Recently, 11 Chinese mountaineering enthusiasts from all over the country joined a Everest hiking tour organized by Tibet Sacred Mountain Expedition Company, with their goal set at the North Col of Everest, standing at an altitude of 7,028 meters.
The North Col is the saddle connecting Everest and Cho Oyu. It is not only a mandatory passage on the north slope route to climb Everest but also an important campsite along the way. Typically, teams aiming to summit Everest set up camp here overnight to acclimatize to the high altitude, then descend to recover their strength before making a final push for the summit.
Although due to physical limitations and other factors, the hiking group ultimately “suffered a complete wipeout,” with no one reaching the North Col, the allure and power of the “roof of the world,” the unique experience of climbing Everest, and the strong teamwork… all left them with profound memories. The reporter interviewed three of the members and heard their stories from the journey.
“Above 7,000 meters is a completely different ball game”
Cheng Lilan, 48, Chief Operating Officer of an enterprise, with ten years of high-altitude mountaineering experience.
Within the team, Cheng Lilan was nicknamed “Old Cheng.” He was the one who went the farthest, coming within just 100 meters vertically of the North Col, but ultimately had to give up due to exhaustion.
“This isn’t my first attempt at 7,000 meters. Three years ago, I tried Labuche Peak, but failed due to the weather. I’m used to failure—over the years of mountaineering, failures have far outnumbered successes, and you just have to accept that,” said Old Cheng. “I’ve climbed Yuzhu Peak and Qizhi Peak at 6,000 meters, and sooner or later, I have to try 7,000 meters.”
According to his teammates, Old Cheng returned to the camp in tears after the failed attempt.
Old Cheng said this experience taught him a lot, most importantly recognizing his physical limits: “In the past, failures always had clear objective reasons—I felt like I had the strength but couldn’t use it. But this time, I felt I had given it my all and still came up short. If I’d had another two hours and pushed myself to the limit, I might have made it (to the North Col), but it would have compromised my safe descent.”
“In amateur commercial mountaineering, 5,000 and just over 6,000 meters are one level—if you don’t have severe altitude sickness and are relatively physically strong, with proper preparation, most climbers can make it. But once you get above 7,000 meters, it’s a completely different story. If you really want to succeed, your regular training has to ramp up significantly—that’s the biggest lesson I learned from this trip,” said Old Cheng.
Old Cheng recalled meeting Huang Nubo, who plans to challenge Everest again this year, during the climb. “At the time, I was panting heavily, but he just strolled up from behind, taking steps about three times the length of mine. He greeted me, gave me a few words of encouragement, and then passed me.” According to Old Cheng, what took the hiking group two days and over ten hours to cover, Huang Nubo completed in just eight hours. “He’s nearly ten years older than me—if I didn’t have enough prior buildup, there’s no way I could do that.”
Additionally, the difficulty of climbing the North Col left a deep impression on Old Cheng: “The last stretch was especially tough—the ice wall was extremely steep, almost vertical in places. Before this, I’d only been as high as 6,500 meters, and never on such a steep slope. This time, at 6,700 or 6,800 meters, climbing such a steep incline while grasping ropes left me gasping for air.”
Old Cheng said he first got into mountaineering in 2004 when he visited Mount Siguniang in Sichuan and accidentally stepped into the world of climbing. Since then, he’s been hooked, climbing almost every year. “After a failed climb, during the descent you definitely think, ‘I’ll never do this again—it’s not worth it. There are so many other fun things in life.’ But after going back and resting for a month or two, the passion comes rushing back.”
“If there hadn’t been so many people, those two would’ve been done for!”
Xue Wei, 40, corporate manager, with six years of high-altitude mountaineering experience.
The Xue Wei before us had dark skin, except for his flushed cheeks—the strong sunlight and UV rays over the past few days had left a deep “mark.”
Xue Wei, from Fujian, ultimately reached an altitude of 6,800 meters. Although he didn’t make it to the North Col, his performance was quite strong within the hiking group. “Out of the total 11-person team, after reaching Advance Base Camp (at 6,500 meters), the effects of altitude sickness became very pronounced. Some couldn’t urinate, some were utterly exhausted, some developed fevers, some had hemorrhoids flare up, some lost all appetite, and some suffered from splitting headaches. During the two-day acclimatization period, seven had to descend, leaving only four to push toward the North Col,” he told the reporter.
“Everest is Everest after all. Although our group wasn’t particularly fit, if this had been just a regular 7,000-meter mountain, the outcome wouldn’t have been such a total wipeout!” said Xue Wei. Several teammates noted that the Advance Base Camp on Everest’s north slope is known as the “devil camp,” where altitude sickness is “notoriously brutal,” and compared to other areas at similar altitudes, it’s noticeably harder to acclimatize.
Additionally, the hiking group encountered an unexpected emergency, but thanks to the strength of the team, they managed to avert disaster. Xue Wei said that while en route to Advance Base Camp, the team passed by an ice lake. One member stepped on the ice, which suddenly cracked, causing him to fall into the lake. The hiking group leader assigned by Sacred Mountain Company, seeing the danger, rushed to help but ended up falling in as well. Eventually, the group used trekking poles to pull both men out.
“The situation was extremely dangerous. We were at 6,000 meters, with strong winds and freezing temperatures. Both men were soaked up to their necks. In no time, they would’ve caught colds. Without spare shoes, their feet would’ve been 100% frostbitten, making a safe descent nearly impossible,” said Xue Wei. “Thankfully, there were nearly 20 people in the group, including teammates and local support staff. After pulling them out, we had them strip naked and get into sleeping bags. Then, using teamwork, we pooled resources—someone lent shoes, someone else lent clothes—and somehow we managed to piece together full sets of gear for both.”
“If there hadn’t been so many people, or so much extra gear, those two would’ve been done for!” Xue Wei reflected. “I even want to write an article to commemorate it—titled ‘Emergency Rescue on the Ice.’”
Xue Wei concluded that lack of physical stamina and insufficient gear were the main reasons for the failed attempt on the North Col.
“Reaching the summit requires having enough energy to descend safely”
Yi Songwei, 44, senior engineer, with five years of high-altitude mountaineering experience.
“This time was truly agonizing—I felt like my mental state had been completely shattered!” Reflecting on the experience of attempting the North Col, Yi Songwei, now back in Lhasa, was still deeply moved. He was one of the seven who decided to descend, and after two nights of effort and internal struggle at Advance Base Camp, he chose to turn back.
“It’s the ‘roof of the world,’ after all. An 8,000-meter mountain is just different from any other. Forget about challenging it—my ability is nowhere near enough to even be accepted by it!” said Yi Songwei with a sigh.
Yi Songwei is from Shanghai and has been part of a local mountaineering club for years, starting with small hikes in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang area. In 2008, he joined the club in summiting Yuzhu Peak in Qinghai—his “first intimate encounter” with the snow mountains. But that encounter also taught him the power of the mountains: “My first time climbing a snow mountain, I knew nothing. I was excited going up, but completely crushed coming down. I was so drained I had to be helped down by two people. That’s when I realized—you can’t use up all your energy reaching the summit. The prerequisite for summiting is having enough strength to get down safely. Otherwise, I’d rather descend and give up the summit.”
On the benefits of mountaineering, Yi Songwei believes it helps build perseverance, enabling people to endure through hardship, and also teaches one how to make choices—how to balance persistence and letting go, avoiding reckless actions without considering consequences. “I won’t climb 8,000-meter peaks. First, it takes too long and my boss wouldn’t approve. Second, I have a family to support and can’t afford to take risks. I don’t have that ability or grand plan. I just want to treat mountaineering as a hobby. Being able to come to Tibet every year is more than enough for me.”