Dr. Scott McIntosh’s Mount Everest expedition in spring 2007 was a whirlwind – frigid temperatures, dangerous Himalayan terrain and that indescribable exhilaration of standing 29,029 feet above sea level on the world’s highest peak.
But the aspect of his journey that stood out the most was observing Sherpas prepare climbers for the challenging trek.
“Seeing how the Sherpas worked together, seeing how naturally at home they were on the mountain,” McIntosh said, “and how easily they seemed to climb, while everyone else was having such a difficult time.”
McIntosh, a medical doctor and expert climber, was among a group that climbed Everest seven years ago to gain a deeper understanding of the Sherpa people, natives of the Nepal side of the Himalayan Mountains and expert climbers of the area’s rocks, ice and passageways. Sherpas often set out course ropes and serve as guides for those who travel to conquer the world’s highest peak.
During his journey, McIntosh served as a medical and research doctor on the climbing excursion.
McIntosh, a Park City, Utah, resident and Pacific Palisades native, recounted his journey to the highest point on the planet to dozens of listeners on July 23 at the Malibu Library as a part of the city’s 2014 Speaker Series.
The five-week SuperSherpas Expedition featured McIntosh conducting medical testing on two of the top high-altitude climbers in the world: Apa Sherpa and Lhakpa Gelu Sherpa. The climbers reached Everest’s summit on March 16, 2007. Along the way, McIntosh and the medical group studied the unique athletic ability and physiology of the two Sherpas, who— including their ascent to the top of Mount Everest with McIntosh’s group—had clambered to the top of the world-renowned mountain a combined 31 times.
McIntosh said the people of Nepal have evolved over many lifetimes due to living at high altitudes in the Himalayas.
“The Sherpas have lived at high altitudes for well over 25,000 years,” he said. “I was asked to do a number of experiments on Sherpas as we were climbing to see what differences there are with physiology of Sherpas and people like us.”
One difference is the Sherpas have a larger lung capacity, McIntosh found.
During his presentation, McIntosh shared medical figures detailing the level of oxygen saturation in his, Apa, and Lhakpa’s blood during the climb, and pictures taken during the trip, which included the group being blessed by a llama before going to Everest base camp, Tibetan prayer flags, glacier ice and Mount Everest itself. McIntosh was peppered with questions from inquisitive Malibuites about his motivation for climbing and difficulties of climbing.
Despite growing up near the Pacific Ocean, McIntosh was always drawn to mountaineering. He began climbing in his 20s and learned how to ice climb while in medical school in Vermont.
“The mountains were a little more exciting to me than the beach,” said McIntosh. “I wanted to climb rocks. I wanted to climb ice.”
Climbing Mount Everest was no easy task. Since 1921, more 200 people, including many Sherpas, have died while trying to scale the mountain.
McIntosh and his group had to climb the dangerous Khumbu Icefall, a constantly shifting glacier, which has claimed the lives of 19 people, the most of any place on the mountain. The Icefall sits between 18,000 to 20,000 feet above sea level.
“It’s just one of the things you have to accept,” McIntosh said. “A lot of people think summit days are the dangerous part of climbing Mount Everest, but it’s actually the Icefall. One of the last ceremonies or blessings we get is right before the Icefall.”
In addition to climbing Everest, McIntosh has climbed to the summit of Mount Chimorazo in Ecuador, which is the furthest point on Earth away from the center of the planet.
McIntosh said reaching the top of Everest was an amazing experience, but doesn’t intend to climb the mountain again.
“I have other climbing plans,” he said. “I have climbed a lot of peaks and have climbed four of the seven summits [the highest mountain on each of the continents]. I am working on the last three.”
