Everest record-holder Kami Rita Sherpa urges limit on climbers as crowds swell on the peak

Renowned Sherpa mountain guide Kami Rita, center right, returning from Mount Everest after his record 32nd successful ascent is presented with shawls and flowers as he arrives at an airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha)

KATHMANDU, Nepal — A renowned Mount Everest guide who this week scaled the peak a record 32nd time urged authorities on Friday to limit climbers on the summit.

The number of climbers making the ascent on the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) peak from the Nepalese side is higher this season because China has closed the route from Tibet. Everest can be scaled from either the southern side in Nepal or the northern side in China.

On Wednesday, 274 climbers reached the summit, the highest number on a single day from the Nepal side. A total of 494 climbers have been issued permits by Nepal’s mountaineering authorities and an equal number Sherpa guides are accompanying them.

“It was very crowded this year compared to last year because there was more clients,” Kami Rita Sherpa told reporters at Kathmandu airport after flying back from the mountain. “There is a need for authorities to control this number.”

Climbers only get a few windows of good weather to make their attempt on the summit. A large number of people waiting in a fixed rope line they are all clipped into increases the risks of a traffic jam and exposes the climbers to increased hours of harsh weather.

Kami Rita’s closest competitor, Pasang Dawa Sherpa, scaled the peak for the 31st time on Friday, which was his second successful ascent this week

Kami Rita, 56, first climbed Everest in 1994, and has been making the trip nearly every year since. He is one of many Sherpa guides whose expertise and skills are vital to the safety and success of foreign climbers aspiring to stand on top of the mountain each year.

His father was among the first Sherpa guides. In addition to Everest, Kami Rita has climbed other peaks that are among the world’s highest, including K2, Cho Oyu, Manaslu and Lhotse.

Binaj Gurubacharya, The Associated Press