IMO this is a reductionist take that is often peddled around Reddit. "Anybody can climb Everest, it's not that difficult", etc.
Personally? I think it's a pretty cool achievement and is _the_ mountain to climb for a reason. I'm with the other commenter here. Chase your passions.
Maybe it’s time to stop being so egocentric
https://nepalmonitor.com/2025/03/19/nepal-overtourism-everes...
It's similar to how many people clutch their pearls about abandoned gear on Everest.
Many of the neighbouring countries -- including Nepal, India, Tibet, Bangladesh -- are effectively open-air garbage dumps, where rivers and fields and cities are just awash with discards and garbage. In environmentally critical places where it massively impedes with the life of millions.
In a relative sense I just do not care about some infinitesimal amount of discarded air canisters on a lifeless rock at 10,000 feet. It seems like misdirected envy when people suddenly super care about that. In an ideal world they would leave only footprints, but in the grand scheme of things it just does not matter. Cue another "OMG look at these air canisters some rich guys left at 15,000 feet!" articles.
It's a bit like how the anti-AI cadre have taken to suddenly being incredibly concerned about the energy usage of AI. Despite everything else, it's AI that's going to heat the planet. They never cared about data centre power usage when it was serving their big tiddy goth anime GIFs, but if it's AI suddenly they lament this outrage.
For the record, the two base camps on either side of Everest are at about 17,000 feet. 15,000 feet won't even get you started.
> is _the_ mountain to climb for a reason.
Is this the case in mountaineering circles, or are K2 and Annapurna the peaks to be respected?
I never said it's not difficult. Please see my response to the other commenter.