Death on the highest mountain on earth

When you hear the name Rainbow Valley, you might think of a picturesque landscape. However, the reality is far grimmer. Rainbow Valley is an area below the northern ridge of Mount Everest, situated at an altitude above 8000 meters. This stretch is littered with the remains of climbers who did not survive their ascent. Tragically, Mount Everest claims lives every year, and Rainbow Valley has become the final resting place for over 200 climbers. The name ‘Rainbow Valley' comes from the bright and colorful jackets the bodies of the hikers wear.

‘Green Boots' is the nickname given to the body of an unidentified climber that became a macabre landmark on the north face of Mount Everest. The climber is believed to be Tsewang Paljor, an Indian mountaineer who died in the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. He was found wearing distinctive green Koflach boots.

Due to the extreme conditions on Everest, the body remained preserved for many years, serving as a grim reminder of the dangers of climbing the world's tallest mountain. Green Boots was a common sight for climbers on the North Face route, located in a limestone alcove at 27,900 feet (8,500 meters), until it was finally removed in 2014 by Chinese climbers.

The exact identification of Green Boots remains a mystery, though several climbers have claimed to know who it is. However, Green Boots will likely remain unidentified due to the difficulty of recovering bodies at such high altitudes.

[Him alive]

[frozen in time]

The story of Francys Arsentiev is one of the most tragic tales from Mount Everest. Known as the mountain's ‘Sleeping Beauty,' Francys Arsentiev was an American climber who passed away on Everest in 1998.

Francys achieved the remarkable feat of ascending the mountain on May 22, 1998, becoming the first American woman to do so without supplemental oxygen. However, she perished on her descent. Her husband, Sergei Arsentiev, was also part of the expedition.

As they descended, the weather on Everest deteriorated dramatically. The lack of supplemental oxygen became a critical issue, hindering their ability to descend. Stranded by the severe weather, Francys was forced to remain on the mountain for several days. Tragically, Sergei also succumbed a day later while attempting to help her. Francys Arsentiev's final resting place earned her the nickname 'Sleeping Beauty' among climbers.

The disappearance of her husband, Sergei, was solved the following year when members of an expedition discovered Sergei's body lower on the mountain face. It appeared he had died from a fall while attempting to rescue his wife.

Hannelore Schmatz was the first German woman to summit Everest. She summited in 1979 but died at 8,200 meters (27,000 feet) during her descent. Her body remained there for many years until it was eventually blown further down the mountain.

She was on an expedition via the South East Ridge route with her husband, Gerhard Schmatz. Gerhard, the expedition leader, was 50 years old at the time and became the oldest man to summit Everest. The American climber Ray Genet was also part of the same expedition and also died during the descent.

Exhausted from the climb, the group decided to bivouac at 28,000 feet (8,500 meters) as night approached, despite their Sherpa guides urging them to continue descending. Ray Genet died later that night. Although distressed, the Sherpa and Hannelore chose to continue their descent the next day. At 27,200 feet (8,300 meters), Hannelore sat down, requested "Water, water" from her Sherpa, and then passed away. Sungdare Sherpa, one of the guides, stayed with her body and consequently lost most of his fingers and toes due to the harsh conditions.

While Genet's body disappeared under the snow, Schmatz's body remained visible for years, leaning against her backpack.

In 1984, an expedition attempted to recover Schmatz's body but the team also fell to their deaths.

Eventually, the wind blew Schmatz's remains over the edge and down the hill.

In 2006, British mountaineer David Sharp who died of extreme cold.

David Sharp (15 February 1972 – 15 May 2006) was an English mountaineer who died near the summit of Mount Everest. His death sparked controversy and debate, as numerous climbers passed by him while he was dying, all on their way to and from the summit. Despite some climbers' attempts to help, their efforts were ultimately in vain.

Sharp was climbing alone and aimed to reach the summit of Everest without using supplementary oxygen.

He had opted for a bare-bones "basic services" package, which did not include support beyond a certain altitude or a Sherpa climbing partner. Sharp was part of a loosely organized group of 13 independent climbers, many of which also perished that year while attempting to summit.

Other climbers, who seen him, maintained that they believed Sharp was beyond help on the way up.

He actually died in the same cave as 'Green Boots'.

Sharp's body remained on the mountain but was removed from sight in 2007.

George Mallory (June 18, 1886 – June 8 or 9, 1924) was an English mountaineer who participated in the first three British Mount Everest expeditions in the early to mid-1920s. He is believed to be the first human to summit Mt. Everest.

[George Mallory]

One of the oldest bodies on the mountain wasn't discovered until 1999—nearly 75 years after he died. Mallory was the most famous mountaineer of his time and arguably of any time.

On their final attempt to reach the summit, he and his companion Andrew Irvine were reportedly spotted by British geologist Noel Odell on June 8th at an altitude of approximately 8,500 meters. They then disappeared into the mist and were never seen alive again.

[Andrew Irvine]

Since neither man returned the question of whether or not they made it remains a mystery.

[one of their attemts to summit Everest]

[Mallory on the left, Irvine on the right]

[Mallory somewhere on Everest]

His body was discovered in 1999. He appears to have fallen to his death, and due to his injuries around his waist, it has been suggested that he and Irvine were still roped together when they fell.

[Mallorys body]

When asked why he wanted to climb Evererst Mallory replied, “Because it's there.”

In May 2005, Marko Lihteneker died at approximately 8,800 meters (28,871 feet) on his descent, primarily due to issues with his oxygen system. He was last seen alive just a few meters from the summit, attempting to resolve these problems. His body was later discovered by Chinese porters.

Shriya Shah-Klorfine (January 11, 1979 – May 19, 2012) was a Nepal-born Canadian woman who died while descending from the summit in 2012.

She was an inexperienced climber, who booked a tour to the summit for tens of thousands of dollars to fulfill her lifelong dream.

Her body was on the hillside for about ten days. Afterwards it was carried back down.

Over 310 people died on Mt. Everest. Which is about 3.1% of every climber.

200 bodies remain on Everest.

The retrieval of the bodies is often times extremely dangerous and laborious. That's why most of them stay on the mountain in the place they died or are hidden from view.

Other dead climber, with unknown backstories and names.

My sources

https://www.marveladventure.com/blog/rainbow-valley-everest

https://www.nepaltravelvibes.com/everests-green-boots-mystery/

https://www.nepaltrekkinginfo.com/blogs/the-story-of-mount-everest-sleeping-beauty/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hannelore_Schmatz

https://www.mittelbayerische.de/archiv/1/der-grosse-traum-vom-gipfelglueck-11331509

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sharp_(mountaineer)

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Mallory

https://7summitsclub.com/news/all/item_7687/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shriya_Shah-Klorfine

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/save-me-last-words-of-mount-everest-climber-1.1182656

My advice: don't try to climb Mt. Everest.