The Tragic Death of David Sharp -

The Tragic Death of David Sharp -

Before English mountaineer David Sharp ventured to Mount Everest in 2006, his mother told him not to worry about making the treacherous climb because "you are never on your own. There are climbers everywhere." But as he lay dying of exhaustion and exposure near the summit on May 15, approximately 40 fellow climbers simply passed him by. His mummified body, preserved by the extreme cold, sits on the mountainside to this day.⁠

David Sharp (15 February 1972 – 15 May 2006) was an English mountaineer who died near the summit of Mount Everest.

His death caused controversy and debate because he was passed by a number of other climbers heading to and returning from the summit as he was dying, although a number of others tried to help him.

Sharp had previously summited Cho Oyu and was noted as being a talented rock climber who seemed to acclimatise well, and was known for being in good humour around mountaineering camps. He appeared briefly in season one of the television show Everest: Beyond the Limit, which was filmed the same season as his ill-fated expedition to Everest.

Sharp had a degree from the University of Nottingham and pursued climbing as a hobby. He had worked for an engineering firm and took time off to go on adventures and climbing expeditions, but had been planning to start work as a school teacher in the autumn of 2006.

he would return in 2006 for his solo attempt. As a result of his 2004 attempt, Sharp incurred frostbite on his fingers during the expedition.

2006 Mount Everest expedition

Two years later, Sharp returned to Everest to reach the summit on a solo climb arranged through Asian Trekking.

This attempt would ultimately cost him his life. Sharp was climbing alone and had intended to reach the summit without using supplementary oxygen, which is considered to be extremely risky even for very strong acclimatised mountain climbers or Sherpas. However, Sharp apparently did not consider it a challenge to climb Everest with supplementary oxygen.

Sharp was climbing with a bare-bones "basic services" package from Asian Trekking that does not offer support after a certain altitude is reached on the mountain or a Sherpa to climb with as a partner, although this option was available to Sharp for an additional fee. He was grouped with 13 other independent climbers – including Vitor Negrete, Thomas Weber, and Igor Plyushkin who also died attempting to summit that year – on the International Everest Expedition.

 This package only provided a permit, a trip into Tibet, oxygen equipment, transportation, food, and tents up to the Mount Everest "Advance Base Camp" (ABC) at an elevation of about 6,340 m (20,800 ft). The group Sharp was with was not really an expedition and had no leader, although it is considered good climbing etiquette that members of the group make some effort to keep track of one another.

Before Sharp booked his trip with Asian Trekking, his friend McGuinness, an experienced climber and guide, invited him to join his organised expedition at a discount. Sharp acknowledged this as a good deal but declined so he could act independently and climb at his own pace.

Critically, Sharp opted to climb alone without a Sherpa, deciding not to bring sufficient supplementary oxygen (reportedly only two bottles, which is enough for about 8 to 10 hours of climbing at high altitude) and without a radio to call for help if he encountered problems.

Sharp was transported by vehicle to the Base Camp, and his equipment was transported by yak train to the Advance Base Camp, as part of the Asian Trekking "basic services" package.

Sharp remained there for five days to acclimatise to the altitude. He made several trips up and down the mountain to set up and stock his upper camps and further acclimatise himself. Sharp likely set out from a camp high on the mountain below the Northeast Ridge to make a summit attempt during the late evening of May 13. He needed to climb what is referred to as the "Exit Cracks", traverse the Northeast Ridge, including the Three Steps, reach the summit, then climb down to return to his high camp. It was reported that Sharp carried a limited supply of supplementary oxygen with him, which he intended to use only in an emergency.

Sharp either managed to reach the summit or turned back near the summit to descend very late in the day on May 14. In the end, he was forced to bivouac on the mountain during his descent in the dark at about 8,500 m (28,000 ft) under a rocky overhang known as Green Boots' Cave situated near the so-called First Step.

 There he was overcome by the elements, without any remaining supplementary oxygen, possibly experiencing equipment problems, and likely also suffering from some degree of altitude sickness due to a lack of oxygen, all on one of the coldest nights of the season.

Sharp's predicament was not immediately known for several reasons: he was not climbing with an expedition that would monitor climbers' locations; he had not told anyone beforehand of his summit attempt (although other climbers spotted him on his ascent); he did not have a radio or satellite phone with him to let anyone know where he was or that he was in trouble and two other more inexperienced climbers from his group went missing at around the same time. One of the two missing climbers was Malaysian Ravi Chandran, who was eventually found but required medical attention after getting frostbite.

Some members of the group of climbers Sharp was with, including George Dijmarescu, realised Sharp was missing when he did not return later in the evening on May 15 and nobody reported seeing him. Sharp was an experienced climber who had previously turned around when he had experienced problems and it was surmised that Sharp had sought shelter at one of the higher camps or bivouacked somewhere higher up on Everest, so his failure to return to camp did not initially cause serious concern. High-altitude bivouacs are very risky but are sometimes recommended in certain extreme situations.

Sharp ultimately died under the rocky overhang, sitting with arms clasped around his legs, next to Green Boots.

The "cave" is situated approximately 250 m (820 ft) above the high camps, commonly called Camp 4 but the extreme cold, fatigue, lack of oxygen and darkness made a descent to Camp 4 very dangerous or next to impossible.