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Article snippet: Mount Everest is the tallest and most famous mountain in the world — a global beacon and metaphor wrapped in awe and mystery. It is also one of the most accessible big mountains in the world, bringing hundreds of climbers and thousands to its base camp in a typical season. At 29,029 feet (8,848 meters), Everest is the world’s tallest mountain. It straddles Nepal and Tibet. Most climb Everest from the Nepal side. From Kathmandu, Nepal’s bustling capital, mountaineers take a short flight to Lukla, then trek about 10 days to Everest Base Camp (17,500 feet). Most will spend weeks there in the spring, acclimating to the altitude with rest and day hikes, waiting for the route to Everest’s summit to open in May. Everest’s popularity continues to surge. In a typical year now, more than 600 people reach the summit of Everest, which is about half of the number who attempt it (or, at least, pay for permits). About two-thirds of those who summit do it from the south side, in Nepal, while the rest approach from Tibet, on the north. Almost all do it during Everest’s short climbing season, usually a few weeks in May, between the winter and the region’s summer monsoons. In 2017, six people died, a typical number, including a cook in Base Camp and an Indian man near the summit. A seventh, famous mountaineer Ueli Steck, died in a fall on a nearby mountain while waiting for Everest’s route to open. Nearly 300 people are known to have died on Everest. Nepal’s government estimates th... Link to the full article to read more