A 61-year-old American named William says he climbs mountains just to enjoy the process.

 

　　“Oh, climbing Everest isn’t my dream, it’s just something I enjoy. They climb up, but that’s not my thing.”

　　On May 18, when we entered the “command tent” at the base camp of the China Amateur Mountaineering Team, 61-year-old American William Sarmiento was chatting with Captain Nyima of the China Amateur Mountaineering Team. A few days earlier, he had to retreat from the North Col (northcol) at an altitude of 7,028 meters due to poor physical condition and gave up on reaching the summit. His 57-year-old friend was still on the mountain, planning to attempt the summit on a later date.

　　William’s experience represents another kind of mountaineer. They climb not for the summit, but to enjoy the journey—the beautiful scenery and unique feelings along the way are enough to last them a lifetime.

　　He came here from Modesto, a city in California, USA. This decision was largely influenced by his 57-year-old friend Adrian Crane. In 2007, Adrian successfully reached 8,000 meters on Everest, but while there, he received news that his son, who had come with him, was sick at the Advance Base Camp at 6,500 meters, so he had to descend. It was his second attempt on Everest, but both tries ended in failure.

　　“When he came back and told me about it, I said, next time you want to go, let me know—I’d like to see what it’s like too.” His friend’s frustrating experience sparked William’s curiosity. He is also a mountaineering enthusiast who has climbed several volcanoes in Mexico and high mountains in Colorado and California, USA. The allure of mountaineering is like a magnet for such people, and the charm of Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak, goes without saying.

　　Just one year later, Adrian approached William and told him he planned to try climbing Everest again in five years.

　　Over those five years, William humorously said the only preparation he made was to earn money.

　　“I’m retired, and to fund this trip, I worked maintaining networks for the government. They’d call me anytime, ‘Hey, Bill, the computer there is broken, go fix it.’” Clearly, William is quite proud of this period, talking about it with great enthusiasm. “I saved $20,000.” However, not all of that $20,000 was saved specifically for Everest—his journey began on April 4, and after leaving Everest, he planned to visit multiple countries including London, Sweden, and Germany, not finishing until July.

　　“By the time I get home, I’ll have traveled around the world.”

　　At 9 a.m. on April 4, William departed from San Francisco Airport. Thirteen hours later, he arrived in Hong Kong, where he had a connecting flight to Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, and then on to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. His impression of Hong Kong Airport can be summed up in one word: “big.” He walked around all day and still hadn’t seen it all.

　　On the morning of April 6, he arrived in Kathmandu, where he stayed for five days. The poor air quality irritated his throat and nasal passages, forcing him to be hospitalized, and he never fully recovered. This caused him great pain during the climb and directly led to his failure.

　　On April 11, he and five other climbers drove from Kathmandu to China, passing through the Friendship Bridge at the China-Nepal border. To gradually acclimate to the altitude, they rested for two days at two different locations and arrived at Everest Base Camp at an altitude of 5,200 meters on April 17. At the foot of Everest, the “home” of mountaineers, six more yellow tents were added.

　　At the base camp, William and his companions rested for three days. Each day, they measured their blood oxygen saturation—the level of oxygen in the blood—which is an important indicator of how well the body is adapting to high altitudes. William was pleased to see his blood oxygen saturation fluctuating between 84% and 85%. Captain Nyima said that normal blood oxygen levels at sea level are usually around 94%, so reaching 80% at the base camp means the body has adapted very well.

　　On April 20, William and his team set off for the Advanced Base Camp at 6,500 meters (climbers abbreviate it as ABC). At this point, he wasn’t excited, because back in Kathmandu, he had been thrilled about the upcoming Everest journey, but was immediately cautioned by an experienced mountaineer: “You can’t think like that—that kind of emotion will kill you on the mountain.”

　　The feeling of every climb is almost the same. The playful William dramatically widened his eyes, stuck out his tongue, and made a “hehe” sound—“I’m tired like a dog. When climbing, all I want is to go home, take a hot shower in a warm bathroom, eat a delicious meal, and have some California wine.”

　　But William likes this question, and he has thought more than once about the relationship between the process and the result.

　　“When you’re carrying a backpack weighing six or seven kilograms, struggling for each step, and it’s so cold up there, you ask yourself, why am I doing this?”

　　All the questions along the way will find their answers in the end.

　　“When you keep pushing and finally make it there—you can only let out a gasp. You can only say ‘it’s beautiful,’ you can only say ‘wow, she’s right there.’ At that moment, you feel nothing else.”

　　As he said this, William’s gaze shifted from time to time, trying hard to find the right words to perfectly express his feelings.

　　—“When you’re climbing, all you think about is the climb, but when you’re back down the mountain and look back, you really do stare at the mountain in disbelief and think, ‘I was there.’ And years later, when you look at photos of those mountains, you’ll think, ‘wow, I was there.’”

　　—“That feeling strikes your soul.”

　　—“After a long effort, when you finally make it to the top, what you feel isn’t success or strength, but weakness and insignificance. It’s a very pure feeling.”

　　After two days of particularly grueling and seemingly endless climbing, William and his companions finally reached the “Advance Base Camp.” Along the way, they had spent one night at a camp at an altitude of 5,800 meters. The two-day ascent from the base camp to the advance base camp is the traditional route for climbing Everest via the north slope.

　　Acclimatizing at the “Advance Base Camp” was no easier than the climb itself, and the stunning surroundings did little to ease the physical suffering.

　　“As soon as we got there, although we were all starving, none of us felt like eating. Many people were gasping with their mouths wide open, parched and exhausted.” William managed to swallow some noodles after drinking a bowl of soup and a bit of tea, then crawled into his tent to sleep. To ensure a good rest, he took a pill before bed. The night at 6,500 meters was unbearably cold. “So, so, so cold!” Recalling his night at the “Advance Base Camp,” the usually cheerful William wore a look of horror.

　　When he woke up in the morning, William couldn’t stop coughing and had a runny nose. It wasn’t until he drank some coffee and ate a piece of chocolate that he began to feel slightly better. But he still felt extremely stuffy—even putting on his shoes became a struggle. The slightest movement left him gasping for air, and he had to breathe heavily just to get enough oxygen.

　　William flipped through his notebook, recalling his seven days at the “Advance Base Camp.”

　　“Oh, the 23rd to the 24th—what horrible memories.”

　　“The 25th, 26th, and 27th—I felt pretty good and started doing some walking exercises.”

　　“The 28th—” William raised his eyebrows and broke into a birthday song. “That was my 61st birthday. Everyone raised their beer glasses to celebrate with me.”

　　After celebrating a special and unforgettable birthday at 6,500 meters, on April 29th, the guide said that if they wanted to climb higher, they would need to undergo “up and down” acclimatization training. So, he and his companions descended to an area near Rongbuk Monastery at 5,100 meters, where they stayed at a lodge for three days. Then they returned to the base camp and stayed there for another two days.

　　On May 5th, William headed back to the “Advance Base Camp.” This time, he aimed to reach an altitude he had never been to before—Camp I at 7,028 meters, also known as the North Col.

　　“I didn’t make it all the way. I only got to 7,000 meters in the end, but that was the highest I’ve ever been.” William said that during the climb to the North Col, he suffered from a severe headache and nosebleeds—the lingering effects of his time in Kathmandu. He believed that continuing upward might pose unpredictable dangers, so he made the decisive decision to descend.

　　However, William wasn’t discouraged by this. Reaching the summit of Everest had never been his dream; he just wanted to enjoy the climbing process.

　　“I just looked up and thought, ‘Oh, they’re up there, they’re climbing higher.’ But that’s not my thing. I’m heading down.”

　　On May 9th, William’s companions returned to the base camp with him. His companions went back to the “Advance Base Camp” on May 13th, but William chose to call it quits.

　　The spot where William stopped was a snowy slope. Judging by the photos he took, it was an extremely steep slope covered in thick snow and ice, with two ropes laid out by trail builders for everyone to use to cross the slope. William said that these ropes ran straight up from a place called “Crampon Point” to the North Col, spanning about 300 meters, and each use of the ropes cost $200.

　　He paid a total of $7,500 for this trip.

　　Starting from May 9th, he waited at the base camp for his friend Adrian.

　　“This is Adrian’s third attempt to climb Everest. The first two times, he failed. This time, he has to succeed—for three reasons.” William grinned. “First, his work is too demanding. Second, climbing Everest is too expensive. And the third reason is his wife—she told him, ‘Enough is enough.’”

　　They managed to communicate every one or two days in a rather unusual way. Adrian wrote what he wanted to say on a note and had someone bring it down the mountain. In the most recent note, Adrian told him that he planned to attempt the summit on May 20th or 21st.

　　That day, William tried to contact Adrian but was unsuccessful. He prayed for his friend, hoping he would achieve his dream.