The Green Boots in Everest is a macabre landmark on the mountain’s Northeast ridge. It is one of the 200 dead bodies that are left on Mount Everest. So, who were Green Boots in Everest, and what is the story behind those boots? Make sure you read until the end!
Mount Everest, the tallest mountain in the world, has been alluring mountain climbers worldwide to its summit for decades. The earliest Everest expedition was in 1921 by a British Reconnaissance Expedition. However, Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa made the first successful ascent to the summit in 1953. Many have followed in the footsteps of these famous mountaineers with the dream of conquering it. While many have succeeded, some have lost their lives in the peak they dreamt of climbing Mount Everest.
Green Boots is the story of one of those fallen climbers who breathed their last at the mountain. The body trapped in a small cave haunts many climbers on the way to summit Everest, and there have been speculations about its identity as well. Green Boots has become a famous landmark and a reminder for climbers of how dangerous and cruel the mountain can be. Adventure and thrill entice humans, but no force is greater than nature. Let us get to know Green Boots in Everest and the tragic story!
Who is Green Boots?
The man behind the Green Boots on Everest is believed to be Tsewang Paljor, who was part of the 1996 Mount Everest Expedition. He was born on April 10, 1968, in Shakti, a small village in India. He spent his childhood amidst the mountains and was passionate about adventure and mountaineering. Palijor’s love for mountains never stopped, so he later became an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).
Before climbing Mt Everest in 1996, Paljor had already climbed several mountains, honed his mountaineering skills, and been a rock climber. In 1996, he got an opportunity to join the ITBP Everest Expedition team. His love for mountains led him to climb Everest. Due to his skills and experience, Paljor was handpicked for the event. However, the exciting story soon became sad, leading to him breathing his last at the world’s highest mountain.
It is widely accepted that the Green Boots remains of Tsweang Paljor. However, according to an article in The Himalayan Journal, Dorje Morup is the true identity of Green Boots of Mount Everest.
What Happened to Green Boots in Everest?
Tsweang Paljor became a part of the historic Expedition Team led by Commander Mahender Singh. It was India’s first attempt to scale the world’s highest mountain eastern side. The team consisted of six members from the Border Police, and they had no Sherpas to support them. Palijor and the team slowly reached the summit, fighting the extreme weather and terrain conditions.
However, just before they reached the top, a blizzard hit them. The sudden blizzard made the visibility extremely poor, and the temperature dropped. These changes made it impossible for climbers to pursue further, so they began descending. The lack of visibility and the chaos split the team into two. Tsweang Palijor, Tsweang Smanla, and Dorje Morup got lost in the blizzard.
The expedition leader received a call from the three climbers around 15:45 Nepal Time. They said they had reached the summit, but according to the evidence, they may not have been to the actual summit but 430 feet short. They might have been confused due to poor visibility. The three climbers never made it back to the high camp, and all three of them lost their lives during the 1996 Mount Everest disaster.
Was Green Boots Alone During The Everest Expedition?
Tsweang Paljor, or Everest Green Boots, was not alone during his final moments. He was with Tsweang Smanla and Dorje Morup, who got lost in a sudden blizzard that separated them from their ten-member team. The deputy leader, Harbhajan Singh, signaled the climbers to climb down. Paljor and the other two might not have seen the signal due to poor visibility.
While the remaining team headed downhill, three continued pushing to the summit. After the three climbers failed to return to the high base camp, the leader, Mahendra Singh, asked the Japanese Expedition Team from Furukawa for help. Koji Yada led the Japanese team, and they later spotted the two climbers’ bodies on a slope, but Paljor was absent. They were severely frostbitten, but the Japanese team kept pushing for the summit.
The lack of help from the Japanese expedition team became an international issue. But the sad fact was that the three Indian climbers lost their lives that day. A body wearing green Koflach boots was discovered sheltering under a cave, which later became a grim landmark. It became known as “Green Boots” and the cave as “Green Boots Cave.”
There are theories that Paljor separated from the team and took shelter in the cave at the Death Zone (8500 meters), where he took his last breath. However, the final hours of Paljor are still a mystery. There is no clear answer on what caused his death.
Location Of Green Boots’ Body
Mountaineers discovered Green Boots under a cave in the Death Zone at 8500 meters. It became a grim landmark for climbers scaling Everest from the Northeast Ridge route. However, in 2014, the body suddenly disappeared from its place. Nobody saw Green Boots for some time. As Green Boots was well known to climbers, it raised concerns about the body’s whereabouts.
Later, it was found out that Tsweang Paljor’s family had requested climbers to move the body to the mountain slopes for his final resting place. They had requested a snow burial, so the body was removed from its original place. In 2017, mountaineers discovered Green Boots’ body again near the small cave where he was initially discovered. As a sign of respect, they again covered his body with snow and let him rest on the mountain’s slope. Green Boots’s body is still in the mountains.
His Mother’s Disapproval To His Everest Expedition
Tsweang Paljor was handpicked by Commander Mahendra Singh, who led the 1996 Everest Expedition. However, his mother, Tashi Angmo, was not happy that Paljor had joined the team. At first, he hid the details of the expedition from his family. But the news soon reached his mother’s ear, who begged him not to go.
Despite his mother’s disapproval, Paljor still decided to join the expedition. It was an opportunity for him to bring glory to his family’s name if he succeeded. He believed he would succeed, but unfortunately, his mother’s bad hunch was correct. Paljor lost his life, and his brother-in-law, Namgyal, was the last person to see him off before the expedition.
Rainbow Valley In Everest
Rainbow Valley might sound like a beautiful and colorful valley. However, it is a somber valley in Everest that lies at an elevation of 8000 meters. The valley is full of dead bodies of the climbers whose lives were claimed by the mountain. The red, blue, orange, and green jackets of the dead bodies covered the valley. As a result, it is also known as Everest’s open-air graveyard. Other than dead bodies, there are also colorful tents, garbage, and oxygen tanks that litter the area. Hence, it became famous as the Rainbow Valley In Everest.
Why Bodies Are Not Removed From Everest?
You might wonder, if there are so many dead bodies in Everest, why are they not removed? Removing a body from the highest mountain in the world is not easy. There are many challenges and risks involved in the process. Take a look at the major reasons why bodies are left in Everest:
Extreme Conditions
The first challenge is the extreme conditions at Everest. Due to the high elevation, the air is thinner, and the oxygen level is low. At the Death Zone (above 8000 meters), the oxygen is insufficient to sustain human life for an extended period. The weather is also extremely harsh, and the temperature is low. As a result, there is a high risk of altitude sickness, frostbite, and hypothermia. Additionally, the steep and icy terrains make it highly risky to transport the body safely and can even put the lives of rescuers at risk.
Logistical Challenges
Ascending and descending Everest requires a great deal of physical and mental preparation. Climbers must brave steep ice walls, rocky terrains, crevasses, and harsh weather conditions. The climb of Mount Everest requires technical skills and mountaineering equipment. Hence, it requires great effort to carry a dead body down the mountain, increasing the risk for rescuers. Aside from the technical challenges, recovering a dead body from Everest also costs a hefty amount. The expenses of hiring trained rescuers, equipment, and sometimes helicopters can take tens of thousands of dollars that not every deceased family can afford.
Safety Risks
Recovering a body from Everest is also a huge risk for rescuers. They have to navigate treacherous terrain and fight extreme conditions. Similarly, it takes several experienced and strong climbers/ Sherpas to do the job. During the process, they are putting their own lives at risk. The lack of oxygen and physical challenges increase the risk of fatalities for rescuers.
Legislation
Mount Everest sits at the border of Nepal and Tibet Autonomous Region. Hence, families have to get permission from the respective governments for the body retrieval of their deceased ones. It includes bureaucratic and sensitive processes that make the operations more challenging. There are no specific laws that make the body removal from Everest mandatory.
Respect for the fallen climbers
Another reason the dead bodies remain in Everest is for ethical considerations. Some families of the fallen climbers leave the bodies out of respect. Families believe this way, they are honoring the deceased’s last wishes and leaving the body on Mt Everest as their final resting place. The locals and Sherpas of the region believe that disturbing the bodies is disrespectful, as they consider the mountain to be sacred.
Other Famous Dead Bodies On Everest
George Mallory
George Mallory was a British climber and one of the important figures in the early Everest exploration. He was part of the first three British Everest expeditions but lost his life during his final 1924 expedition. He and his partner, Andrew Irvine, were last seen climbing to the summit, but nobody knows if they made it to the top. Mallory’s body was discovered in 1999 on a remote part of the mountain.
Sleeping Beauty
Sleeping Beauty of Everest, Francys Arsentiev, is another famous dead body on Everest. She was the first American woman to reach Everest without bottled oxygen on 22 May 1998. However, she lost her life while descending from the summit. Due to her serene posture, Arsentive became known as Sleeping Beauty of Everest.
Scott Fischer
Scott Fischer was an American climber who submitted the world’s fourth highest peak, Lhotse and K2. He first submitted Everest in 1994. Again, in 1966, he embarked on a journey to the Everest summit. Fischer led the Mountain Madness Expedition and successfully ascended the mountain. However, he became ill with high-altitude cerebral edema (HACE). Then, a blizzard struck the team, which worsened the condition, and Fischer died in the Everest disaster.
Hannelore Schmatz
Hannelore Schmatz was the fourth woman to ascend to the top of Everest and the first woman to die there. The German climber was part of the 1979 Everest Expedition. She and her team reached the summit late, and they had only a little time to descend before the daylight went out. She and a fellow climber, Ray Genet, were too tired and decided to stay despite Sherpa’s advice. The harsh weather conditions caused both Hannelore’s and her partner’s death.
David Sharp
An English climber, David Sharp, is also one of the climbers who lost their lives while climbing Everest. He solo attempted to reach the top of the mountain in 2006. He had no support and made his attempt through the North Col route. While descending, Sharp took shelter in the Green Boots Cave. There, he breathed his last, and the cause of death is believed to be altitude sickness and hypothermia.
Rob Hall
Rob Hall was a climber from New Zealand who died tragically on Everest on May 10 or 11, 1996. He founded Adventure Consultants and guided many aspiring climbers to the summit. However, during his 1996 expedition, a sudden snowstorm caught Hall and his team off guard. He and his client, Dough Hansen, lost their way during their descent. The extreme weather claimed both of the climber’s lives on the mountain.
Shriya Shah-Klorfine
The final name on our list is Nepali-born Canadian climber Shriya Shah-Klorfine. She was part of the 2012 Everest climbers. The year 2012 was notable for the high number of climbers attempting to reach the top of Everest. Shah-Klorfine was one of them. She successfully reached the summit. However, she was exhausted from the climb and ran out of oxygen, which ultimately led to her demise on 19 May 2012 during the descent.
Conclusion
Green Boots in Everest is a sad story and a warning about Everest’s cruelty. It takes little time for the conditions to change and worsen. Mountaineering is undoubtedly a dangerous and risky sport. Thus, mountaineers are gambling with their lives. Those who succeed will gain glory for the rest of their lives, and those who lose their lives will spend eternity buried under the mountains’ snow.
There has been much media coverage about Green Boots and his identity. Climbers use his body as a landmark to determine the distance to the summit from the point. The Green Boots of Mountain Everest has also raised many ethical questions and reflected the mountain climb’s commercialization. Despite the many tragic stories, Mt Everest will continue to allure many daredevil mountaineers to its summit.
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