Overview
Everest is 8,849 metres, and the South Col route from Nepal is the most attempted line on it. Sixty-two days: a slow walk in, six weeks of rotations through the Khumbu Icefall and the Western Cwm, and — if the jet stream lifts — one night walking up the south-east ridge.
The route
Base camp sits at 5,364 m on the Khumbu glacier. Above it the Icefall, a moving cascade of ice crossed on ladders in the dark, and the most dangerous ground on the mountain. Camp one at 6,065 m, then the Western Cwm to camp two at 6,400 m.
The Lhotse Face — blue ice at 40 to 50 degrees, fixed throughout — leads to camp three at 7,200 m, and the Yellow Band and Geneva Spur to the South Col at 7,950 m. That is the death zone: nobody acclimatises there.
Summit day starts at 9 or 10 at night, for the Balcony, the South Summit and the step below the top.
What it really requires
Nepal requires a previous 7,000-metre Nepali summit before it will issue the permit. Any operator worth using asks for more — a prior eight-thousander, or a seven-thousander plus something technical like Ama Dablam.
Where the money goes
The USD 15,000 royalty is a small part of it. The rest is oxygen from 7,200 m, one or two climbing Sherpas per client, four stocked camps, two months of wages and food, helicopters and insurance. The gap between a USD 45,000 place and a USD 120,000 one is mostly oxygen supply and the client-to-Sherpa ratio — which is exactly where the safety margin sits.
Permit rules and royalties are revised periodically. Confirm the current position before committing.
Day by day
The 62 days itinerary
Distances, walking times, altitudes and accommodation for every stage — stored as structured data, not written into the prose.
- Day 1
Kathmandu — briefing, permits and gear
Ministry briefing, medical checks, expedition load-out
- Altitude
- 1,400 m → 1,400 m
- Sleep
- Hotel, Kathmandu
- Meals
- Breakfast, dinner
- Day 2
Kathmandu to Lukla, and the walk in begins
Kathmandu (1,400 m) → Lukla (2,860 m) → Phakding (2,610 m)
- Altitude
- 1,400 m → 2,610 m
- Sleep
- Lodge, Phakding
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Day 3
The Khumbu approach — Namche, Tengboche, Dingboche
Phakding (2,610 m) → Namche (3,440 m) → Tengboche → Dingboche (4,410 m)
- Walking
- 6 days with acclimatisation
- Altitude
- 2,610 m → 4,410 m
- Elevation
- +1800 m
- Sleep
- Lodges
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
The standard Base Camp trek, walked slowly and deliberately. Expeditions take longer over it than trekkers do — the acclimatisation earned here is the foundation of everything above.
- Day 4
Dingboche to Lobuche to Everest Base Camp
Dingboche (4,410 m) → Lobuche (4,940 m) → Base Camp (5,364 m)
- Walking
- 3 days
- Altitude
- 4,410 m → 5,364 m
- Elevation
- +954 m
- Sleep
- Tented base camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Arrival at base camp on the Khumbu glacier
- Day 5
Base camp — puja, and settling in
Base camp (5,364 m); the puja precedes any climbing
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 5,364 m
- Sleep
- Tented base camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Base camp is a small town on a moving glacier. Nobody enters the Icefall until the puja is done and the Icefall Doctors have fixed the route.
- Day 6
Icefall training and the first rotation
Base camp (5,364 m) → camp one (6,065 m) → base camp
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 5,364 m
- Elevation
- +700 m / −700 m
- Sleep
- Tented base camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
The Icefall is the most dangerous ground on the route and it is crossed many times. Teams move through it in the cold hours before dawn, when the ice is least active.
- Ladder crossings in the Khumbu Icefall
- Day 7
Second rotation — camp one and camp two
Base camp → camp one (6,065 m) → camp two (6,400 m) → base camp
- Walking
- 4–5 days
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 5,364 m
- Elevation
- +1036 m / −1036 m
- Sleep
- Tented camps
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- The Western Cwm
- Nuptse and Lhotse walls
- Day 8
Third rotation — the Lhotse Face to camp three
Base camp → camp two → camp three (7,200 m) → base camp
- Walking
- 5–6 days
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 5,364 m
- Elevation
- +1836 m / −1836 m
- Sleep
- Tented camps
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
The Lhotse Face is blue ice at around 40 to 50 degrees, fixed throughout. A night at camp three, usually on oxygen, is the last acclimatisation before the summit push.
- Day 9
Base camp — rest and the wait for a window
Base camp (5,364 m); often ten days or more
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 5,364 m
- Sleep
- Tented base camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Most of an Everest expedition is spent waiting at base camp for the jet stream to lift off the summit. Teams descend to Pheriche or Deboche to recover in thicker air.
- Day 10
Summit push — base camp to camp two
Base camp (5,364 m) → camp two (6,400 m)
- Walking
- 2 days
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 6,400 m
- Elevation
- +1036 m
- Sleep
- Tented camp two
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Day 11
Camp two to camp three
Camp two (6,400 m) → camp three (7,200 m)
- Walking
- 5–6 hours
- Altitude
- 6,400 m → 7,200 m
- Elevation
- +800 m
- Sleep
- Tented camp three
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Day 12
Camp three to the South Col
Camp three (7,200 m) → Yellow Band → Geneva Spur → South Col (7,950 m)
- Walking
- 6–7 hours
- Altitude
- 7,200 m → 7,950 m
- Elevation
- +750 m
- Sleep
- Tented camp four, South Col
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
On oxygen from camp three for most climbers. The South Col at 7,950 m is inside the death zone — nobody acclimatises here, they only lose ground.
- The Yellow Band
- The Geneva Spur
- The South Col
- Day 13
Summit day
South Col (7,950 m) → Balcony → South Summit → Everest (8,849 m) → South Col
- Walking
- 14–18 hours
- Altitude
- 7,950 m → 7,950 m
- Elevation
- +899 m / −899 m
- Sleep
- Tented camp four
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Away around 9 or 10 at night. Snow slopes to the Balcony at 8,400 m, the south-east ridge to the South Summit, then the traverse and the step below the summit. Turnaround times are set before you leave and exist to be obeyed.
- The Balcony
- The South Summit
- The Hillary Step
- The summit
- Day 14
Descent to camp two and base camp
South Col (7,950 m) → camp two (6,400 m) → base camp (5,364 m)
- Walking
- 2 days
- Altitude
- 7,950 m → 5,364 m
- Elevation
- −2586 m
- Sleep
- Tented base camp
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
More people die descending than climbing. The Icefall one last time, at the end of everything, is where exhaustion meets the most dangerous ground on the mountain.
- Day 15
Base camp to Lukla, and reserve days
Base camp (5,364 m) → Lukla (2,860 m), on foot or by helicopter
- Walking
- 3 days on foot
- Altitude
- 5,364 m → 2,860 m
- Elevation
- −2504 m
- Sleep
- Lodge, Lukla
- Meals
- Breakfast, lunch, dinner
The remaining days of the sixty-two are reserve — for the weather window, a second attempt, and the flights.
Route map
Where the trail goes
Route line, start and end points, and every overnight stop. Locations are shared entities — the same record powers the destination and itinerary pages.
Frequently asked questions
What does the permit actually cost?
Why does it cost USD 45,000 to 120,000?
What experience is required?
What is the most dangerous part?
Is autumn possible?
About the author
Tom Eriksen
Gear editor & photographer
Tom tests trekking equipment the only way that produces honest answers: by carrying it for weeks at a time above 4,000 metres. He shoots most of the photography on this site and writes the gear reviews, comparison tables and packing lists.
Writes about: Trekking gear · Photography · Packing and weight
