For the first time in 41 years, no one will climb Mount Everest this year, according to the National Geographic. The dubious milestone comes after deadly avalanches closed down commercial expeditions to the roof of the world for the second time in two years.
In May 2015, the magnitude-7.8 quake and 7.3 aftershock have killed more than 8,000 people in Nepal, including at least 19 expedition members—10 of them Sherpas—at the Everest Base Camp.
Six decades after it was conquered, mountaineers complain that the summit of Mount Everest has become virtually gridlocked with climbers. How did the world's highest mountain become so congested?
Thanks to advances in mountaineering equipment and the indefatigable efforts of Sherpa guides, more climbers than ever are reaching the peak of Mount Everest - a landmark that was once believed to be impossible to surmount.
According to National Geographic, in 1990 18% of summit attempts were successful. By 2012 that figure stood at 56%.
But this has come at a cost. Critics say the summit has become as congested as a five-lane motorway during bank holiday weekend.
On a single day in 2012, no fewer than 234 climbers reached the peak. By contrast, as recently as 1983 the most successful ascents in a single day was eight, and a decade later that figure stood at 40.
In 2014, some complained of waiting two-and-a-half hours in queues at bottlenecks on their way to the summit.
One reason for the long queues is that Mount Everest is relatively safe. There have been 6,358 summits and 265 deaths which is a summit to death ratio of 4.1%. The highest ratios are on Annapurna and K2 at 35% and 26% respectively
Helgi Library 
