The Beijing Olympic torch held by Jiji was ignited by Luobuzhandui at 9:12 am on Mt. Qomolangma on Thursday. Photograph courtesy Beijing Olympic Committee.

Well, we can all breathe a sigh of relief. The Olympic torch has finally reached the summit of Mount Everest.

Chinese television broadcast the event live as the team of 31 climbers reached the summit at 9:20 AM local time. The group, mostly Tibetans and Han Chinese, left their high camp long before dawn and climbed six hours to the summit where they found great conditions—light wind, minus-30-degree temperatures, and swirling clouds. All the climbers were dressed in red coats adorned with the Beijing Olympic logo. The torch was lit below the summit and then carried upward with the sacred flame passed between several torches to Ciren Wangmu, the final torch-bearer who is ironically a Tibetan woman climber. She ascended the last few meters without oxygen.

Click on this Reuters news link to watch video of the final torch assault.

At the summit the climbers huddled together, waving Chinese and Olympic flags, and cheering “Beijing Welcomes You!” and “One World, One Dream,” the slogan of the Beijing games. Another climber shouted, “We have lit this torch on the top of the world for harmony and peace.” Others said a traditional Tibetan greeting, “Tashi delek” meaning “may everything be well.” We can only hope so.

Now we can go on and think about other more important things! Nepal has lifted the communication ban as well as the ban on climbers above Camp 1. Now the 41 expeditions with over 500 climbers encamped on the south side can be begin their mass march to the summit. Hopefully the weather will cooperate over the next week and everyone will be safe. It’s gonna be crazy though. As for me, I’m going climbing this afternoon. My son Ian and I are attempting the first ascent of a hidden unclimbed spire in Colorado National Monument.

The past fair weather windows have come and gone but the Olympic torch still resides somewhere down on the north side of Mount Everest. The May 10 deadline that the Chinese expedition hoped to finish the torch excursion by is looming big. All the other climbing parties, down at base camp on the south side or farther down the Khumbu Valley, are twiddling their thumbs and undoubtedly getting a little angry about the situation. I would too if I had spent a pocketful of change to climb Mount Qomolangma, as the Chinese call it. Of course, on the other hand, they knew ahead of time that that mountain was going to be closed and that “it,” as Forrest Gump says, happens.

High winds, as high as 140 mph, coupled with new snow are to blame for the torch not making the summit. The Shanghai Daily reports that despite a couple days of heavy snow, the weather outlook appears favorable, but it will take the climbers another “four or five days to reach the top of the world’s tallest peak if everything is in place. The date of the ascent has not yet been confirmed.” The official Beijing Olympic website also reports Chinese Mountaineering Team spokesman Zhang Zhigian saying, “The snowfall several days ago had some impact upon the ascent, now our climbers are busy fixing the damaged facilities. Yesterday, I heard that they have fixed the 7,790-meter-high camp, but I'm not sure whether or when they will take further action. If the weather looks good all the time these days, I think I will bring you good news as soon as possible.”

The Shanghai Daily also announced the team of 36 climbers “ includes 24 ethnic Tibetans, 10 Han Chinese, one from the Tu ethnic group and one from the Tujia ethnic group.” Spokesman Zhang said, “This well-organized team consists of experienced mountaineers and some university students who have climbing experience, so I believe they will augment each other in every respect of the ascent.” MountEverest.net, however, speculates that the lack of summit success is because of the team’s relative inexperience at high altitude mountaineering. One requirement to be on the team was to have climbed as high as 6,500 meters previously, but most of the experienced Tibetan mountaineers, who have multiple 8,000-meter summits, were left off the short list. MountEverest.net says, “This could explain why the torch hasn't summited yet. Minimum requirement for Everest is at least one previous 8000+ meter summit.” The site also says, “China actually has a skilled climbing team (mostly Tibetan) with at least 50, 8000er summits between them,” but notes that the expedition leader Wang Yongfeng and his four assistant leaders are not among them. This lack of experience could also translate into acclimatization problems.

Ed Webster, famed Everest mountaineer, at Indian Creek Canyon, Utah, April 2008. Photograph © Stewart M. Green

My friend Ed Webster, a great American mountaineer and climber who was on the 1988 first ascent of the Kangshang Face on Mount Everest and author of Snow in the Kingdom, one of the best books written about Everest, sent me an email this morning with his thoughts about the Everest torch relay:

"About the Olympic torch going up Everest -- and the accompanying Chinese political/military/police pressure on neighboring Nepal -- THAT is supposed to be a celebration of human equality and the Human Spirit? No, it just sounds like more of the Communist Chinese status quo, trying to control the "news" as much as possible, to conform to their own warped world view and gain political points -- which they never will."

Thanks Ed. This whole Everest Olympic torch thing seems less and less about the Olympic spirit and more and more about control, repression, and propaganda.

As of today, May 4, the Olympic torch has not officially reached the summit. I reported a couple days ago that the PeakFreaks website had claimed that the torch had reached the summit of Mount Everest. Now Chinese authorities are saying, No way. They claim that the climbing team was simply continuing to fix ropes toward the summit. They also said false news reports were being given, some from climbers at base camp on the Nepalese south side of Everest, and that possible retaliatory action against these reports could include the “banning of climbers” as well as “a few more days of waiting at base camp.” EverestNews notes: “Published reports from a climber that the Chinese summited a couple of day ago and had trouble with the torch has some Chinese mad as heck….”

Part of the pact with the devil that Everest south side expeditions had this year was to agree to follow stringent rules established by Nepal, under pressure from China. These included a ban on cell and satellite phones, video and film cameras, and computers so that no reporting could take place. All outside communications to expedition websites has to be approved by Nepalese authorities. This makes any sort of accurate reportage from Everest base camp very difficult, so lots of rumors are going to arise because we’re interested in this ascent of Everest.

The ban also included any language or reporting about China, Tibet, the current unrest between the two, and even mention of the word Tibet. Violation of the rules means expulsion from base camp as well as being banned from climbing the mountain, which already happened to American William Brant Holland, who sinned by having a “Free Tibet” flag in his pack.

It seems somewhat absurd that this level of secrecy surrounds what should be a joyous celebratory occasion—the Olympic torch atop the world. Is the Chinese government that insecure of itself that it stifles not only free speech and rational discussion, but also relegates the unifying symbol of the Olympic torch, which belongs to all nations of the earth, to being simply a tool for propaganda?

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High winds aloft have stymied Chinese attempts to bring the Olympic torch to Everest’s summit. Photograph © Allen Kearney, Getty Images

The reports from Mount Everest just keep getting stranger, now being total innuendo, rumor, and guesswork. Who knows, except the Chinese authorities, what is really going on? One post on PeakFreaks claims that the Olympic torch did reach the summit, perhaps yesterday, and a TV crew in a military jet, circling the peak, attempted to film the event. High winds, however, conspired to snuff the torch out so no filming was possible. The official Olympic flame thus remained somewhere lower on the mountain. Is it cynical to think that this whole Everest Olympic snafu is now reduced to just a photo-op?

The next good weather opportunity, according to Chinese meteorologist Yang Xingguo, is tomorrow May 3 when winds are expected to slacken. Yang told Xinhua, “The weather around the Mt. Qomolangma is complicated as it is located in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, dubbed the Third Pole in the world…. There are also distinctive diversity of weather mode between the south and north slopes of the Mt. Qomolangma, so it is really hard to predict precisely. I think at least it is impossible to scale the mount in the next three days.”

Xenhua reports today that Chinese Mountaineering Team spokesman Zhang Zhigian said, “The Chinese climbers are beefing up for the ascent of the Olympic flame over Qomolangma,” but refused to disclose where the climbers or torch were now. Zhang also said, “The torch relay to Mount Qomolangma is a highlight of the whole relay, and it also represents the idea of Green Olympics, High-Tech Olympics and People's Olympics. It will be the Olympic flame's first trip to the peak, so I think the torch relay on the summit will push the Olympic spirit to a new high.”

Hopefully it will be sooner than later so all those Westerners in tents below Base Camp on the south Nepalese side can also get their chance to trek to Qomolangma’s sacred summit in whatever weather windows remain…and all their hard-earned cash spent getting there won’t be in vain.

When will the Olympic torch reach the summit? Photograph by Paula Bronstein, Getty Images

Reports out of Tibet indicate that the Olympic torch has begun its journey to the summit of Mount Everest in the hands of 31 Chinese mountaineers. Exactly where it is and when it will arrive on top is unknown but a newsflash on Everest News indicates that the torch is at an upper camp at 27,390 feet (8,300 meters), about 550 meters below the summit. If this is so, the passing of the torch would be by midnight and the next wave of climbers would carry it to the summit, reaching the top by midday tomorrow, May 1. The weather is, however, extremely windy along the North Ridge of Everest, which could hamper the climbers. Another unconfirmed report says that the summit bid has been delayed because of the winds.

An up-to-date forecast from Everest News indicates that good weather windows will open on May 3 and 6, offering the best days to summit should they not climb tonight and tomorrow. Forecasters also say a major storm from the Bay of Bengal that was expected to hit the mountain, will now miss it. For now though it appears the Chinese will take the first available opportunity to tote the torch to the top, rather than wait for ideal weather.

The torch being carried up Everest, like the other one being carted around the world, is designed to burn in the oxygen-deprived air of the Himalayas and is encased in a special windproof aluminum carrier. It’s supposedly able to withstand some wind without blowing out, so maybe they’re waiting for calmer conditions because it would be darn embarrassing to have the thing whiff out just before the summit photo op!

After the protests that dogged the flame across the world, the Chinese appear determined to control all the information coming from Tibet about the expedition. Even the foreign journalists at base camp know nothing about what’s going on. Jonah Fisher, a BBC reporter, notes in his blog, “Every question about the torch is stonewalled. Having invited us here to cover the ascent of the flame, the Chinese appear to have taken fright. It now seems that they only want us to report the victorious summit moment. We may never know if there were failed attempts, or indeed if someone hurt themselves trying for the top. The only fact we possess is that the flame is somewhere in the area.”

Whether or not you agree or disagree with the Chinese crackdown on Tibet and other protests, it will be a landmark feat for the Olympic torch to journey to the highest point on earth. Maybe it will spark some peace on earth for a change. One can only hope. As Wang Yongfeng, head of the China Mountaineering Association, says, "Regardless of the weather, we must get the sacred flame of the Olympics to shine over Mount Qomolangma.”

Mt. Everest—A low point in Olympic history? Photograph: Getty Images

It’s almost May and the beginning of the spring Mount Everest or Mount Qomolangma climbing season. Usually this time of year expeditions parked at base camps on both the north and south sides of the world’s highest peak are preparing for a summit bid in the narrow window of decent weather before the summer monsoons begin ravaging the peak. This spring, however, the window is very narrow since the Chinese plan to tote the Olympic torch to the 29,035-foot summit sometime in the next couple weeks.

The Chinese government, ever sensitive to bad press and the violent protests in Tibet against Chinese rule, has established draconian measures to thwart pro-Tibetan protests on the great peak, including closing the Tibetan side of the mountain; restricting foreign coverage of the torch ascent; and pressuring Nepal to crack down on Everest climbers and limit their activities with military force.

The northern Tibetan side of the peak is closed this spring to all expeditions except their own. The North Ridge route, one of the easiest ways up Everest, is usually clogged with climbers this time of the year. But in 2008, it’s empty. Meanwhile the south Nepalese side is jammed with expeditions and climbers who are banned from climbing above Camp II at 21,300 feet until after May 10, the date the torch is expected to reach the summit and be safely back down in occupied Tibet.

Media coverage of the torch ascent, which is supposed to include live broadcasts across China, is extremely limited. The Chinese government, worried that the presence of western journalists will incite more rioting, made a contentious decision last week to allow foreign journalists only 10 days to travel from Beijing to Everest Base Camp and back. This included only a scant three days from Beijing, just above sea level, to Base Camp at 16,800 feet or about a third of the time normally allowed to acclimatize to the lower oxygen at high elevations. Foreign media complained about the health risks to the Beijing Olympic Committee, who said they would allow the group to leave 24 hours earlier—as if, say the experts, that would make a difference.

Nepalese authorities on the mountain’s south side are cooperating with China to ensure that no protests or bad press will disrupt the Chinese torch ascent. Ekmani Nepal with the Home Ministry says, “The reason we have deployed police and army in Mount Everest is to secure the area for the Olympic torch and control any pro-Tibetan protests in the area. There shouldn’t be any anti-Chinese activities on Nepali soil. The security personnel deployed in Camp II of Mount Everest could use force, including gunfire if need be, to prevent anti-China protests.” Another Ministry spokesman, Mod Raj Dotel, says the 25-member security detail of soldiers and police “have been given orders to stop any protest on the mountain using whatever means necessary, including use of weapons." He notes, however, that the use of deadly force is a last resort. Later the Ministry claimed that the use of deadly force was a media fabrication—despite the fact that their own spokesman said it.

Last week an American mountaineer, William Brant Holland, was booted from Everest base camp by Nepalese authorities after a “Free Tibet” banner was found in his pack in violation of rules instituted this spring to ban Pro-Tibet protests. Holland, from Richmond, Virginia, has been ticking off the Seven Summits, the seven highest points on the seven continents, and only has Everest and Mount Vinson in Antarctica left to climb. Apparently he won’t be finishing any time soon since Nepal will undoubtedly bar him from entry for at least a couple years.

As of today, the second Olympic torch is supposedly at Base Camp and the Chinese mountaineers are preparing to begin their ascent. They plan on reaching the summit on May 1, a Chinese holiday, to maximize press coverage. Stay tuned to see what happens. Will they make it? Will the torch blow out? Will Tibet ever be free?

Okay, does all this sound crazy to you? It does to me. The torch events and Chinese ascent to the top of Everest seems to be a huge publicity stunt and denigrates the spirit of friendship, harmony, and sportsmanship symbolized by the Olympic torch. What do you think? Go to the Climbing Forum and write your thoughts.

Topo of Moonlight Buttress. From Rock Climbing Utah by Stewart M. Green.

Some amazing and historic ascents have been made in Utah’s canyon country this April.

On April 1 Alex Honnold, a 22-year-old free-soloist, pulled one of American climbing’s best April Fool pranks by free-soloing, that is climbing without the safety of a rope and partner, the 9-pitch, 1,200-foot-high Moonlight Buttress in Zion National Park in an astounding 83 minutes. He had previously free-climbed the 5.12+ line two years earlier and then in late March rehearsed it four times attached to a fixed static rope. After a couple rest days Honnold went for it, after waiting for the sun to warm the east-facing wall.

He told Alpinist Magazine, "I was super excited to do it but kind of nervous. I had a hard time sleeping the night before, I was so psyched." He also said, “I turned on my iPod at the beginning, played my Top 25, rocked that to the top, and had a couple songs to spare." The sustained crack climb involves lots of finger jamming, one of Honnold’s strengths, as well as wild liebacking. Honnold noted, “I really love fingers—and Moonlight has really secure locker fingers—and you're in a really cool, exposed position.”

On April 6 Steph Davis did the first female ascent and the third overall ascent of Concepción, a 220-foot-long crack climb in Day Canyon southwest of Moab, Utah. The route, named in memory of the late Jose Pereya, was first climbed by Steph’s husband Dean Potter in 2003 and had its second ascent earlier this year by Alex Honnold. Davis describes the left-leaning crack, dissecting a vertical sandstone wall, as “one of the most striking splitter cracks I've seen." After some BASE jumping injuries last winter, Davis credited her success to extensive weight training and fingerboard workouts earlier this year.

The demanding crack climb involves a boulder problem start to a long finger crack which slowly widens to cupped hands and fists and finishes with an off-width section to the high anchors. Davis wrote about the ascent on her blog High Infatuation: “I had to try harder than I’ve ever tried before on Concepción…. The pump and the powerful ratchet locks are relentless. In the final crux section of the rattly splitter, I was actually falling out of the crack as I jabbed between ring locks. So I just started yelling, and somehow flew back into the rock, doing move after move at maximum exhaustion, almost in a warrior trance state.”

Map of Reno Hill. Map courtesy USGS

Sharpen up your crampons and ice axe and get ready to climb—the last national high point has finally been identified and located in Washington D.C, the nation’s capital. Oh right, forget the crampons and axe, it’s just the top of Reno Hill, a rounded hillock rising 409 feet (125 meters) above sea level in Fort Reno Park near the Maryland border and the highest natural point in the District of Columbia. The summit is the second lowest state high point, with Florida’s 345-foot Briton Hill the lowest. Interestingly, Reno Hill is not the highest point in D.C. That honor goes to the pointy apex of the Washington Monument, which rises a modest 555 feet above sea level.

On Saturday, April 19, the D.C. official high point, designated by a flat brass marker placed in 2007, was dedicated after five years of wrangling paperwork and red tape in a ceremony hosted by the Tenleytown Historical Society and the National Park Service, which manages the site in Rock Creek Park. Over the past weeks high point enthusiasts, hikers who try to reach the highest natural points of the 50 states and D.C., have congregated with maps, GPS units, and cameras to document their latest ascent of America’s newest high point.

The hill, located in Tenleytown, one of D.C.’s oldest neighborhoods, was the site of Fort Reno, the highest and largest fort that protected the capital during the Civil War with a dozen heavy guns and 3,000 soldiers. A reservoir and water system was built on the hill in the early 1900s.

If you want to visit the high point, set your GPS unit to these coordinates—18 320094E; 4313484N; WGS 84UTM—and start hiking. Just off Nebraska Avenue, up above the Whole Foods, you’ll find the grassy knoll. Once you identify a large oak, step 19 paces north to the high point…good luck.

Jannette Pazer getting lots of slab mileage at Red Rock Canyon Open Space. Photograph © Stewart M. Green

It’s spring again and time to start getting in shape for the summer climbing season. If you’re like me, you’ve been thinking all winter about your summer tick list—where to go and what to climb. To make those dreams come true, you’ve got to get out on the rock and start climbing. Cranking in the gym doesn’t cut it, doesn’t prepare you for swinging leads, for ropework, for setting up belays, for climbing fast and efficiently.

I’ve already been climbing a lot this year. As of April 1 I had done almost 100 pitches. After getting back from the canyon country last week, I decided to kick it into a higher gear. To that end, last Wednesday Brian Shelton and I met at noon at Red Rock Canyon Open Space on the west side of Colorado Springs with the goal of climbing all the routes on The Whale, a long hogback of salmon-colored sandstone. Over the next four hours we cruised 28 pitches, each averaging about 90 feet in length, and ranging from 5.5 to 5.10c. That’s a lot of mileage, a lot of belaying, climbing, and lowering. I called it our “El Whale Cap” day since distance-wise it was like climbing El Capitan in Yosemite—although a heck of a lot easier!

If you’ve got big plans for the summer—and who doesn’t?—then now is the time to start climbing lots of pitches. Nothing’s easy. Especially climbing. It’s up to you to make your rock fantasies become realities. If you haven’t been climbing much this winter, then do like I do and climb a lot of pitches. It'll make you stronger, faster, and less scared when you're on the sharp end. Top-roping and sport climbing are both good ways to go climbing and accrue frequent flyer miles. Read here about Essential Sport Climbing Gear and the three skills to Build a Safe Top-Rope Anchor.