Table 2.
Characteristics of traditional versus commercial climbs by climbers on constituent Himalayan peaks, 1970-2010. Data are no (%)
| Variable | Traditional | Commercial | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex of climber | |||
| Male | 28 457 (91.6) | 6993 (87.9) | 35 450 (90.8) |
| Female | 2625 (8.5) | 962 (12.1) | 3587 (9.2) |
| Unknown | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Age of climber (years) | |||
| ≤19 | 156 (0.5) | 34 (0.4) | 190 (0.5) |
| 20-29 | 8710 (28.0) | 1035 (13.0) | 9745 (25.0) |
| 30-39 | 12 280 (39.5) | 2833 (35.6) | 15 113 (38.7) |
| 40-49 | 6355 (20.5) | 2472 (31.1) | 8827 (22.6) |
| 50-59 | 2136 (6.9) | 1183 (14.9) | 3319 (8.5) |
| ≥60 | 578 (1.9) | 334 (4.2) | 912 (2.3) |
| Unknown | 868 (2.8) | 64 (0.8) | 932 (2.4) |
| Expedition number | |||
| 1 | 18 796 (60.5) | 4624 (58.1) | 23 420 (60.0) |
| 2-4 | 9033 (29.1) | 2330 (29.3) | 11 363 (29.1) |
| 5-9 | 2356 (7.6) | 642 (8.1) | 2998 (7.7) |
| ≥10 | 872 (2.8) | 353 (4.4) | 1225 (3.1) |
| Unknown | 26 (0.1) | 6 (0.1) | 32 (0.1) |
| Route | |||
| Non-standard | 15 793 (50.8) | 1563 (19.7) | 17 356 (44.5) |
| Standard | 15 290 (49.2) | 6392 (80.4) | 21 682 (55.5) |
| Season | |||
| Spring | 14 139 (45.5) | 3688 (46.4) | 17 827 (45.7) |
| Summer | 354 (1.1) | 24 (0.3) | 378 (1.0) |
| Autumn | 15 160 (48.8) | 4131 (51.9) | 19 291 (49.4) |
| Winter | 1430 (4.6) | 112 (1.4) | 1542 (4.0) |
| Altitude of peak (m) | |||
| ≤7000 | 5641 (18.2) | 1731 (21.8) | 7372 (18.9) |
| 7000-7999 | 7210 (23.2) | 1161 (14.6) | 8371 (21.4) |
| ≥8000 | 18 232 (58.7) | 5063 (63.7) | 23 295 (59.7) |
| 8000 m peaks* | |||
| Annapurna I | 1144 (6.3) | 55 (1.1) | 1199 (5.2) |
| Cho Oyu | 3632 (19.9) | 2055 (40.6) | 5687 (24.4) |
| Dhaulagiri I | 1503 (8.2) | 164 (3.2) | 1667 (7.2) |
| Everest | 7004 (38.4) | 2331 (46.0) | 9335 (40.1) |
| Kangchenjunga | 1005 (5.5) | 28 (0.6) | 1033 (4.4) |
| Lhotse | 1191 (6.5) | 132 (2.6) | 1323 (5.7) |
| Makalu | 1368 (7.5) | 58 (1.2) | 1426 (6.1) |
| Manaslu | 1385 (7.6) | 240 (4.7) | 1625 (7.0) |
| Success | 8712 (28.0) | 3534 (44.4) | 12 246 (31.4) |
| Death | 524 (1.7) | 55 (0.7) | 579 (1.5) |
| Mechanism of death† | |||
| Acute mountain sickness | 28 (5.3) | 5 (9.1) | 33 (5.7) |
| Exposure | 49 (9.4) | 8 (14.5) | 57 (9.8) |
| Fall | 216 (41.2) | 29 (52.7) | 245 (42.3) |
| Crevasse | 13 (2.5) | 1 (1.8) | 14 (2.4) |
| Avalanche | 162 (30.9) | 3 (5.5) | 165 (28.5) |
| Falling debris | 11 (2.1) | 1 (1.8) | 12 (2.1) |
| Other | 20 (3.8) | 6 (10.9) | 26 (4.5) |
| Unknown | 25 (4.8) | 2 (3.6) | 27 (4.7) |
*Percentages of 8000 m peak climbs only.
†Percentages of total deaths for traditional or commercial expeditions.