </figure>  This is wrong because it only looks at 8,000m peaks. Annapurna is often quoted as having a ‘fatality rate’ of 32% (although the large number of commercial climbs in the last few years have brought this down to under 20%).&nbsp; That certainly does not make it the most dangerous mountain in the world. Twelve climbers have summitted Dhaulagiri IV, but 14 have died while trying, so the fatality rate on that peak is 117%. But Ngadi Chuli (Peak 29) is the world’s 20th highest mountain at 7,871m. It has had only two summiteers, but five people have died while trying, giving it a fatality rate of 250%. It has not even been attempted for more than 40 years. There is plenty of scope for new routes on all of these mountains. Excluding variants, Annapurna II has been climbed by two routes, Peak 29 by two, Dhaulagiri II by only one.&nbsp; And then there are mountains that have never been climbed like Shartse, a 7,591m peak on the East Ridge of Lhotse Shar.&nbsp; There are still some bold climbers making fantastic ascents, like Ukrainians Nikita Balabanov, Mikail Fomin and Viacheslav Polezhaiko on the South-East ridge of Annapurna III in 2021.&nbsp; The French pair of Boris Langenstein and Tiphaine Duperier last year explored the possibility of ascending the huge and untouched North East Face of Dhaulagiri II. Their plan to climb up and ski down was thwarted by route finding difficulties and bad weather, but this was a real pioneering attempt.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/chopper-vs-chauri-below-everest">Chopper vs Chauri below Everest</a>, Bhadra Sharma One of the finest climbs on a high 7,000er was the alpine style ascent of a partially new route on the daunting North Face of Jannu by Americans Matt Cornell, Alan Rousseau and Jackson Marvell last autumn. If we compare the proportion of expeditions to the seven 8,000ers and the highest seven 7,000ers in the Nepal Himalaya by decade, we can see the picture very clearly. Mostly non-guided climbing of 7,000ers, making new routes and first or early ascents, peaked in the 1980s and has been much lower since, while 8,000m climbing, mainly by commercial expeditions, is growing almost exponentially.&nbsp; While ‘real’ Himalayan Climbing is not dying, it is declining and carried out by a relatively small number of highly talented climbers.&nbsp; That situation is masked by the large numbers of climbers on commercial routes on Everest, the other 8,000ers and a handful of popular mountains and by the publicity these climbs receive. The lack of such ‘adventurous climbs’ is not because there are no worthwhile objectives. Himalayan climbing is dangerous even on the heavily populated and well equipped mountains, and it is even more so for those who venture away from well-trodden paths to seek new challenges.&nbsp; Anyone who attempts such exploits needs to make their own mind up about the risks and difficulties involved. But if anyone believes there are no climbing challenges left in the Himalaya or that all mountaineering in Nepal involves long queues on fixed ropes, then they are absolutely wrong. &nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/himalayans-on-the-frontlines">Himalayans on the frontlines</a>, Ang Tshering Sherpa  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024022306024_d9a02bfe0967c9647b5d4d02aef5eb4ee985c7b16e8f142fc176c5e07080c8b5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="2024022306024_d9a02bfe0967c9647b5d4d02aef5eb4ee985c7b16e8f142fc176c5e07080c8b5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Edward Morgan Book Details"> </figure>  Edward Morgan is the author of Lhotse South Face – The Wall of Legends. &nbsp;

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Dispelling myths about climbing

UN Secretary General António Guterres who is on a 4-day visit to Nepal has pledged to raise global awareness about the impact of the climate crisis on the Himalaya at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai next month. He flew by helicopter from Kathmandu to the shrinking glacier below Mt Everest on Monday to record a warning to the world that the planet is in grave peril. He also vowed to take up the cause of countries like Nepal that are vulnerable to climate impact in Dubai to raise money for adaptation, and a fund for loss and damage. “Nepal is an example of a country that does not contribute much to the climate crisis but is in the first line of impact of its consequences. And I’m here to show Nepal to the world and show how dramatic climate change is,” said Guterres following a visit to the Everest Base Camp (EBC) and Syangboche on Monday morning. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/antonio-guterres-agenda-in-kathmandu">António Guterres' agenda in Kathmandu</a>, Editorial  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20231030111020_250b078bd5f5d6f6e3fb6e39303c6604dc27fa1cda4744357f2f2f5796c345c8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20231030111020_250b078bd5f5d6f6e3fb6e39303c6604dc27fa1cda4744357f2f2f5796c345c8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1920" height="1280" loading="lazy" alt="UN Sec General"><figcaption>Photo: RATNA SHRESTHA/RSSRSS</figcaption></figure>  He further noted that it was disheartening that countries like Nepal are experiencing consequences disproportionately. He added: “At COP28, we have to urge countries to reduce emissions and double contributions for adaptation and the loss and damage fund. It is not generosity, but their duty.” The UN Secretary-General spoke with the local community in Nepal’s Khumbu region about everyday challenges they face, including weather extremes, shrinking glaciers, the depletion of water sources, and climate-related disasters like glacial lake outbursts floods and avalanches. He also discussed solutions like clean energy, and residents asked for support for micro-hydro projects. Guterres later took to X (Twitter) to write: ‘Today from the base of Mt Everest, I saw for myself the terrible impact of the climate crisis on the Himalayas. As temperatures rise, glacier melt increases - threatening the lives and livelihoods of entire communities. #ClimateAction can’t wait.’ <div class="embed-block"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Today from the base of Mt. Everest, I saw for myself the terrible impact of the climate crisis on the Himalayas. As temperatures rise, glacier melt increases - threatening the lives and livelihoods of entire communities.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ClimateAction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ClimateAction</a> can’t wait. <a href="https://t.co/Ih12Qb8roi">pic.twitter.com/Ih12Qb8roi</a>— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) <a href="https://twitter.com/antonioguterres/status/1718900241615736901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div> The Secretary-General flew on Monday to Pokhara, and on Tuesday will visit the base camp of Annapurna, another 8,000m Himalayan peak where the snowline is also receding dramatically. Guterres announced he will also be visiting Antarctica in November to highlight the thawing of the polar ice caps and the result this will have on seas level and weather patterns. At Annapurna Base Camp Guterress will be accompanied by glaciologists who will show him evidence of Elevation Dependent Warming which means that the Himalayan mountains are warming at 0.7 degrees Celsius higher than the global average. Even if atmospheric temperatures worldwide were to be capped at 2.0 Celsius by 2025, the Himalayan would be 2.7 Celsius. At that rate, two-thirds of Himalayan glaciers will be gone during this century. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/antonio-guterres-meets-nepal-s-leaders">António Guterres meets Nepal’s leaders</a>, Nepali Times  <figure><img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20231030111020_4dbe27e0a919a04af43b45f2c457bf5f270a8b08392b96be17f738ad1f63a8a4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20231030111020_4dbe27e0a919a04af43b45f2c457bf5f270a8b08392b96be17f738ad1f63a8a4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1800" height="1350" loading="lazy" alt="UN Sec Gen"><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>  From there he will fly to Lumbini to the birthplace of the Buddha in southern Nepal to send a message of peace and compassion to the world. Guterres will be the sixth UN Secretary General to visit Lumbini. Back in 1967, Burmese Buddhist Secretary-General of the United Nations, U Thant, visited Nepal and flew to Lumbini for a pilgrimage. Seeing the ruins, U Thant during his meeting with King Mahendra in Kathmandu discussed restoring the nativity site and later set up a UN Committee to turn Lumbini into an international centre for peace. Another issue on the agenda for Guterres is Nepal’s long-standing commitment to the UN peacekeeping, the country is the second biggest contributor to the operations. Guterres told UN staff at a gathering in Kathmandu on Monday: “Nepal is an example of a country that is not only able to make peace with itself but also contributes to peace in conflict regions around the world.” Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/climate-change-is-a-disaster-in-the-nepal-himalaya">Climate change is a disaster in the Nepal Himalaya</a>, Sonam Choekyi Lama

Below Mt Everest, António Guterres urges climate action

<figure><img width="640" height="825" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcaf9c7e80680e08032cjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>The Tengboche Monastery's gate wore a deserted look last week because of the Covid-19 crisis brought trekking nearly to a halt.</figcaption></figure>Anxiety caused by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the collapse of a tourism-dependent economy appears to have deeply worried the head monk of Tengboche Monastery below Mt Everest who died on 10 October at age 86.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-sherpas-mourn-tengboche-abbott/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-sherpas-mourn-tengboche-abbott/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEITzmt0lyxh4fWQTuV93JO_jpuWQ">Nawang Tenzin Zangbu</a> cared about the spiritual and material welfare of his people, and ever since he <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-himalaya-mourn-a-saintly-leader/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-himalaya-mourn-a-saintly-leader/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEAMSsnLVL31GMfL8sOSb0WrAKsKQ">became the Rinpoche</a>, he had worked tirelessly to make tourism a key element in lifting living standards of the Sherpa people, and help pay for conservation and clean-up of the Everest region.His death comes at an unfortunate time for the Khumbu, as the pandemic overwhelms Nepal’s fragile health system and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/everest-trek-closed-open-closed-open-again/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/everest-trek-closed-open-closed-open-again/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHOqesvkWCrHOe08qBALNhD6nW2Rg">affects business from trekking and climbing</a> for most of 2020, causing great economic hardship to porters, guides, hotels and others dependent in the Everest region."This year he had too much to think about for the people, and this stress may have resulted in his early death," Pemba Gyanzen Sherpa, the Gerku (custodian) of Tengboche Monastery told us. He believes stress about the impact of the pandemic on the local population of the Khumbu may have played a role in hastening the Rinpoche's demise."On the day he died, the Rinpoche called me. He said that he was worried about this virus and wanted to protect all the people in Khumbu," said Pemba. The two then drew up plans for assembling and distributing protective buti amulets to all the people living in Khumbu. These pouches containing herbs and other material are believed to ward off illness and protect the wearer from ill fortune. <figure><img width="1574" height="1174" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcb29c7e80680e08032djpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Two days before he died, the Rinpoche had come down to Namche from Tengboche and was not feeling well. Upon reaching, he requested to have a shower. His caregiver feared that a shower would worsen his health, and so replied that it was not possible as there was no change of clothes.The Rinpoche had difficulty breathing, and Pemba recalls that they tried giving him oxygen, but he pushed away the tube. He then made an action with his hands, immediately after which he passed away.<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9270#.X5wmES8RoWo" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D9270%23.X5wmES8RoWo&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFu2JZA0WrGox0OZRnEBzCykD4i2Q">The Rinpoche</a> was born to a Sherpa family in Namche on the same day as the Dalai Lama in 1935, and was recognised at age five as the incarnation of Lama Gulu who founded Tengboche Monastery in 1916. He was sent to Tibet to study Buddhism, and returned to the Khumbu in 1956 to head the Tengboche gumba – three years after the first ascent of Mt Everest. After he died on 10 October, the Rinpoche’s body was brought back to Tengboche where he will lie in state for 49 days while prayer vigils are held for his timely reincarnation. After that the monks will determine whether to cremate the body or preserve it in a stupa near the Monastery. <figure><img width="1582" height="1186" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcb59c7e80680e08032ejpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The Rinpoche had been a quiet but steady presence in the Khumbu. Besides presiding over religious ceremonies for the Sherpa people, he <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9268#.X5wuJi8RoWq" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id%3D9268%23.X5wuJi8RoWq&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHZ2pCrk71wcD3rrOW7tcZAzs9Y2g">oversaw important initiatives</a> like the formation of the Sagarmatha National Park. Later on in life, he became increasingly concerned about the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/expeditions-brings-down-11-tons-of-mt-everest-trash/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/expeditions-brings-down-11-tons-of-mt-everest-trash/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHEnY-wcCvtXix9wxluED5HFTvCMQ">garbage along the Everest Trail</a> and on the mountains left by expeditions and helped set up the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-garbage-caravan/" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/everest-garbage-caravan/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1604191988378000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHfUTjg14431EgtG3h0QMhTNFfmnQ">Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee</a>. He also spoke of his worry about how the people of the mountains had to bear the brunt of climate warming through no fault of their own. <figure><img width="1028" height="1022" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcb89c7e80680e08032fjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Ever since he was selected to be the high lama and right up to his death, he would wake up at 3am to read advanced Buddhist texts. Pemba recalled how he and other monks requested him to discontinue this practice, and sleep a little longer to preserve his deteriorating health. However, the Rinpoche replied that it was too late to change his habits, and he would continue getting up early till his dying day.October-November is also the time for the annual Mani Rimdu festival in Tengboche to commemorate the death of the Lama Gulu. Now in its 103rd year, Mani Rimdu has been held every year, and it appears it will not be cancelled this year despite the pandemic nor the death of the Rinpoche."The Rinpoche always celebrated the festival and would never have wanted us to miss it for any reason,” said Pemba. “Even when he was ill, we always did the Dorche Semba prayers, and the dances for the festival."The monks at Tengboche these days are busy, some of them praying through the night for the Rinpoche's timely reincarnation. Others are rehearsing a dance performance and completing the Dorche Semba ahead of the festival. Moreover, the Monastery is also raising funds and working out the logistics to fulfil the Rinpoche's dying wish of distributing the buti to all the people of Khumbu. <figure><img width="604" height="849" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcba9c7e80680e080330jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“Foreseeing the possibility of his death, the Rinpoche made plans so his demise world not affect the local population of Khumbu,” explained Ang Nima Sherpa of Khumjung, adding that the Rinpoche’s duties would be handled by the Defuk Rinpoche of the nearby monastery of Pangboche.Meanwhile, details of the successor Rinpoche will appear to Sakya Trichen the high lama’s close friend and the 41st head of the Sakya order of Tibetan Buddhism. After he provides a name, teams of monks will have to go and search for the family selected. <figure><img width="2102" height="1178" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110918110/636bdcbc9c7e80680e080331jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The reincarnated Rinpoche will then have to pass a test, including remembering incidents from the lives of the earlier Tengboche Rinpoche. Upon completion of the test, he will be sent for training at different monasteries, after which the Rinpoche's position at Tengboche will be occupied once again.

Tengboche abbott’s last wish

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions make their future uncertain.
The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.&nbsp;
However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.&nbsp;
India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis going to India, but a slight decline was noted this year after the deaths of two female students.
The US State Department has issued a circular to its embassies not to issue new visas to applicants until further notice. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the directive stated that the department planned to expand the screening of applicants' social media.&nbsp;
While new applicants are barred including those applying for visitor visas, students with scheduled interviews are allowed to proceed.
“Many of our students are affected by the new restrictions, but those who had applied for student visas earlier have got interview dates,” one Kathmandu-based college counsellor told us.
Meanwhile, even foreign students with spotless records already in the US have not been spared, as visa scrutiny intensifies under the new policy. In a move that underscores the growing sense of insecurity, many US colleges advised international students to carry their passports and documents at all times, even when traveling locally.
“Me and my friends did not go home this summer because we were not sure we would be allowed back, so we just went to Niagara Falls,” said a Nepali undergrad in Ohio, who like many interviewed for this report did not want her name used for fear of repercussion.
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Nepali students have adopted a cautious stance, with many choosing not to return home during summer vacation due to fear of visa revocations as well as travel bans. Meanwhile, over 7,000 Nepalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will have to come back to Nepal by 5 August or face deportation. Thirty-seven were flown back to Kathmandu on Omni Air last week.
“The US is one of the most sought-after destinations for higher education, and the ban will definitely impact bright students,” says Narottam Aryal of the King’s College in Kathmandu.
Indeed, Nepali undergraduates admitted into Ivy League colleges for the 2025 academic year have been asked to look for alternatives. The entire Fulbright Foreign Scholarships Board resigned on Wednesday citing interference from the Trump administration on the selection of this year’s cohort. Some Nepali students already on Fulbright scholarships have noted disruptions, delays and even cancellation of stipends.&nbsp;
The student visa restrictions were initially just for foreign students admitted to Harvard University, but it was later extended to all Chinese students and now to all students. Universities like Columbia which actively recruit foreign students, face sharp enrolment declines, threatening their financial stability and diversity.
An Indian female PhD candidate at Columbia University had her visa revoked by the US State Department, and said she was targeted on the basis of her social media posts on Israeli military attacks in Gaza. Social media vetting of political activism has raised concerns about privacy and freedom of expression in a country where such rights were a given.
Many students have been informed via email that their visas have been revoked for getting speeding or parking tickets, but even others with no criminal record have been affected. The fear of deportation looms large amongst international students, including those from Nepal.&nbsp;
For most Nepalis who migrate to the US for education, the journey is a high-stakes investment. They come largely from middle-class families, often rely on a patchwork of scholarships, work-study programs, loans, or even the sale of family assets to afford fees.
Most Nepali students pursue STEM subjects which offer extended Optional Practical Training (OPT) periods that help fund their education. But with the US backsliding on education and humanitarian matters, countries like the UK and Canada are becoming more attractive despite their own recent stricter controls on student visas.&nbsp;
The UK universities saw a 63% rise in Nepali students’ admissions in 2024. Japan is another popular destination with 64,816 Nepali students enrolled as of 2024.
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Already, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are poised to benefit from the increased scrutiny of US student visas. Several Hong Kong universities are offering unconditional admission to affected students, while Malaysian institutions are targeting previously US-bound Asian students. China and India have 330,000 and 280,000 students respectively in America, but the numbers for China have seen a sharp drop in the past year.
Elsewhere, branch campuses of American institutions such as NYU in Abu Dhabi, Georgetown in Dubai and Northwestern in Doha are getting more admission applications, and universities in the Gulf region are expanding infrastructure to accommodate those who would otherwise have gone to the US.&nbsp;
Even educational institutions in Nepal are hopeful that the US visa restrictions can be an opportunity to at least keep Nepali undergrads in Nepal, and also attract foreign students from the region.&nbsp;
“Many students might choose to complete their undergraduate degree here in Nepal and then move abroad for their Master’s degree later,” says Aryal of King’s College. “There was a need for quality higher education in Nepal anyway in terms of innovation and opportunities, so this could be the time to reduce our dependence on other countries.”
Nepal’s strategic position between India and China makes it sensitive to US policy shifts. India, a key ally, is also under US scrutiny for potential student travel restrictions. Chinese universities are already offering more scholarships to Nepali talent to capitalise on the US retreat.
American universities have challenged student visa restrictions in the courts. A federal court in Boston revoked the blanket ban on Harvard, and the State Department has ordered the resumption of processing student and exchange visitor visas.&nbsp;
Some are still hoping that President Trump will backtrack on the student visa restrictions, just like he has done with many of his more drastic executive orders.
Even so, the visa see-saw and longer-term uncertainties about living in the United States and its education system means students across the world are making alternative plans.
Says Aryal: “Policies of foreign countries change according to their needs, so excessive dependence was never a good idea. We should work to create different opportunities and choices of higher education within Nepal, so students are retained.” &nbsp;

America no longer prime destination for Nepali students

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

The Everest Industry

While Nepal marked <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/mt-everest-pvt-ltd">Mt Everest</a> Day on 29 May, on the other side of the planet in the US state of Colorado dozens of Nepalis who have climbed the world’s highest peak multiple times were busy working as chefs and Uber drivers. Among them is Nima Doma Sherpa, who climbed Mt Everest in 2019 after her husband Tshering Wangchu was among 16 crushed by an avalanche on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/on-thin-ice-in-the-khumbu">the Khumbu Icefall</a> five years earlier. A large serac broke off the West Shoulder of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-everest-industry">Mt Everest </a>and fell directly on a group of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/more-porters-sick-on-everest-trail">porters and guides</a> making their way up the Icefall at 5,800m. Their bodies were flown by helicopter to Khumjung where Tshering Wangchu was born. He was excited about climbing Mt Everest for the first time.&nbsp; In Khumjung, Nima Doma felt like her own life had also ended. This was the kind of news Sherpa wives, mothers and sisters dreaded every <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/peak-climbing-season-2025-s4abrxny">mountaineering season</a>. She stayed home for more than two years grieving, but ultimately gathered up all her emotional strength to take care of her 6-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter. Nima had grown up in Khumjung hearing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/stories-of-nepal-s-summiteers">tales of adventure on the mountains </a>from their father, Ang Chubi Sherpa who had climbed Everest in 1993. He used to bring her and her sisters and brother European chocolates after every expedition, and used to tell them that the chocolate bars grew on the mountains. “It was only after we got older did we realise that he told us that chocolates grew in the mountains so we would not worry about him putting himself in harm's way,” Nima Doma recalled with a faraway look at her home in Boulder this week. Nima went to the school that <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/commemorating-edmund-hillary-in-nepal,4145">Edmund Hillary</a> opened in Khumjung till Grade 8, and then dropped out to help in the kitchen and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">tend yaks</a>. She was married off to Tshering Wangchu, who was also a high altitude guide. When Tshering went on expeditions, Nima also started working as a porter from Namche to Base Camp. It was perhaps her father’s tales of mountains of chocolates that had always attracted her to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/knowing-our-mountains-43v4iyvo">the peaks</a>. After her husband was killed ten years ago this month, being a widow with children was not easy for Nima Doma. But she was not alone: there were at least 200 single mothers in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/khumbu-since-1950-jaww4qn0">the Khumbu</a>, and 20 of them just in Khumjung whose husbands had been killed in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/tragic-start-to-himalayan-spring-nepal,3695">mountaineering accidents</a>. Some were not even 20 years old, and had children growing up without fathers. But there were also women in the 50s whose husbands had been killed in the 1980s. Nima found sponsors for her children’s education, and moved to Kathmandu. In the capital, Sherpa widows used to meet to help each other. Some of them had joined the Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) training for rock and ice climbing. “I decided that it was no use sitting home and crying anymore, after meeting other single mothers I felt less alone,” remembers Nima, who joined the Juniper Foundation and enrolled in an NMA training camp in Manang. There she climbed Chulu East (6,584m) and met Furadiki Sherpa, whose rope-fixing husband had also been <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/on-mt-everest-s-70th-records-and-fatalities">killed on Everest</a> in 2013. They set themselves the goal of climbing Everest one day, and started a fund-raising drive.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a.png" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250530090544_621be0724b9182c8e3594b2c562a71ec32ac01d985a71d0cf31646de9d51e15a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2678" height="1274" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  “We decided we had to overcome society’s stigma of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/widows-personal-happiness-comes-last-in-face-of-social-financial-hardships,1855">widowhood</a> and prove that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/remembering-junko-tabei">women could also climb mountains</a>,” Nima said, adding that she was inspired by Nepal’s first woman Everest summiteer Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, who died during her descent in 1993. Nima Doma and Furdiki climbed the technically-difficult Ama Dablam (6,812m) and then arrived at Everest Base Camp in April 2019 as part of their Two Widows Expedition with the motto, ‘So Can We’. While climbing up the Icefall Nima passed the spot where her husband had been killed. It was a jumble of constantly-shifting ice blocks bigger than houses. She closed her eyes and said a prayer. “I remember thinking, this is so difficult and dangerous. This is what my husband had to do to support our family,” Nima Doma said. “I was determined to fulfil my husband’s dream of climbing Chomolungma, and to prove to ourselves that we two women could do it.” It was 23 May 2019 when <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/world/two-sherpa-widows-scale-everest-and-smash-stigma-idUSKCN1SU0MV/" target="_blank">Nima and Furdiki stepped on the summit</a> and looked over into Tibet, and down at Tengboche Monastery to the south.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b.png" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20250530090544_6b822582b5d88ba5e972db084f184690b40653c6efd9901b2dd082ffba2a263b" data-rendition-name="original" width="2700" height="1522" loading="lazy" alt="Everest summiteers find new life in the US"> </figure>  Nima Doma hugged Furdiki, took off her mask and wept. But for the first time in five years, it was not from grief but relief — relief for being free of all the sadness and sacrifices and for fulfilling her husband’s dream. They had found <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/life-after-death">life after death</a>. “I felt this immense joy to be on top of the world, it was indescribable,” Nima Doma said, “I have wept only twice in my life. Once when my husband died, and once there on top of Everest.” The tears had frozen on Nima Doma’s cheeks, as she and Furdiki headed back down the mountain.