Why Climb Everest With Alpine Ascents?
Our Reputation & History on Everest
Our reputation for leading successful climbs on Mt. Everest is unsurpassed. Of the few thousand people to stand atop Everest, over 200 of them have been with an Alpine Ascents expedition. During our ‘92 expedition twelve people summitted and in ‘93 eight people stood with us on top of the world. Our 1994 expedition was marked by ten successful summiters, with Peter Athans attaining the summit for his fourth time, a record for Western climbers. The 1996 season was marred by storms and our team was at the forefront of numerous rescues and assisted many climbers from other expeditions who were in serious danger. Lead guides Todd Burleson and Peter Athans climbed to a height of 26,000ft to rescue climbers, for which they were both awarded the American Alpine Club's prestigious Sowles Award. Our team made a valiant second attempt at the summit, but harsh winds prevented a safe summit bid. During 1997 - 1999 our guides were involved in high altitude research; our team worked in conjunction with the Boston Museum of Science in the installation of GPS equipment designed to measure the increasing height of Everest. Our 2000 Everest expedition was certainly one of our finest teams and was led by Vernon Tejas and Willi Prittie who continued our unsurpassed safety record. 2002 speaks for itself with a total of 17 team members reaching the summit. 2003 met with similar success with 14 members reaching the summit. In 2004, 17 climbers reached the summit including 100% of the guided climbers who left base camp. In 2005, during one of the most difficult poor weather years to date, 15 climbers reached the summit. In 2006 13 climbers reached the top on May 20 and our 2007 team saw 21 climbers reach the top. Our 2008 team saw our biggest success to date with 24 team members reaching the summit. 21 members of our 2009 expedition summited. 2010 saw 17 members reach the summit!
In 2011, our tenth straight summit year, 16 team members reached the summit of Everest (175 climbers in the past 10 years) and 3 went on to climb Lhotse in less than 24 hours, for the first time in history.
Mount Everest, rising 8,850m (29,035ft) above sea level reigns as the highest mountain on Earth. Since the first ascent in 1953 by Edmond Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, reaching the summit of Everest has been considered one of the greatest achievements in Mountaineering. Every Spring Alpine Ascents International embraces this challenge taking a group of qualified climbers to climb Mt. Everest via the South Col route in Nepal
We encourage you to compare our success and guide staff to any other guide service."Just wanted to let you know that I had a fabulous time on Everest and the trip could not have been better. The guides were all amazing climbers, teachers, and friends. I felt positive about the climb from beginning to end, and I thank you and everyone at Alpine Ascents for being a part of that. I also thank you for putting together such a competent and skilled team of guides and Sherpa, that helped me get to the top. Each day and each step was important, and I will take the memories with me forever. Many thanks and all the best." -Lori S, 2009 Everest Summiter
Logistics That Make The Difference
Professional Mountain Guides: All our expeditions are led by Everest Veterans who have summitted several times. It is these expert guides that often make the difference between success and failure on the mountain. See "Why Climb With a Professional Mountain Guide".
Sherpa staff: The most experienced climbing Sherpa on the mountain (most with between 10 and 17 summits) We will have 16 to 18 Sherpa climbing on the mountain with us along with our cook staff at Camp II. These climbing Sherpa are able to move our gear and supplies up and down the mountain so you don't have too. They are also great friends and comrades on the mountain.
Oxygen: Alpine Ascents provides more oxygen than any other guide service. Our systems are the lightest systems available. They weigh only 7 lbs compared to the 16 + pounds used by some companies.
1 to 1 Sherpa Assistance on Summit Day. On your summit day you will have a dedicated Sherpa to carry your extra bottles of oxygen for you. This support along with the guides gives you the best possible chance of success and greatly increases safety.
You are the climbing team. Alpine Ascents keeps our base camp small, and does not use base camp to support/house self-guided a or partially guided teams.
Rest day at high camp: We take a full day to rest at the South Col. Alpine Ascents feels this rest day is essential for our climbers to prepare for the hard challenge of summit day and hence our much higher success rates. No other company provides this service.
Meals on the Mountain: We prepare all your meals in every camp and throughout the entire trip. Many companies require you to cook at different camps on the mountain. This is a laborious task that often requires several hours of work to melt snow and cook meals.
Medical Facilities: We work with the Everest Base Camp Medical Center. For the last several years we have contracted with the Medical Center to provide you free visits to their doctors. In addition to the medical facility all of our guides are Certified Wilderness First Responders and carry extensive medical kits to provide medical care on the mountain.
Weather Forecasts: We contract with a private company that transmits the latest forecasts designed specifically for Everest. These forecasts allow us to choose the best summit days with much better accuracy and increase summit success and safety.
Communications: We have the latest in satellite communications. Our dedicated communication center allows you to send emails and make phone calls to family, friends and for your business. 3G cell phones can now be used at base camp for cell phone and smart phone communication. We also have an extensive recharging facility that allows you to recharge you personal electronic devices.
Base Camp: Alpine Ascents has the best equipped Base Camp on Everest. Heated dining tents, hot shower, personal sleeping tents and clean bathrooms are all part of making your life in BC comfortable. There is always food and drinks available between the three great meals our cooks will provide you. We have a diverse menu designed by an American gourmet chef, and much of our food is brought from the US and includes specialty items such as smoked salmon and imported cheeses which allow you to consume the large amount of calories needed to climb Everest and make you feel at home. Our attention to food and its preparation on Everest and mountains around the world have led to very few gastrointestinal issues for our team members.
We also have a Full-Time Base camp manager to assist you with any needs that you may have.
Experience required for expedition members
We are looking for experienced climbers, for whom Everest is the next logical step in their climbing careers. Our team will be in top physical condition and ready to meet the extreme challenges Everest presents. It is important that your resume includes previous high altitude climbs and strong mountaineering skills. Climbs like Denali, Aconcagua and Vinson are good prerequisites to attempt Everest.
It is important that a team member be able to work well with others and be willing to commit to a group effort which will last for several weeks. This team effort has proved to increase summit success and make for a more enjoyable climb.
You will be exposed to a completely different culture during the expedition and as a member it is your responsibility to treat the people and their environment with respect. This ability is as important as your climbing skills.
Base Camp Support Trek
We also offer a support trek to Everest Base Camp for team member's family and friends. This allows family and friends the opportunity to participate in a world-class climb. Please call for information.
Cybercasts
Alpine Ascents remains on the cutting edge of multimedia cybercast technology. For over the past ten years, we have webcast many of our expeditions on the World Wide Web from remote mountains around the world. Our Mt. Everest expeditions have been the highlight of these webcasts every year. Family, friends, and thousands from the general public can follow the team on their trek from Kathmandu to Base Camp. Once there, we establish a complete communications tent where we track the team's progress up the mountain and on to the summit. We also provide access to email and communication for team members.
Brief History
2011 - 16 Climbers to the summit (including 6 Sherpa team members) Guides: Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Garrett Madison, Michael Horst, Ben Jones.
2010 - 17 Climbers to the summit (including 7 Sherpa team members) Guides: Vern Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Garrett Madison, Michael Horst.
2009 - 21 Climbers to the summit (including 10 Sherpa team members) Guides: Vern Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Garrett Madison, Michael Horst.
2008 - 24 Climbers to the summit (including 10 Sherpa team members) Guides: Dave Morton, Vern Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Melissa Arnot.
2007 - 21 Climbers to the summit (including 10 Sherpa team members) Guides: Dave Morton, Vern Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Amy Bullard.
2006 - 13 Climbers to the summit (including 5 Sherpa team members) Guides: Vern Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, Dave Morton.
2005 - 15 Climbers to the summit (including 7 Sherpa team members). Guides: Willi Prittie, Vernon Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa Dave Morton and Jose Luis Peralvo.
2004 - 17 Climbers to the summit (including 8 Sherpa team members). Guides: Vernon Tejas, Jim Williams, Lakpa Rita Sherpa and Dave Morton.
2003 - 14 Climbers to the summit (including 5 Sherpa team members). Guides: Willi Prittie, Vernon Tejas, Luis Benitez and Lakpa Rita Sherpa... 50th Anniversary of the first ascent.
2002 - 17 Climbers to the summit (including 8 Sherpa team members). Lead guides: Willi Prittie, Vernon Tejas, Mike Roberts and Jose Luis Peralvo.
2000 - Vernon Tejas, Lakpa Rita Sherpa, and Willi Prittie to South Summit (28,700ft) with team.
1999 - Pete Athans summited for the 6th time (most by any Westerner).
1990-1998 Helped 39 climbers to the summit of Everest. Todd Burleson and Pete Athans receive Sowles award for Selfless Rescue (1996). Worked with Bradford Washburn in setting up laser altitude measurement systems on summit.
1990 Alpine Ascents International was established as one of the first Everest Guide services.