Here’s What a Climbing Sherpa Carries Up and Down Mount Everest

June 10, 2026

Outside follows a Mount Everest climbing Sherpa named Chhebe Bhote and shows how hard his job really is. In one spring climbing season, he climbed about 35,000 vertical feet and carried at least 400 pounds of gear up and down the mountain. That load includes ropes, tents, oxygen, food, and everything else clients need, moved again and again between camps.

Chhebe does this work over and over, passing through dangerous zones like the Khumbu Icefall many times. He fixes ropes, carries heavy loads, and supports climbers while facing avalanches, deep crevasses, and thin air. While clients get the photos and the headlines when they reach the summit, Sherpas like Chhebe are the ones making those summits possible by doing the heaviest and riskiest tasks.

The story paints a clear picture: Everest climbs look glamorous from the outside, but they depend on Sherpas who do extremely tough, repetitive, and dangerous labor. Their strength, endurance, and willingness to face risk every day are what allow commercial climbing to happen at all. Outside