The final summit push of the 2026 Mount Everest Season has officially passed, with over 30 climbers reaching the top despite cold temps and high winds on the final day. The path through the Khumbu Icefall, which all climbers must traverse during their descent back to base camp, will be dismantled on May 29th, creating one last urgent drive to the top. We don’t have the final numbers yet, but according to Everest Live, this was very likely the biggest season on the world’s tallest mountain to date.
According to their reports, there were potentially over 950 summits from the Nepal side alone this year, very likely marking a record. Despite the high number, only 5 deaths occurred. While tragic, this number is actually relatively low given the volume of summiters.
Notable achievements from the season include climber Kristen Harila, who summited Everest without supplemental oxygen and successfully completed a “triple crown” for the season (summiting Lhotse, Nuptse, and Everest). Ming Temba Sherpa summited the mountain twice this season, once with the rope fixing team and once with Kristen, while Chinese climber Gexi Luori managed to climb both Everest and Lhotse twice in single season, marking a new record.
