The Ghosts Above

Everest is the eternal subject of mountain films. Here, an expedition joined by National Geographic Photographer Renan Ozturk — who narrates in first person — summits in an effort to solve an outstanding Everest mystery: Who achieved the first summit? Was it really George Mallory? Or his partner Sandy Irvine, who disappeared with Mallory in 1924 on the descent. While Mallory’s body was discovered in 1999, Irvine’s has yet to be found. On this quest, there are reflections on the history of Everest expeditions, the fraught relationship between indigenous guides and expeditioners, the rigors of high-alpine mountaineering and the commercialization of sacred Everest. Despite Mallory’s famous retort to it, the question remains: Why climb Everest? What might Sandy Irvine’s corpse reveal that justifies the mortal risks of the expedition?