Sometimes, for my last post of the day, I get kind of lucky and stumble across some off-the-wall story that dang near writes itself.
Well, hello again.
Mount Everest has always been such a magical name for me. One of those unattainable adventures that I know, even had I ever been able to afford it, I’m not the physical specimen to be able to manage it. But I have always dreamed of going to at least the first base camp just to see the mountain in all its glory with the prayer flags fluttering against a Himalayan sunset.
I have been blessed to see Denali up close, and the sight took my breath away, and I wasn’t even climbing.
The stories of the first attempts to climb the mountain and the enduring mystery of George Mallory’s disappearance – had he actually summited before Edmund Hillary?
I love it that when George Mallory climbed Everest, in the early 1920s, he took a tweed jacket and whenever anyone took a photo, he put it on. pic.twitter.com/Fj4GyOlbEg
— Mark W. (@DurhamWASP) May 11, 2019
Mallory was the only climber to take part in all three of the 1920s British expeditions, and, in 1924, he died at the age of 38 on the mountain…somewhere.
In 1999, they finally found him at 26,900 ft.
What happened on May 1!
In 1999, the body of British climber George Mallory was found on Mount Everest, 75 years after he vanished during a 1924 summit attempt. Discovered by an expedition searching for clues to early Everest climbs, his remains were well-preserved. The find… pic.twitter.com/r1I67TjmvU
— Know Your History (@H54355Know) May 1, 2025
…The find reignited debate over whether Mallory and his partner Andrew Irvine may have reached the summit decades before Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953.
Two years ago, his climbing partner, ‘Sandy’ Irvine, was also found, so very near the summit of Everest that the controversy fired up again over the very real, but unprovable possibility that the two intrepid explorers clad in woolen tweeds and scarves had been the first to stand on top of the world, conquering the summit decades before Hillary.
ANDREW “SANDY” IRVINE’S REMAINS DISCOVERED ON MOUNT EVEREST, REVIVING A CENTURY-OLD MYSTERY
The remains of the British explorer Andrew “Sandy” Irvine, who disappeared in 1924 during an expedition with George Mallory, have been found near the summit of Mount Everest.
A National… pic.twitter.com/B27dSUcvfG
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 17, 2024
A National Geographic documentary team uncovered an old leather boot with a frozen foot and sock, leading to the identification of the remains as Irvine’s.
Mallory and Irvine were last seen very close to the summit, sparking a debate about whether it was them who were first to climb the world’s tallest mountain, and not Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary, who made the first documented ascent of Everest in 1953.
Mallory’s remains were found in 1999.
I find it just enthralling.
On this day; 08.06.1924; forever etched in mountaineering history. George Mallory and Andrew Irvine’s final sighting on #Everest captured the imagination of generations leaving behind a legacy of bravery and the eternal question: did they reach the summit? Their story continues… pic.twitter.com/lf6NfPenQJ
— Everest Today (@EverestToday) June 7, 2025
…Their story continues to captivate adventurers worldwide.
And this latest story is mind-blowing, especially to someone who watched in horror as reports came in during the spring of 1996 of the May 10-11 disaster when eight of the climbers attempting to descend the unforgiving mountain were trapped in a sudden, vicious blizzard and lost their lives. The ghastly episode was immortalized forever in Jon Krakauer’s book, Into Thin Air, and much of the violent weather, terrifying descents, personal heroics, and heartbreaking pain was captured by a MacGillvary Freeman IMAX team. That crew was waiting at basecamp for the chance for their own ascent as all the unescapable horror swirled in the soaring heights above them.
I have read article after article where Everest has become more accessible – it’s definitely not more forgiving. It’s just that more people can afford the attempt, and there’s talk of climber conga lines clogging the perilous routes up the face, and ice falls one has to traverse to summit. And many find they cannot. It’s too much.
The effort and the thin air.
The possibility of injury.
And now, it seems, there’s been some malarkey going on with the sherpa guides looking to pad their fees.
Reports are that they’ve been ‘poisoning’ climbers to split part of the fee as a kickback for the very pricey helicopter rides required to fly the sick hiker out to receive medical care.
We’re not talking chicken-feed here, either.
A climb is big money (averaging between $45-70,000 per person), and so is hauling your sick butt off the range.
Guides with the trekking agencies allegedly poisoned tourists by putting baking soda in their food to trigger severe gastrointestinal distress that mimicked altitude sickness or food poisoning, investigators said.
Once ill, the visitors were allegedly pressured into agreeing to costly emergency helicopter evacuations, with operators using forged medical and flight documents to bill international travel insurers for the cost, according to authorities in the Himalayan country.
Those ill-gotten gains were then allegedly split among the guides, helicopter companies, trekking agencies, and the hospitals where the tourists were taken for fake treatments.
The investigation began in January when six executives from three prominent mountain rescue firms were arrested.
The groups allegedly fraudulently obtained at least $19.69 million in insurance payouts, according to police.
This is an insurance scam for the ages.
Mount Everest plagued by poisonings and fraud as police uncover criminal network of ‘fake rescues’https://t.co/TTcmmMUTVp
— GB News (@GBNEWS) April 1, 2026
And the scammers are taking advantage of what they know to be a critical decision-making process, which, naturally, now has tourists wondering, ‘Am I really sick and who do I trust?’
… Helicopter evacuations in the Everest region are both essential and expensive, often serving as the only viable rescue option in emergencies. A single evacuation can cost thousands of dollars and is frequently covered by international travel insurance.
Because decisions must be made quickly due to harsh terrain and limited infrastructure, there is often little time for insurers to verify claims in real time. This combination of urgency and high cost reduces scrutiny, making the system vulnerable to exploitation.
It’s kind of a bummer to have to wonder if the guide your $70 grand is paying for is one of the ‘most professional’ and not a medical fraud specialist.
…As the investigation unfolds, the case is likely to reshape how insurers, tourists, and authorities approach high-altitude travel, where the line between genuine emergency and manufactured crisis is not always as clear as it should be.
As you can tell from the Post’s picture…
Mount Everest guides allegedly ‘poisoned’ climbers as part of sinister $20M scam https://t.co/4zHkWz6xrI pic.twitter.com/O5PVSGgKNC
— New York Post (@nypost) April 1, 2026
…there are a lot of potential patsies headed up that mountain. I guess the big money each and every one of those climbers represents was just too tempting.
You can’t escape the baser elements of human nature anywhere.
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