The first time I climbed to the top, I was excited for the adventure. But to me, it was my job. And it was a very dangerous job. Once, in 2006, two of my Sherpa climbers got buried when ice collapsed in the Khumbu Icefall. One of the climbers was my niece’s husband. Despite many rescue efforts, we were never able to recover their bodies. I had to return back home to my niece without her husband.

The Western people, they always ask about the adventure. But this was very tough. It’s very hard to put it in words. I wish this on nobody.


Apa visits the Ghat Primary School in Ghat, Nepal, in 2017.Photo courtesy of the Apa Sherpa Foundation

There were good times on Everest. In 2007, I climbed with a Sherpa-only team. When I am taking clients on the mountain, I have to worry about their physical state and keep an eye on them all the time. But climbing with a Sherpa team was very fun. We didn’t have to pitch tents, carry gears, fix ropes for anybody. We were cracking jokes and climbing at our own pace.

The last time I climbed was in 2011, after 21 summits. My wife made me promise to stop. She said, “You need to build a life.” She said something would happen to me, that I wouldn’t survive. It was a tough decision, but eventually I listened to my wife. Any time I talk to anyone, I say, “You’ve got to listen to whatever your wife says.”

There are big changes on the mountain from when I first climbed to the last time. There is less snow, and more rocks. There used to be house-sized ice pyramids at basecamp, but now you don’t see that. Back then, we had to melt ice and snow for water at basecamp and at Camp II. Now, you can find streams of water at both places.