The Khumbu Climbing School

The village of Phortse, Nepal welcomed the 2007 Khumbu Climbing School for a fourth consecutive year from January 14th through the 25th. A total of 56 men and women from various regions of Nepal comprised to form 7 groups of beginning, intermediate and advanced students. Included in the group were five porters recommended by Porter's Progress for scholarship attendance.

We were happy to have seven Nepali climbing guides including Gelbu Sherpa and Pasang Llamu Sherpa of NMA join our 15 western guides for teaching technical climbing. All were under the direction of fourth year guide, Adam Knoff. Our English program was directed by Lila Bishop who engaged five Nepali instructors for an excellent course of beginning and advanced classes. We were lucky to have Dr. Luanne Freer who is known to the Khumbu region for her outstanding Everest ER (www.basecampmd.com) join us. She taught wilderness medical classes which included outdoor rescue scenarios. Phillip Henderson of NOLS joined Pete Athans to host a leadership seminar. At graduation, we awarded two scholarships to attend a NOLS course in the U.S. during the summer of 2007. Our school celebrated another successful year with no injuries.

The Khumbu Climbing School is an annual vocational training and instructional program for Nepali climbers. The school is designed to increase technical competency of Nepali people who work and climb in the mountain regions. Training is conducted on frozen waterfalls and rock outcrops near the village of Phortse.

Saturday January 20th offered us the opportunity to share Losar, the traditional celebration of New Year with the village of Phortse. We hosted a tea to honor 26 elders of the village and spent an enjoyable afternoon learning some history of the region and sharing some joy. (photos above and update by Jennifer Lowe)

See the KCS 2006 Progress Report

Khumbu Climbing School Program
Mission Statement
To increase the safety margin of Nepali climbers and high
altitude workers by encouraging responsible climbing practices
in a supportive and community-based program.

With thanks to

WITH THANKS TO: Adventure Medical Kits - Alpinist Magazine - Anonymous - Apple Computer - Arcturus Motion Pictures - Artshoppe - Backcountry.com - Banff Mountain Film Festival - Barnard Construction - Barrel Mountaineering - Big Sky Wind Drinkers - Black Diamond - Bluewater Ropes- -Camp USA- -Charisma Productions - Climb On! - Climbing Magazine - EPIC online magazine - Fox River Mills - Grivel North America - High Performance Sports, Ltd. - International Mountain Guides - Kahtoola - Kent Mountain Adventures - Kneeland Gallery - La Sportiva - Mackenzie River Northwest - Mammut USA - Merica Design - Montana Aleworks - Montana State University - Mountain Gear - Mountain Link - Nepal Mountaineering Association - New England Ropes - Northern Lights - Omega Pacific - Osprey Packs - Outdoor Research - Outside Magazine - Patagonia - Petzl/Charlet - Prana - Rite in the Rain - Rock and Ice Magazine - Sack's of Bozeman - Sam Medical Products - Selby's - Serac Films - Snowbird Renaissance Center - Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort - Sterling Ropes - Summit Coffee - Telluride Mountain Film Festival - The Bishop Family Foundation - The Bos Foundation - The Charles J. Wylie Jr. Foundation - The Communities Foundation of Boulder County - The Communities Foundation of Texas - The Dick Bass Foundation - The J. Paul Grayson Foundation - The Mountain Institute - The North Face - The Pease Family Fund - The Schlesinger Scholarship Fund - The Snowbird Renaissance Center - The Tom Brokaw Family Foundation - Trango Climbing Gear - Timex - Vasque - Wasatch Backcountry Rescue - Wilderness Adventures Women's Adventure Magazine - Yates Gear