A Marketing Coup On Everest
On 5 May, the television watchers around the world were served with live coverage of the China-Japan-Nepal Friendship Expedition to Everest 1988 conquering the highest real estate in the world. A dozen mountaineers climbed up from one country, traversed the summit and descended down into the other country. The sponsors in Beijing, Kathmandu and Tokyo expressed themselves satisfied, but the story does not end there.
In terms of mountaineering achievement, the exercise was hardly noteworthy. The northern and southern routes chosen had little challenge left in them. The Nepal route, in particular, leading up the Western Cwm and the South Col, has become a tourist passage that can be climbed by any expedition with time on its hands, adequate logistical support, and moderate weather.