Everest is well known for holding the title of "World's tallest mountain.

Everest is well known for holding the title of "World's tallest mountain.

Everest is well known for holding the title of "World's tallest mountain", but its other achievement is a little less known - it's also the World's largest open-air graveyard. Since Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made their way up to the summit in 1953, around 4,000 people have trekked up there, however, estimates state that around 200 people have made it a permanent home.

The area of the mountain, or any mountain for that matter, over 8,000 meters/26,247ft is known as the ‘Death Zone’. Here, oxygen levels are a 3rd of what they are at sea level, the barometric pressure makes everything feel 10x heaver, in addition to being incredibly taxing on the heart and lungs. To say you have to be an experienced climber is an understatement – but it’s well known that Everest has taken the lives of some of the most experienced climbers going. Still, that doesn't stop people. One of the first people to climb over 8,000m, George Mallory, when asked why he wanted to take on such a perilous challenge, simply replied "because it's there". George is rather famous for being part of the three initial expeditions to Everest – one of which was the 1922 over 8,000m excursion, however he and his climbing partner, Andrew Irvine disappeared on the mountain during a summit attempt in 1924. His body was found in 1999, 75 years after his disappearance. That's his legs above with the green shoe.
The Death Zone is also known as the 'Everest Graveyard' due to the sheer number of bodies around the area, as well as the 'Rainbow Valley' due to the brightly coloured clothes of the deceased climbers poking out of the snow.
While some bodies are recovered when they're found, general protocol is to leave them where they lie, meaning around 2 thirds of people who have died up there, are still there. The sight is so common that many of them have become macabre milestone markers for others trying their luck getting to the summit
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