Mount Everest Closed until Olympic Torch Escalated

The Olympic torch was chosen to burn on top of the Everest this year as the 2008 summer Olympics will be held in Beijing. However, the authorities have decided to close the access to the peak because of the protests expected form the people who want to free Tibet.

Mount Everest is the highest peak in the entire world, measuring 8,850 meters, and it is being shared by two countries: Nepal and China. The Olympics torch will be placed on the highest top of the world to celebrate this year’s Beijing Olympics that will start in August. This is a very suitable spot for the Olympics torch, but the Nepal authorities are anticipating some protests form the Tibetan people who want to free Tibet and get independence from China. These predictions are based on the fact that last year, people from Tibet have started the same protests for the same cause, and it will be inappropriate for these to interfere with the Olympics customs, which are supposed to unfold without any troubles of any nature. For this reason, the authorities from Nepal have closed the access paths towards the top of Mount Everest until the date of May 10th, when the torch will be brought up till Everest. The climbers should be up on the Everest at the beginning of May, it all depends if the weather allows. However, the team bearing the Olympic torch will start their journey around late March or beginning of April in order to make sure the Tibet protests won’t interfere with the Beijing Olympics and that the torch will be lit on schedule.

So, the Everest is closed for now. This course of action was received harsh critique from the International Campaign for Tibet, but the Nepalese authorities are more concerned about the successful ascent of the Olympic torch, so that the Beijing Olympics start in a positive manner.

As a result, if you were planning to climb the Everest this year, you can only go until the base camp, which for a true climber may not be enough. So, you could postpone your trip until things cool off with the Beijing Olympics and the Tibet protest and better go for some lower peaks in order to train, as the Mount Everest is a quite difficult task to accomplish. Or even better, watch the Olympics torch bearers inaugurate the Beijing Olympics, and then enjoy the sporting events starting from August.

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