Tunç Fındık Reaches Everest Summit for the 3rd Time!
Renowned Turkish mountaineer Tunç Fındık has once again made history by reaching the summit of Mount Everest. Following his completion of the 14 x 8000 project in 2023, Fındık ascended to the peak of Everest on the morning of May 22, 2024, at 5:00 AM Nepal time. This marks his third successful climb to the top of the world’s highest mountain. Initially planning to summit without supplemental oxygen, Fındık had to adapt his plan due to a throat infection to ensure his safety, ultimately using oxygen to complete the climb.
Tunç Fındık began his Everest adventure on May 7-9, 2024, with an acclimatization journey along the 1953 first ascent route, Everest’s standard route. After completing this acclimatization trek, he returned to the base camp at 5,350 meters. From there, he tackled the most perilous section on the Nepal side of Everest, the “Khumbu Icefall” glacier labyrinth, which shifts a meter daily and is notorious for causing ice avalanches. Successfully navigating this dangerous path, he reached Camp 2 at 6,500 meters. The Khumbu Icefall is considered the greatest challenge on this side of Everest, featuring deep ice crevasses, ladder crossings, small ice walls, and unstable ice towers that can collapse at any moment. This stage from base camp to Camp 1 can take between 4 to 10 hours, with a brave team of Sherpas known as “icefall doctors” maintaining the route.
After spending several days above 6,500 meters, Fındık returned to the base camp to rest. On the night of May 10, the Nepali rope-fixing teams opened the route to the summit. On May 18, Fındık left the base camp for his summit push. Starting from Camp 4 at South Col (8,000 meters) in the early hours of May 21, he reached the summit after an 8.5-hour climb on the morning of May 22, 2024, at 5:00 AM. Due to a throat infection that began during the initial trekking phase, Fındık altered his plan to use supplemental oxygen, ensuring a safer and more secure ascent.
ACTEON sponsored Tunç Fındık in this challenging and prestigious expedition. We wholeheartedly congratulate Tunç Fındık on this remarkable achievement and express our gratitude for the immense value he has added to Turkish mountaineering.
Reference: Turkish Mountaineering Federation, Tunç Fındık
