Daily Dispatches – 24th May
The extraordinary 2026 Everest spring season is now beginning to wind down, but not before rewriting parts of the mountain’s history books.
By Saturday evening, Nepal officials confirmed that the season had already produced 879 successful Everest summits, making Spring 2026 one of the busiest and most successful seasons ever recorded on the world’s highest mountain. The season also generated record numbers away from the mountain itself, with 494 climbing permits issued and more than Nrs 1 billion collected in royalty revenue.
Earlier in the week Everest also witnessed a historic surge on the summit ridge when an astonishing 274 climbers and guides reportedly reached the summit in a single day, believed to be one of the largest summit days ever recorded from the Nepal side of the mountain.
Now, as many of the major commercial teams descend back towards Base Camp and Kathmandu, attention is turning towards a very different kind of Everest challenge — speed.
American endurance athlete Tyler Andrews departed Base Camp today in his latest attempt to chase an Everest Fastest Known Time. Andrews had originally hoped to target the no-oxygen speed ascent record but has now decided to climb using supplemental oxygen during this push after reassessing conditions and the physical demands of the mountain.
Instead, Andrews will now attempt to break the astonishing oxygen-assisted Everest speed record set by Lakpa Gelu Sherpa in 2003 of 10 hours, 56 minutes and 46 seconds from Base Camp to the summit.
Despite the change in strategy, Andrews insists he has not abandoned his no-oxygen ambitions and may launch another attempt once he returns to Base Camp later in the week. The American clarified that the no-O2 benchmark he is targeting remains Marc Batard’s 1988 ascent time of 22 hours and 29 minutes from Base Camp to the summit.
Meanwhile another major speed attempt is waiting in the wings at Everest Base Camp. Ecuadorian mountain athlete Karl Egloff is still preparing for his own Everest FKT attempt without supplemental oxygen. Unlike Andrews’ current push, Egloff plans to continue running all the way back down to Base Camp after summiting in an attempt to establish the first recognised Everest round-trip FKT without oxygen.
Conditions on the upper mountain remain mixed despite the improving weather window lower down. Austrian climber Sabrina Finzmoser, currently attempting Everest without supplemental oxygen, reported strong winds at Camp 4 before beginning her summit push. Lithuanian climber Saulius Damulevicius also described worsening weather conditions at Camp 2 after strong winds reportedly snapped tent poles overnight.
Higher on the mountain, SummitClimb teams continued moving steadily between the camps on both Everest and Lhotse. Several climbers reached Camp 4 today in calm and unusually quiet conditions, with the giant summit crowds of earlier in the week now completely gone from the route. Two Lhotse climbers are preparing for a summit push overnight while the main Everest group are expected to rest at the South Col before targeting the summit tomorrow if winds ease further.
Meanwhile legendary Nepali climber Nimsdai Purja checked in from Camp 3 while leading a private Elite Expeditions summit team consisting of 31 climbers and Sherpas. Nims confirmed the team remains strong and on schedule for a summit push on May 26th.
After weeks of delays, huge summit waves, record-breaking crowds and heartbreaking tragedy, Everest’s 2026 spring season is now entering its final chapter. Yet even as many teams pack up their camps and leave the Khumbu behind, the mountain still has unfinished business to deliver in the days ahead.
