Original subtitles

Douglas: This is an astonishingly chance relationship.

Between western climbers and the sherpas.

When climbing began, the sherpas had no conception

of what mountaineering might be,

and yet, suddenly they were on this journey

from being people who just genetically were really good

at altitude to becoming,

you know, international mountain guides 100 years later.

Man: 1953... coronation year.

The world was turned by the news

that Everest had at last been conquered

by a British expedition led by colonel John hunt.

Accompanied by the famous sherpa tenzing,

Edmund Hillary climbed the summit

of the world's highest mountain.

Douglas: When tenzing norgay reached the summit of Everest,

that is such an amazing moment.

It's one of the most beautiful moments

in climbing history.

That's the moment when the word "sherpa"

has the meaning of brand in the way that we understand it.

The world was captivated by tenzing.

And he fixed in our minds the popular image of a sherpa,

as this smiling, friendly, almost heroic figure.

Jamling: A lot of the western world.

Do not know what a sherpa is.

So, a sherpa, you know... You climb mountains, you know?

And that's the first instinct,

but they have no idea that we are

actually an ethnic group of people.

We believe in reincarnation... Life after death.

And you continue to be reborn and reborn and reborn

until the day you reach nirvana.

So, your next life is determined by your deeds of this life.

We sherpa people have a great respect for the mountain.

Norgay: Over here, we climb mountains,

but it's a holy place.

There's a huge difference in, you know,

the attitude, the feeling.

Western people approach it as a physical challenge...

Push your limit to see how close you can get to death.

But there's 1,000-year-old stories

we have about the mountain's history,

which these people have no idea about.

And I think some people adapt and learn and respect it.

Some people don't.

Douglas: If phurba is one of the most successful climbing sherpas.

Of his generation,

then his counterpart amongst expedition leaders

is his boss, Russell Brice.

Brice: I've been running commercial expeditions here.

Since 1994.

I think I'm the person that's been

on more Everest expeditions than anyone else in the world.

- It's all oxygen. - All oxygen.

And I brought those two broken ones in kathmandu.

How can I explain phurba tashi?

This year, he might climb Everest 22 times...

More than anyone else in the world...

And such a special person.

He's incredibly strong on the mountain.

Good idea. Water here.

Hi, guys.

Lots of new faces.

Douglas: The service-industry aspect.

Of climbing Everest has developed and developed.

So what mountaineers in 1975 maybe would have put up with,

the people who are coming now want something a bit more.

You know, they want a very comfortable base camp.

Everything's good.

So much work for these guys

to make all these platforms and put tents up.

The activity here has changed utterly.

It has become an industry,

and that industry is people, largely, by sherpas.

And they may not still fully understand

what it is that compels us to climb mountains,

but they are fantastically good at delivering the experience.

Woodward: So far, so good, actually.

Everybody's looking and sounding quite healthy.

A couple mild headaches, but that's to be expected.

Okay, folks.

Let's roll on out of town.

Steven: In the old days,

people did everything on the mountain together.

And today, the mountain has changed in that

the operators take care of everything.

Brice: In the old days,

if you got one person on the summit,

that was success.

Now, we need to get everyone on the summit.

So if you want to get everyone on the summit,

you need much more creature comfort.

Certainly the type of person

that comes on an expedition has changed considerably.

We bring people here to help them fulfill their dreams.

Hey! Yeah!

Phurba, how's it going? Good to see you.

You boys have done hard work.

Oh!

Hey, phurba. Peter. How are you?

It's been a goal as a climber.

I know to a lot of climbers, it might be trivial,

but to me, being on top of Everest

is just an achievement of a dream.

Johnson: Part of the reason why you want to come and climb...

You want to experience those things,

see if you can do it, see if you can physically do it.

It's a massive undertaking.

The training is phenomenal.

And, you know, it's not something

you put together in a couple weeks.

It's months of planning and months of getting organized.

Everest has always been attractive

for several reasons for me.

I love the Buddhist side to it.

I love the whole... I love the nepalese people.

So, for me, it's been a more enjoyable mountain than most

because I think that it's so cool,

that you get to share it with these beautiful people.

Man: Have you ever seen a man so particular?

Man #2: Are you watching this right now?

Man #3: It's like a caveman.

Douglas: And so, for just eight hectic weeks each year,

Everest base camp becomes this thriving village.

And in recent years, overcrowding on Everest

has been the source of a lot of controversy.

Williams: It might just be the last place on earth.

You'd expect to find a traffic jam...

The top of the world... Mount Everest.

Man #4: These archive images show how lineups

cause long and unnecessary delays.

Man #5: More than 4,000 climbers have been to the top of Everest.

600 people do it in a good year.

It has become a very necessary part of the nepalese economy.

Man #6: Expedition companies charge up to $100,000

to clients wanting to make the ascent.

Man #7: Climbing Everest has become a bucket list ambition

and a multi-million-dollar industry.

Douglas: This is a, you know, big employer...

Lots and lots of people.

There are more sherpas working on the mountain now

than there ever have been in history.

But they only get a small fraction of the pie.

Man #5: The sherpa guides earn up to $5,000

for a two-month expedition,

10 times the average annual pay

in their isolated homeland.

Douglas: The whole Everest circus.

Just seems to get bigger and bigger,

and this season is no exception.

Russell Brice's team is just one of 38 expeditions

on the mountain this year.

All these people have to be looked after,

and all their equipment has to be moved up the mountain.

You have Google maps

photographing the route to the summit.

There's a Hollywood feature film.

There's even a guy in a wingsuit

trying to jump off the top and fly all the way down.

Flisler: So, we're here to put on one.

Of the most ambitious television projects

in the history of the media world.

So he'll be flying down here,

and we're gonna be broadcasting it all live.

There's a reason that superman movies

or Batman movies and spider-man...

All these superheroes are so popular.

I can do what those guys can do.

Wardle: It's kind of daft,

but you know, in the world of adventure,

people are always thinking of new crazy things to do.

Douglas: It's part of the deal now...

Is that they're all kinds of strange notions

of what can be done on Everest simply to attract attention.

One, two, three.

The way these commercial expeditions climb Everest

is to establish a series of higher and higher camps,

stocking them over a period of weeks

with everything required to give the clients

the best chance of reaching the summit.

The government doesn't permit equipment

to be flown up the mountain,

so everything that goes into building these camps

has to be carried.

Douglas: And it's the sherpas that do that work,

including going through what is its most dangerous section.

If you want to climb Everest from the south,

you have to go through the khumbu icefall.

It's the route up Everest most commercial operators prefer,

partly because of political uncertainty

on the northern side of the mountain in Tibet,

which they'd rather avoid.

Mckinley: The khumbu icefall is like a waterfall of ice.

Coming out of the western cwm.

There is nowhere else in the world

that a mountaineer would go through an icefall like this.

But because it's the only access on the south side to Everest,

then people do walk through this jumble of ice.

The problem with the icefall is that it's uncontrollable.

All the other aspects of the mountain that are dangerous

have, you know, in terms of safety,

have been improved over the years.

But the icefall remains, you know, perilous.

Douglas: There are threats from every direction.

Not only that... There are big blocks of ice

falling down without warning from above.

You're asking men to go to work in a very dangerous environment.

And it's becoming more so as the seracs,

these giant blocks of glacial ice,

are affected by the forces of climate change.

They're dropping off more readily,

and people are going to get caught more often.

Man #8: Oh, shoot.

Douglas: So you know that this is a perilous moment...

Going through the icefall.

Man #8: Oh, my god.

Douglas: And it's not just once or twice.

The sherpas have to go through it.

It's up to 30 trips per season,

as compared to about two or three for most foreigners.

Brice: I'm totally scared every time

I send the sherpas up in the mountain.

It's like sending them off to war.

I don't know who's gonna come home.

If there's an accident in the icefall,

are we gonna lose one? Are we gonna lose two?

Are we gonna lose six people?

Because the potential is there.

Douglas: And the question is...

What is the moral justification for that?

You know, what reward is there for you to play

what is essentially a game of Russian roulette?

In 2012, I determined the mountain to be dangerous.

Every night, I'd listen to the sherpas

on the radio going through the icefall.

And all the time, they were running away

from small avalanches and blocks of ice

falling down and things like that.

So I made a decision to cancel my expedition.

That's an incredibly hard thing to do...

To cancel a commercial expedition.

Douglas: There were people around who said,

"well, Russell's, you know, being a bit of a chump here"

because his clients will be pissed off

because they went home

"and other people got to the top."

I think Russell Brice

was really putting into perspective the risks

that people were making the sherpas take.

Now Russell has four of those clients

returning this year.

So that adds a lot of pressure for a successful expedition.

Douglas: Tenzing norgay was a man.

Who was determined to change his stars.

And when he reached the summit of Everest, he did that.

The British couldn't have done it

with someone like tenzing.

He'd been to the mountain seven times by that point,

and they benefited from all those years

of his experience, but he wasn't acknowledged.

He wasn't given due regard for what he had achieved.

Coming down from that, almost immediately,

he finds himself in a political firestorm.

Reporter: Who got to the top first?

Hunt: To anybody who climbs mountains, to any mountaineer,

and I feel to thousands of others.

The matter couldn't matter less.

Reporter #2: When tenzing norgay was asked how he felt,

his chilly answers had to be interpreted.

Hunt: He's very happy.

Reporter #2: All this and the George medal, too.

Douglas: So John hunt became sir John hunt,

Hillary became sir ed Hillary,

and tenzing got the George medal.

Now, there is a superior award to that... the George cross.

So it's kind of like a second-level award.

It was just not right.

So in the eyes of sherpas,

in the eyes of people in India,

in the eyes of most asians, they felt somewhat slighted

that he would not get the same kind of recognition

that his partners got.

Jamling: My father said,

"i wish I had never climbed this mountain."

Douglas: He was immensely proud of what he had achieved,

but I think he felt thwarted in a way.

I think he felt that he hadn't realized himself

in the way that he would have liked.

I think partly it's because, you know,

he lacked a formal education.

Steven: The 60-year-old reputation.

Of what it is to be a sherpa is changing.

Joshi: Now, you go to base camp.

And more than 80% of sherpas finish their high school.

And if you go 20 years ago,

none of them have been to high school.

Because of their education, they know a lot more

than western clients think they do.

Steven: Now with the Facebook generation,

sherpas see how much credit westerners

are getting for a climb on Everest,

and they know that they've done most of the grunt work.

Without the sherpa,

the westerner would never have gotten there.

And they are dissatisfied with that.

And they want equal credit for what they have done.

What we've seen in recent years is a...

A tendency of aggression

from younger sherpas.

So, last year, there was fighting on Everest,

and I think we were all disappointed,

so sad about that.

Man #9: Dozens of people risk their lives every year

trying to climb mount Everest.

This morning, some of them say they nearly died in a brawl.

Woman: Man versus the mountain to man versus man.

Man #11: Three climbers say they faced a human foe.

Man #12: Three top European climbers

had to flee for their lives.

Man #13: The highest-altitude scrap in history.

Man #14: They just tried to kill us.

Man #15: The sherpas tried to kill you?

Man #16: This all unfolded near the summit,

an altitude of roughly 22,000 feet.

Douglas: You have a European calling a sherpa a...

Which is, in Nepal, particularly,

culturally insensitive.

Man #17: Yep. I copy that. I know what word you used.

I don't like that word, either.

Man #18: Sherpas, who usually help westerners summit,

turned against them.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all what they said.

All the words that came out from my mouth was wrong.

I am sorry.

Yes.

Please. Please, no violence.

- No. - He came to apologize.

I'm sorry.

Yes, yes.

Please, no violence. Listen.

He's very sorry.

No!

Inside, inside.

Hey!

Man #18: It's not clear whether the fight was something personal

or reflected a greater discontent.

Please, no violence. Please!

It's about sherpas no longer feeling

that they have to be subservient or deferent to western climbers

and not playing out that role of the faithful servant anymore.

Not being the kind of nice, friendly, smiley person

in the background.

Just saying, "actually, you know what?

We're as good as you."

Brice: I'm a little afraid.

Where it's going to lead in the future.

It's too hard.

The tension is too hard.

The worry is too hard.

And I'm getting too old for that.

- Good morning. - Good morning, mount Everest.

Hot towel.

Tea?

Ow.

Roughin' it on mount Everest.

Hot towels and tea in the morning.

Ah.

Can I have a tea with no sugar, please?

Douglas: The reason Everest takes eight weeks to climb.

Is that the body needs to slowly acclimatize to the altitude.

Brice: We do our acclimatization on lobuche peak.

To stay out of the icefall,

to reduce the risk for our clients.

Douglas: And so when, you know, Russell Brice.

Starts getting his clients to camp on top of, you know,

a nearby peak rather than going through the icefall

to acclimatize, you know, that makes sense.

The fewer trips anyone has to make through the icefall,

the better.

Meanwhile, the sherpas are still stocking the camps

on Everest, making dozens of trips up and down,

carrying all the oxygen, the tents, the food, so on.

So that the mountain is ready to be climbed

when the clients return.

Brice: This year, my clients will go through the icefall twice,

but I dare say most of the sherpas

will go through maybe 20 to 30 times.

And I'm not sure the clients actually ever see that.

That was a nice day for a climb.

Brice: I think a lot of people, even on our trips,

don't really understand

all this work is going on every night.

Loads of equipment going up to support them on the mountain.

But now we have to start the real job of why we're here,

and that's going up through the mountain.

Safety is very, very important.

If you go through the icefall without crampons,

if you go through the icefall without clipping on,

I'm gonna sack you.

You're gonna go home.

Douglas: It must seem crazy going through the khumbu icefall.

In the dark, but it's actually much safer

because it's more stable in the cold of night.

Once the sun hits,

it becomes increasingly dangerous.

Brice: You have to remember.

That you have a big responsibility

not only for your own safety but for your family.

Even if it's a full moon, you must have your headlamp.

The transceivers must be turned on here,

and you must use the transceiver every day

that you go through the icefall.

We know if a serac falls on top of you

you're not going to survive, but if you have a transceiver,

it means to find you will take much less time.

And so that puts the people doing the rescue

at much less risk.

Check, check.

Check, check.

There at least five out here that are out of the danger zone,

and there's another four or five i can see

that are still in the depths of the icefall.

Man #19: Update from icefall... 13 or 14 missing.

Not sure what team they're from.

Phil, are all your boys okay?

Phil, I can't hear you, but are all your boys okay?

Just say yes or no.

Thumbs up. Okay. Thanks.

Man #21: Get all the rescue rope you can find.

Russ, where's that...

Brice: A.C. And a.A.I.

Dawa sherpa, a.C. Sherpa, and a.A.I. Sherpa.

No.

Mckinley: I'm not aware of numbers,

but it's significant amounts.

It's in the teens.

Keep that with you.

Okay.

Definitely bring the long line from kathmandu.

Cheers. Bye.

Put these steel shovels, get them all together.

We want that sked.

Man #20: If people are somewhat stable

we're gonna want to be bringing them down

from the scene if we can't fly them out.

For the beginning of the season.

- "A." - Yeah.

How are you? Namaste, Dave.

- That's it? - Yeah.

Goes up, gets some oxygen,

and you go second load.

One of my guys is very serious.

Mm-hmm.

So I think we're to bring him down fast,

as soon as possible.

Because he's alive now.

Yeah, yeah. We'll try.

My doctor here waiting.

- Yeah. - It's okay.

But we need sked. We need all that.

We need the oxygen up there first flight.

Yeah.

I think what we're trying to do

is you and I in the first load.

Yeah.

I'll try and secure the helipad.

- Yep. - Get it crackin'.

You do flight stuff, I'll just do medical stuff.

And you go down. Exactly.

- Guys. - Yes, yes.

If you're gonna make me in charge...

- Yeah, yeah. - Please listen.

Okay. I understand you're mountain guides.

I'm a mountain guide.

We've all got friends missing and dead.

We know that, okay?

We can't get everything up on the first load.

We want to send a doctor.

- Doctor. One Nepali guide. - They're requesting a doctor.

Doctor and one Nepali guide, okay?

Woman #2: Who are these people?

Priority is being stabled and Melissa on it.

Mckinley: Yeah, I think we've explained.

That Russell's in charge of the helipad down here,

which means Melissa and I will be going first.

Man #21: First victim is already packaged, ready to go.

Man #22: Patient condition.

Man #21: He's fully conscious, responsive.

Man #23: But we are confused

about how many casualties there are now.

We don't have a casualty count now.

We're working on live bodies at the moment.

Brice: All sherpas not needed now leave and come to base camp.

It's starting to get hot.

Mckinley: Jason's gonna go in, try and land in upper site,

pull that sherpa off, bring him down to helipad.

Being switched to long line going to your location.

Woman #2: Jason has landed at middle site. Over.

Man #21: There's a sherpa with a head injury and internal bleeding.

They're gonna keep him there, package him for a long line.

Yeah, Michael just requested as much rope as possible.

Mckinley: There's a live patient with a query several fracture.

Pulse looks good call me from img, over.

Man #21: Blood on the right... Your right...

Arm bruising, upper left chest pain descending with Eric.

Brice: I need to confirm...

Do we have anymore injured people to pick up or not?

Mckinley: This is the last patient. This is the last patient.

And then we can switch to non-traumatic

body recovery flying down.

And we're gonna put an ecg on them to check for rhythm.

Over.

Woman #2: A verify... we are absolutely in body recovery.

- Yes. - Roger.

Mckinley: Let's get this going.

This is by far the worst tragedy

that's ever happened on Everest.

13 people have died this morning.

And there may be more still that we don't know about.

There hasn't been a year in history

where 13 people have died on Everest,

let alone in one day.

Man #24: Break, break.

Michael has done an examination on all bodies.

No signs of life.

Brice: I dare say...

This is the day that we just all dreaded.

Woman #3: How are you feeling?

Shattered.

Every village will be affected.

A lot of our guys will have friends they know.

There's people from all over the khumbu

who have been... You know, young guys who,

at least one of them i know just had a baby.

Just...

Man #25: Now to the worst disaster ever seen on mount Everest.

Woman #4: The avalanche hit

at about 6:30 this morning local time

at one of the busiest times of day on the mountain.

Man #25: Greatest one-day toll recorded

of the world's tallest mountain.

Woman #4: A wall of snow crashed over the western shoulder.

Man #26: The death toll's expected to rise to 16.

Man #27: Questions are now being asked about the future

of this year's climbing season

and whether attempts will be made next month.

Man #28: This tragedy adds to the death toll on Everest,

which is already estimated at 250.

Man #29: A four-day halt to climbing has been declared

while the search for the missing sherpas goes on.

Douglas: And you see the grief,

and you know, that's going back decades.

You know, these grieving sherpa families...

This constant narrative of loss being expressed again.

Woman #5: This morning, the search has been suspended

for three other people

who are still missing from mount Everest.

Crews did manage to recover a 13th body overnight.

Wardle: Two days ago, 16 people died.

Including about half of our team.

This morning, I think the sherpas are taking matters

into their own hands.

They're holding a big meeting at base camp.

We've just been told that the sherpas are quite angry

and we should get bags ready

just in case we have to make a swift exit.

We don't know if the sherpas are perhaps gonna target us

as a focus for their anger... Westerners coming here

and causing such a kind of circus at times.

I don't know if there's any still-lingering tension

from last year and the fights that broke out.

We're hoping the same thing doesn't happen again this year,

but we're concerned about filming here right now.

16 people dying at the same time...

It's a huge, huge shock.

When it started to sink in,

the anger got distinctly pointed at the government.

They feel that the government has always been benefiting

off the labor of the sherpas, the lives of the sherpas,

and never put anything back.

Douglas: Nepal's tourism industry.

Is worth $360 million a year.

So when the government offers the families around $400,

which isn't even enough to cover their funeral expenses,

grief turns to anger very quickly.

The government... You know, once it figured out

that it could sell Everest as many times

as it liked every year rather than once,

it's basically just sat there,

occasionally twiddled around the edges

when there was some bad headlines,

but basically not really done anything since.

They've left it to western, you know, operators

and just taken their cut every year, and it's a big cut.

It's like 1/3 of the money

that stays in Nepal from this business

goes to the government.

The sherpas... They're still taking the risks.

You know, they've always taken the risks.

They're still taking the risks.

They, quite reasonably, think that's outrageous.

We worked really hard this morning

to send a letter to the ministry

asking for better conditions for these guys.

I would have thought that might preempt

this type of meeting this afternoon.

Of course we're upset about people dying,

but this is irrational, you know?

It's totally irrational.

I dare say they'd look at the arab summer

and things like that and think

that they can do the same sort of things.

It's hot-headed young guys who really don't have

very much experience on this mountain in any case.

They're angry, yes. They are.

Their grandparents and their fathers

have worked hard in the himalayas.

All the hard work has been done by the sherpas,

which is not fair.

It is not fair.

Man #30: Every morning, we wake up

and we realize that this is not a dream.

I'm sorry. I don't really know what to say.

We had a... a day...

We've all been expecting an accident,

and we had a very bad day.

The day that we never, ever wanted.

I am afraid every single day the boys go through the icefall.

I fear every day, but, guys, we also have to progress.

We have to progress for the future.

Otherwise, you have no income for your families.

Douglas: This is unprecedented that the sherpas.

Could contemplate giving up a season's earning

in order to make their point.

One of the biggest requests

from the workers in this base camp

is to not continue climbing this year.

We know that's a great big ask,

but it's somewhat small compared to the 16 lives

we've lost in this mountain.

This is not workable for us.

We've still got our sherpas to come to talk to,

to see if we want to carry on climbing or not.

We can't have this happening every time

there's an accident every season.

It's getting out of control.

We're being forced off this mountain by renegade sherpas.

Joshi: We only became a Democratic country in the '90s,

so people feel like they have more freedom of speech.

So whenever they speak something that is a bit more bold,

it obviously takes the western people

who are the base camp by surprise.

They're saying what they think.

They're not rebels. They're just mountain guides.

Brice: I'm asking for a helicopter.

To go to the ministry.

The government has not taken much notice in the past,

so I think now's the time.

I think we're confident

that we're gonna recover the situation,

but only if we act right now.

Man #31: Good morning.

Well, it began as a tragedy

and has now turned into an avalanche of resentment

that threatens the entire Everest industry.

Woman #6: Sherpa guides on mount Everest are staging a boycott

that threatens to shut down next month's climbing season.

Man #31: The issue is why the sherpa climbing guides,

who assume a disproportionately large part of the risk

get a disproportionately small part of the take.

I'd like to know a little bit about what's going on, you know?

We hear from, you know...

Simon hears from the European papers

that the season's over.

I hear from American media

that there's a potential strike

and there's still negotiating going on, but...

- We don't know anything, huh? - Nothing.

We can sit it,

and yet we don't know a thing.

He's paid for a helicopter to come and take him

so we can go talk to the people that can make decisions.

He's working on it,

and until those discussions are over,

there's nothing but speculation,

which is exactly what we're doing.

Sorry, guys.

I mean, if I had more information,

I would give it to you.

I'm going.

There's an inherent risk in mountaineering.

There's an inherent risk in Everest.

There's an inherent risk in the khumbu.

I know that. I'm willing to assume that risk.

Mckinley: I think some of the clients.

Are getting a little restless,

but I think we're in the right place

at the right time,

and we're still going forward on our plan.

So if the word is "yes, your crew will go with you,"

we're still going forward.

Man #32: The future of the Everest climbing season

is hanging in the balance this morning.

Woman #7: Nepalese government officials are flying into try

and ease tensions at base camp.

Douglas: There was a lot of expectation.

Surrounding the ministerial visit.

The sherpas hoped they would show some leadership

and cancel the season.

The clients hoped the government

would agree to the sherpa demands

so the season could continue.

Man #33: Sit down, please!

Douglas: So in failing to act decisively.

Or take any kind of official position,

the government have really left the sherpas

between a rock and a hard place.

But just coming to base camp, they don't make money.

They make money on the mountain, carrying loads up there.

The higher they go,

the more they carry, the more they're paid.

Just coming to base camp, they make nothing.

But for the last 61 years, we've waited.

Something had to happen and then we had to raise our voice

and to such a huge loss.

They're ready to face the consequences.

They'd rather leave than die.

Douglas: I think many expedition leaders found themselves.

In an incredibly difficult position.

Balancing the interests of clients and the sherpas

in a situation like this was never going to be easy.

Linville: What happened was really a tragic day,

a black day.

I feel still positive

if we're gonna be allowed to go up the mountain, you know,

and continue the journey and hopefully it's successful

and you know, life goes on,

and just try to remember the guys for what they were

and carry a positive message.

I knew the risks.

From a personal point of view, i was prepared to take that,

but to ask the sherpa boys

to go through it time and time again,

it's a difficult one.

It's hard just to...

Not to think about what happened to all those families,

those boys.

They're doing it for us.

But I put so much work into this and effort.

Then you start to justify it.

Doyle: For us, it's déjà vu, isn't it, Jeff?

Yeah. We've been through this, you know?

This was 2012.

Actually, what Russell feared would happen in 2012

is exactly what happened.

To have to come back here a second time

only to get canceled again and never given the shot is...

Yeah, that'll be... that'll be devastating to me, I think.

Yeah.

Woman #5: As we reported earlier this week,

sherpas are leading a boycott after that deadly avalanche.

Man #34: Starting to make climbing for those

who might want to continue very, very challenging.

Woman #5: Most of the climbers will forfeit the money

they paid for the journey.

That can top $75,000.

I flew back again here this morning

to find that I'm probably the last team to decide

whether we're going to be continuing on the mountain

or not.

Yes, we had one avalanche.

Unfortunately, it killed a lot of people.

But that's no reason to stop the expedition.

Today, a delegation... They came to the base camp

to try and calm things down.

But I'm afraid it just escalated things.

It didn't help.

We know that there's only a group of four or five guys

that are causing this problem,

but then they excite 300-odd guys,

and when you have mob rule, what can we do?

Effectively,

what these militant sherpas are saying is...

If our sherpas go through the icefall,

they'll beat them up.

Then we all know about the fighting on Everest last year.

We would hope that there will be some form of punishment

to these guys.

Or we need to get rid of them, out of this system

so it doesn't happen again.

You know who employs them, Russ? These four or five?

I know who employs some of them, yeah.

And there's no way you can talk to their owners

and... I mean, if this was one of your sherpas,

you could have them removed from the mountain.

Well, I would. Yes.

So...

But, yes.

But I don't know how to do that.

These people are totally irrational.

They don't care.

Next week or next month,

they'll be at home with nothing to eat.

We have one last chance

as our sherpas are still prepared to go up the mountain.

As far as I know, our sherpas want to climb.

But they fear for their life.

Phurba will be here early tomorrow.

We have to discuss everything with him.

So, sorry, guys.

That's it.

- Oh, namaste. - Namaste.

How's it going? Okay. How you doing?

Douglas: Sherpas are not people who express their emotions.

Very willingly.

So it's sometimes hard to read them.

Brice: Lots of attention on you now.

It's okay. Just relax.

Let's have a cup of tea first, huh?

Namaste.

So, how's everyone at home?

Upset?

- A bit upset. - Yeah.

I know. Just...

Understandably, you know.

Mm-hmm.

And wives. How do wives feel?

Don't want you coming or...

How they want... how they say?

They are happy that we're back, but they're still afraid...

Afraid.

Afraid, too, that we're going back again.

Yeah. I'm sure.

We're all afraid.

Yeah.

We're all afraid, phurba.

So.

What to do.

Want to go north side?

- Still very risky. - Huh?

There's risk every time. Doesn't matter where we go.

Mm-hmm.

So, um...

I understand how you feel.

You want to climb,

but you also have respect for the people and everything.

Yeah.

Although, I checked with all the Buddhists and hindu.

You know, if we respect,

then we can carry on doing our work,

but what we feel here is danger

for you from other sherpa.

Did you hear anything about that?

- No, I didn't. - Didn't hear that?

So, for me, i feel afraid for you.

We feel danger for you guys if you carry on climbing,

but maybe later, some violence to you...

How you feel about that.

'Cause this is not normal sherpa.

How do you guys feel?

Maybe you're angry with me.

And if you're angry, then you have to tell me,

but, you know,

I think pressure coming from outside...

And I'm afraid for you.

So, I think we have to stop expedition.

- You agree? - Mm-hmm.

You agree to stop expedition?

- Yeah. - Everyone?

- Yes. - Yeah?

So I have to tell the members like that?

Mm-hmm.

I don't want, but also, if just us,

how can I afford all the rope?

Because I have to buy from expedition operators.

So, for me, i can't afford just us.

You know, before it was always friendly,

smiling sherpa, always helping.

These guys have spoiled your reputation.

Okay.

What to do now.

I have to go and tell members we're finished.

Mm-hmm.

You know, my prayers are with you.

Sad.

Glad you're okay.

So glad to see you here.

So, as I told you last night,

it's unlikely that we would continue

and the sherpas feel under too much threat.

They've already been told if they go through icefall,

they'll break their legs.

So...

This is the word that comes to them

that these other guys up here will break their legs

if they go through the icefall.

Yes, they want to climb.

Out of respect, they don't want to climb,

and out of fear, they don't want to climb.

Not fear of the mountain.

Fear of the people.

So there you go, guys. What can I say?

And I don't know what to do.

And phurba doesn't know what to do.

And we're pissed off.

We're angry that these people are ruining our business,

you know?

Their business. What can we do?

I don't know how to apologize to you.

I... don't know how to do that.

Especially the people that have come twice.

Okay. So, now how to get out of here.

Essentially, we were just given the news

that the sherpas' legs would be broken

if they were to help us

get up this mountain.

How can you possibly argue with that one?

Being held captive by terrorists, is how I look at it.

I mean, when people demand change

and threaten it by violence, that's a terrorist, you know.

And we in the states, we know what that is...

After 9/11.

We've got a group here that's terrorizing base camp.

How do you anticipate that, you know?

How do you...

How do you mentally prepare yourself

to get up here and then be turned away

because a group of terrorists are demanding

that westerners leave base camp?

You know, it's... it's hard.

Do I have it in me for a third time

to try to come back and do Everest?

I've got to go talk with my family, I think,

before I make any final decisions.

But I certainly would like to get to the top

of the highest mountain in the world

and be able to provide that legacy to my family

as something they...

Now you got me.

Man #34: Oh, we'll be back.

We'll be back hopefully next year.

One way or another,

I'll tack the top of that mountain at some point,

so... just a slight setback.

I'm gonna feel better when I go home knowing

that we didn't climb up that mountain

after the big tragedy.

It's just better to show my respect

for the sherpa community by leaving.

Joshi: I think the expedition organizers...

They knew in their heart what their sherpa wants,

but they couldn't tell that clearly to their clients.

It's just the excuses they are using

to throw the blame on somebody else, yeah.

If this didn't change anything, then nothing ever will.

Then Nepal will just be like the wild, wild west

for the western operators to do whatever they want.

This thing has happened, which is a sad thing,

but hopefully, this will bring something positive

into the mountain.

Brice: It must have some effect of the Everest industry...

The accident this year.

I think this made me more determined

to try and change the rules

so we can continue with Everest as usual but in a safer way.

I've been a mountain guide all my life.

We have to deal with death a lot, and then try and move on.

Hopefully, we will have a team

to go to climb mount Everest again next year.

Douglas: The game shifted.

It would be easy in the chaos of this last week

to lose sight of what has happened here.

The sherpas have effectively canceled the season.

They had a choice, and in the end,

they've chosen respect for themselves and the mountain

ahead of money.

Canceling the season will be a welcomed breathing space.

So maybe it will be calmer.

It will be nice for Everest to be calm for a bit

rather than this kind of madness.

My father said that you don't conquer

these mountains, you know?

You just crawl up,

as a child crawling to your mother's lap,

which is the same approach i think people should take.

Then there'd be less accidents.

Norbu: He was the first Asian to become famous,

known around the world,

and he became a great metaphor for young men

all alike to show that you can make it on your own,

hard work is what it takes.

And so he became a real symbol of hope

for millions around the world.

Douglas: Tenzing gave the name sherpa a currency.

Which will never be exhausted.

So it may only be now

that they're really beginning to take advantage of it.

They've got control of climbing the mountain,

and it's come full circle in a way.

Jamling: My father said he climbed.

So that we wouldn't have to.

He wanted to give us the best education

so we could continue our lives in some other careers

rather than climbing.

Because climbing was dangerous.