Excerpt
Introduction: What’s So Special About This Mountain?
Standing on the edge of a windy cliff or the top of a really tall hill can make your stomach flip a little. Now, picture a mountain so high, it pokes through the clouds. Not just a little bit above the ground, not even just high enough for snow, but so high that planes fly near it. That’s Mount Everest—a mountain that stretches farther into the sky than any other place on Earth.
But what does that actually mean?
Let’s start with the basics. A mountain is a giant landform that rises above the land around it, usually forming sharp peaks or rounded tops. Mount Everest is the biggest of them all. It’s like the boss level of mountains. While there are taller mountains if you measure from their base under the ocean (like Mauna Kea in Hawaii), Everest wins when you count from sea level up—and that’s the way people usually measure.
Everest rises over 29,000 feet into the air. That’s higher than 20 Empire State Buildings stacked on top of one another. It’s so tall that the peak is in a part of the atmosphere where there’s barely enough oxygen to breathe. You wouldn’t last long at the top without special gear—and even then, it’s tough.
But Everest isn’t just a mountain that showed up one day like a pop-up tent. It’s incredibly old. Millions of years ago, two giant pieces of Earth’s crust—called tectonic plates—smashed into each other. They didn’t stop. They’re still pushing. That’s right: Everest is still growing! Bit by bit, year by year, it gets a little taller. Not enough for anyone to notice without special tools, but it’s happening.
Because of where those crust pieces smashed together, Everest now sits on the border between two countries: Nepal and China (specifically the region of Tibet). That’s why some people call it by its Tibetan name, Chomolungma, or its Nepali name, Sagarmatha. The mountain doesn’t mind what name you use—it just keeps standing there, frozen and powerful.
Now, not everything about Everest is white snow and blue skies. The top of the mountain is extremely cold. On many days, temperatures drop low enough to freeze skin in minutes. Winds whip through like jets, often blowing at over 100 miles per hour. The snow isn’t always soft and fluffy either—it can be icy, sharp, or hiding dangerous crevices.
Still, people can’t stay away. The idea of standing on top of the world is hard to resist. It’s become a dream for climbers everywhere, even if it’s a risky one.
The mountain is split into different parts. At the bottom, there’s the base camp—kind of like a snowy campsite with tents and supplies. From there, climbers go up in stages. There’s the Khumbu Icefall, a jumbled maze of ice towers and cracks. Then come the high camps, tiny spots where people rest before the final push. And finally, the summit—the tiny, windswept point where the Earth reaches its highest tip.
Standing there means standing where very few people ever have. The air is thin, your body is tired, and your brain might feel fuzzy from the lack of oxygen. But if you’re lucky and the weather is clear, you can see for miles and miles, past the clouds and into a world that most people only ever dream about.
Even though Everest is enormous, it doesn’t stand alone. It’s part of a mountain range called the Himalayas. This range includes many other tall peaks, but Everest is the star of the show. All around it, smaller (but still huge) mountains form jagged lines across the landscape, with deep valleys and ancient glaciers in between.
There are no roads to the top of Everest. You can’t drive there. You can’t take a train. You can’t fly to the summit in a plane or helicopter. The only way up is to walk—and climb—and keep going when your legs and lungs are screaming at you to stop.
That’s part of why Everest is so famous. It’s not just tall. It’s not just cold. It’s a challenge, a mystery, and a goal all in one. For some people, it’s a test of courage. For others, it’s a way to connect with the Earth’s wildest places.
And even though the mountain is covered in rock and snow, there’s life nearby. In the lower parts of the mountain, animals like yaks, snow leopards, and Himalayan tahrs roam the slopes. Birds called bar-headed geese have been spotted flying over Everest—yes, over it! These birds are built for thin air and can soar at altitudes that would make most people faint.
Humans live nearby, too. The Sherpa people, known for their strength and knowledge of the mountains, have been Everest’s neighbors for centuries. They guide climbers, carry gear, and teach others how to survive in such an extreme place. Their connection to the mountain is deep and full of respect.
There’s something else unusual about Everest. Because it’s so high up, it reaches into parts of the atmosphere that get hit with cosmic radiation—tiny invisible energy waves from space. That means the top of Everest is actually one of the most extreme environments on the planet, not just because of weather, but because it brushes the edge of outer space.
And here’s a weird fact: there are fossils near the top of Everest. That’s right—fossils. A long time ago, the land that would become the Himalayas was under the ocean. When those tectonic plates collided and lifted up the mountains, they brought ancient sea life with them. Now, in a place where almost nothing lives, you can find the remains of creatures that once swam in the sea.
Standing on the edge of a windy cliff or the top of a really tall hill can make your stomach flip a little. Now, picture a mountain so high, it pokes through the clouds. Not just a little bit above the ground, not even just high enough for snow, but so high that planes fly near it. That’s Mount Everest—a mountain that stretches farther into the sky than any other place on Earth.
But what does that actually mean?
Let’s start with the basics. A mountain is a giant landform that rises above the land around it, usually forming sharp peaks or rounded tops. Mount Everest is the biggest of them all. It’s like the boss level of mountains. While there are taller mountains if you measure from their base under the ocean (like Mauna Kea in Hawaii), Everest wins when you count from sea level up—and that’s the way people usually measure.
Everest rises over 29,000 feet into the air. That’s higher than 20 Empire State Buildings stacked on top of one another. It’s so tall that the peak is in a part of the atmosphere where there’s barely enough oxygen to breathe. You wouldn’t last long at the top without special gear—and even then, it’s tough.
But Everest isn’t just a mountain that showed up one day like a pop-up tent. It’s incredibly old. Millions of years ago, two giant pieces of Earth’s crust—called tectonic plates—smashed into each other. They didn’t stop. They’re still pushing. That’s right: Everest is still growing! Bit by bit, year by year, it gets a little taller. Not enough for anyone to notice without special tools, but it’s happening.
Because of where those crust pieces smashed together, Everest now sits on the border between two countries: Nepal and China (specifically the region of Tibet). That’s why some people call it by its Tibetan name, Chomolungma, or its Nepali name, Sagarmatha. The mountain doesn’t mind what name you use—it just keeps standing there, frozen and powerful.
Now, not everything about Everest is white snow and blue skies. The top of the mountain is extremely cold. On many days, temperatures drop low enough to freeze skin in minutes. Winds whip through like jets, often blowing at over 100 miles per hour. The snow isn’t always soft and fluffy either—it can be icy, sharp, or hiding dangerous crevices.
Still, people can’t stay away. The idea of standing on top of the world is hard to resist. It’s become a dream for climbers everywhere, even if it’s a risky one.
The mountain is split into different parts. At the bottom, there’s the base camp—kind of like a snowy campsite with tents and supplies. From there, climbers go up in stages. There’s the Khumbu Icefall, a jumbled maze of ice towers and cracks. Then come the high camps, tiny spots where people rest before the final push. And finally, the summit—the tiny, windswept point where the Earth reaches its highest tip.
Standing there means standing where very few people ever have. The air is thin, your body is tired, and your brain might feel fuzzy from the lack of oxygen. But if you’re lucky and the weather is clear, you can see for miles and miles, past the clouds and into a world that most people only ever dream about.
Even though Everest is enormous, it doesn’t stand alone. It’s part of a mountain range called the Himalayas. This range includes many other tall peaks, but Everest is the star of the show. All around it, smaller (but still huge) mountains form jagged lines across the landscape, with deep valleys and ancient glaciers in between.
There are no roads to the top of Everest. You can’t drive there. You can’t take a train. You can’t fly to the summit in a plane or helicopter. The only way up is to walk—and climb—and keep going when your legs and lungs are screaming at you to stop.
That’s part of why Everest is so famous. It’s not just tall. It’s not just cold. It’s a challenge, a mystery, and a goal all in one. For some people, it’s a test of courage. For others, it’s a way to connect with the Earth’s wildest places.
And even though the mountain is covered in rock and snow, there’s life nearby. In the lower parts of the mountain, animals like yaks, snow leopards, and Himalayan tahrs roam the slopes. Birds called bar-headed geese have been spotted flying over Everest—yes, over it! These birds are built for thin air and can soar at altitudes that would make most people faint.
Humans live nearby, too. The Sherpa people, known for their strength and knowledge of the mountains, have been Everest’s neighbors for centuries. They guide climbers, carry gear, and teach others how to survive in such an extreme place. Their connection to the mountain is deep and full of respect.
There’s something else unusual about Everest. Because it’s so high up, it reaches into parts of the atmosphere that get hit with cosmic radiation—tiny invisible energy waves from space. That means the top of Everest is actually one of the most extreme environments on the planet, not just because of weather, but because it brushes the edge of outer space.
And here’s a weird fact: there are fossils near the top of Everest. That’s right—fossils. A long time ago, the land that would become the Himalayas was under the ocean. When those tectonic plates collided and lifted up the mountains, they brought ancient sea life with them. Now, in a place where almost nothing lives, you can find the remains of creatures that once swam in the sea.