Gillian Lee 4th attempt

In May 2019 at the top of the world, Gillian Lee an Australian mountaineer was making his 4th attempt to climb to the summit of Everest without oxygen. He climbed the northside on the Tibet route because of the easiest side was a human traffic jam of 200-300 climbers.

On his way up the Maunga, his Sherpa guides realized he was ill. They saw his lips were turning blue, his coughs were intense and his lungs were flooded with blood. Gill passed out for 3 hours straight. If the Sherpa guides didn’t react fast enough he would have been long gone. They dragged him down the Maunga on a sleeping mat that was made from a sleeping bag filled with hot water bottles. They came across a Chinese rope fixing team who helped them. Gill was strapped onto a yak to get to base camp which was 22 km and 6hrs away. Then he was put onto a helicopter to Kathmandu hospital, a 20-minute trip.

When Gill arrived he was surprised to see his mother who was fuming. She was angry about how selfish he was and how he had not just put himself in danger but others too. Gill’s mother Julie could not forgive him for what he had done.