Everest | 2000 N Col-NE Ridge

A China expedition to Everest in 2000 via N Col-NE Ridge, led by Yan Geng-Hua. Summit reached on 21st May 2000. 5 members recorded.

Expedition Details

Field Value
ID 3568
Imported 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634
Expedition ID EVER00143
Peak ID EVER
Year 2000
Season 1
Host Country 2
Route 1 N Col-NE Ridge
Route 2 -
Route 3 -
Route 4 -
Nationality China
Leaders Yan Geng-Hua
Sponsor Heilongjiang Warriors
Success 1 True
Success 2 False
Success 3 False
Success 4 False
Ascent 1 359
Ascent 2 -
Ascent 3 -
Ascent 4 -
Claimed False
Disputed False
Countries -
Approach -
Basecamp Date 2000-04-15
Summit Date 2000-05-21
Summit Time 0945
Summit Days 36
Total Days 0
Termination Date -
Termination Reason 1
Termination Notes -
High Point (m) 8849
Traverse False
Ski False
Paraglide False
Camps 1
Fixed Rope (m) 0
Total Members 8
Summit Members 1
Member Deaths 1
Total Hired 4
Summit Hired 1
Hired Deaths 0
No Hired False
O2 Used True
O2 None False
O2 Climb True
O2 Descent False
O2 Sleep True
O2 Medical False
O2 Taken False
O2 Unknown False
Other Summits -
Campsites BC(15/04),ABC(23/04,6400m),C1(7000m),C2(18/05,7800m),C3(19/05,8300m),Smt(21/05)
Route Notes C1 at North Col. Yan was only climbing member, but many Chinese [7 reporters/cameramen from a Heilongjiang TV station] to film team on $1 million budget, and some went to at least 7800m and maybe to 8300m. A young (19 years) Sherpa from Asian Trekking went to top on 21 May with Yan; Russell Brice saw that on the final summit slope at about 8750m, then clouds closed in - it was very windy there. The summit Sherpa said they reached top and the Chinese (Yan) was never seen by him again; he returned to C3 alone after having left Yan alone. Russians from Skripko's team said they saw a body at about 8750m that must have been Yan (there had never been a body there before). Inaki Ochoa said his body was found above Second Step clutching 2 oxygen bottles to his chest. Brice said his body was on top of an oxygen bottle. On 21 May Gia Tortladze found Lhakpa Gyalzen alone and unable to descend and Tortladze brought him down from 7500m put him in a tent with no one to care for him, although Chinese were descending from 7700m. Brice on 22 May organized rescue, brought him to ABC and gave him a lot of medical help (he was 53 years old) and as of 11 June was in Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, paralyzed on one side. As of 20 July out of hospital and receiving treatment that may enable him to walk but never climb again. Sherpas on this expedition (Asian Trekking 23/6/00 and 20/7/00): Lhakpa Tshering, 17/7/76, Khumjung, 1st 8000m summit Lhakpa Gyalzen, 10/11/48, Pangboche Mingma Dorje, 22/7/65, Phortse Summary paraphrased from various Chinese web sites: Yan Geng-Hua, from Harbin in Heilongjiang, was born in 1958. From 1983 he was engaged in extreme sports. In 1986, he ran to Jiayuguan from Shanhaiguan, becoming the first to finish the Great Wall of China by long-distance running. In recent years, he set his sights on climbing Everest so as to be the first Chinese person to climb Everest alone. In 1999 on his first attempt to climb Everest, he was trapped for four days by blizzards at 7800m, before being forced to descend because of illness and bad weather. In March 2000, Yan Geng-Hua once again went to Tibet to resume his quest. After spending time in Lhasa making preparations and adjusting to the higher altitude, he departed for Everest and arrived at base camp on April 14, accompanied by 3 Nepalese Sherpas and 7 reporters & cameramen from a television station in Harbin who were hoping to conduct live interviews with Yan during his ascent to the summit. During the first few weeks, the team established ABC at 6500m and subsequent camps at the North Col, 7800m, and the last at 8300m. On May 14, Yan began his final summit attempt accompanied by Harbin reporter Chen Xiao-Jin and two Nepalese Sherpas, 23-year-old Lhakpa Tshering and 53-year-old Lhakpa Gyalzen, who were hired to carry the television video equipment needed for the live interviews. The group reached 7800m on May 18. The next day they departed for the highest camp at 8300m. The television crew struggled to keep pace with Yan and at 12:00 CST at 8150m, they conducted their final interview with Chen gasping for breath during their conversation. Chen and Lhakpa Gyalzen then returned to the 7800m camp while Yan and Lhakpa Tshering continued up. This was the last time Chen ever saw Yan. Yan and Lhakpa Tshering camped the night of May 19 at 8300m and planned to summit the following day, but a sudden change in weather brought strong winds and blizzard conditions forcing many foreign climbers to descend. But Yan refused to give up, so he and Lhakpa waited out the storm and went for the summit the next morning leaving their tents at 2:30 am on May 21. They summited at about 11:00 am CST (9:45 NST) and remained on the summit for about 20 minutes before starting their descent. Lhakpa was soon separated from Yan and he descended slowly alone to the 8300m camp. He never saw Yan again. Yan's body was spotted at 8750m a few days later by a Russian team and has also been seen by other teams in subsequent seasons. Meanwhile, Chen and Lhakpa Gyalzen waited fruitlessly two days for the return of the summit team, but they never showed up. Chen and Lhakpa Gyalzen then descended, but the Sherpa became incapacitated by his long stay at high altitude. He was found alone at 7500m by the Georgian team, dazed, confused and unable to see, and slowly he was escorted down the mountain to the North Col on May 21. The next day Nima Tsering sent two Tibetan Mountain School trainees, Dorje Karsang and Ngawang Dhondup, up to the North Col to retrieve Lhakpa Gyalzen who was in critical condition, unable to speak or drink. On May 23, a team of 11 yaks and three more Tibetan trainees brought him back base camp where Canadian doctors gave him emergency medical treatment. By 7:00 pm, his eyes were open and he was able to drink, but he still could not speak. The next day he was evacuated to Kathmandu. Later that evening at 9:30 pm Lhakpa Tshering also returned to base camp, physically weak, but able to eat noodles. Lhakpa Tshering said that he and Yan had run out of oxygen at 8300m on May 20, the day before their summit attempt. During their descent from the summit, the two separated and Yan never returned to the 8300m camp. Nima Tsering, a liaison officer from the Tibet Mountaineering Association, said: "Now we can be 100 percent sure that Yan summited Mount Qomolangma [based on interviews with Lhakpa Tshering]. On the 21st morning, a Dutch team from the Nepal side, saw two people by telescope very close to the top." Chen Xiao-Jin won a prestigious Chinese press prize in 2006 for his television interview with Yan on Everest.
Accidents Lhakpa Gyalzen Sherpa acute altitude sickness
Achievement -
Agency Asian Trekking
Commercial Route True
Standard Route True
Primary Route False
Primary Member False
Primary Reference -
Primary ID -
Checksum 2457691
Year 2000
Summit Success True
O2 Summary Used
Route (lowercase) n col-ne ridge

Members

5 recorded members.

Name Sex Year of Birth Citizenship Status Residence Occupation
Geng-Hua Yan M 1958 China Leader Harbin, Heilongjiang, China - Details Other expeditions
Lhakpa Tshering/Chhiring Sherpa M 1976 Nepal H-A Worker Khumjung, Khumbu - Details Other expeditions
Lhakpa Gyalzen/Gyalu Sherpa M 1948 Nepal H-A Worker Phortse, Khumbu - Details Other expeditions
Xiao-Jin Chen M - China TV Reporter Harbin, Heilongjiang, China - Details Other expeditions
Tashi Phuntsok (Tashi Phinzo) M 1983 China H-A Worker Xegar, Tingri Dzong, Tibet, China - Details Other expeditions

References

1 recorded references.

Expedition ID Journal Author Title Publisher Citation Yak 94
EVER00143 HIGH - - - 219:69 (Feb 2001) -