Is Mount Everest Covered in Dead Bodies and Trash?

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Mainstream coverage of Mount Everest has provided a distorted view of the peak, the Himalayan mountaineering industry, and the climbers who attempt to reach the summit.

In his latest video dispatch, our Everest correspondent Ben Ayers addresses two common misconceptions about the world’s highest peak:

• Climbing Mount Everest is only attainable by the wealthy
• Mount Everest is covered in dead bodies and garbage

Ayers also dives into a topic that often spurs debate: the climbing industry’s treatment of Everest’s local workforce, the Sherpa.

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Ben Ayers is a filmmaker, journalist, and adventurer who splits his time between Vermont and Nepal. In 2022 and 2024 he chronicled the Mount Everest climbing season for Outside.