Even After Avalanche, Hikers Still Climbing Everest. Are They Crazy?

In this April 26, 2015, photo, a person critically injured in an avalanche is carried on a stretcher to be evacuated out of Everest Base Camp, Nepal. (Photo: AP/Nima Namgyal Sherpa)

This past Saturday was the deadliest single day Mount Everest had ever seen.

The devastating earthquake that rocked Nepal on Saturday left more than 2,400 people dead and set off huge avalanches that killed 18 people on the mountain, with countless others still missing, injured, or trapped. Since then, the region has experienced nearly 20 powerful aftershocks and several more avalanches, which have hampered recovery efforts.

Related: Watch — Terrifying Video of Everest Avalanche

But despite the tragic events in recent days, some climbers already farther up the mountain intend to continue their journey to the summit.

“Few of the Sherpas have been directly affected and the show will go on in a few days we expect,” wrote climber and blogger Adrian Hayes, who is currently at Camp 1 on the South side of the mountain.

A rescue chopper lands, having carried people from higher camps to Everest Base Camp, Nepal. (Photo: AP/Nima Namgyal Sherpa)

Another climber, Phil Crampton, who was on the mountain for last year’s fatal avalanche, too, is also planning to continue his climb.

“I think we are all just going to wait and see what happens,” he said by phone from Base Camp. “I’m not familiar with any teams leaving Base Camp yet. I think a few teams went down the valley for a few days. They plan to return.”

Just last April, 16 Sherpas were killed by an avalanche as they set up ropes in the Khumbu Icefall — considered to be the most treacherous of routes up the mountain. The deaths resulted in a boycott by other Sherpas, causing the rest of the season’s expeditions to be canceled and the Khumbu Icefall route to be listed as off-limits.

Related: After Tragedy, Nepal Switches to Safer Everest Route

Climbing Everest has been and always will be dangerous. The explorers who take on the challenge face below-freezing temperatures, hurricane-force winds, frostbite, altitude sickness, vertical ice climbs, falling rocks and ice, dehydration, and exhaustion.

This photo, provided by Azim Afif, shows a small avalanche on Pumori mountain as seen from Everest Base Camp, Nepal, on April 26, 2015. Afif and his team of four others from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia all survived the avalanche. (Photo: Azim Afif via AP)

Experts agree that the mountain should, and in all likelihood will, be closed for the rest of the season in the wake of the tragedy. Reports from the Chinese state news agency Xinhua claim that the Chinese government has stopped all expeditions on the North side of Everest for the rest of the season. And the destroyed South-side Base Camp is now at the center of rescue efforts. But what about the future? Will people be allowed to climb next season?

The first thing to understand when considering the trek up Mount Everest is that there are two main possible route options: One is on the North side of the mountain, starting in Tibet, and the other is on the South side, starting in Nepal. Despite the South side’s horrific track record in recent years, the North side is actually considered the harder and more treacherous of the two.

Related: 17-Year-Old Trapped but Alive on Everest

Attempts at the summit are usually made in April and May, when the weather conditions are most stable. The cost of a climb, which includes several permits, a guide, Sherpas, a cook, and equipment, can be as much as $70,000; and a climb takes around 40 days from Base Camp. Only several hundred people a year attempt this feat.

Climbers and guides carry one of the injured after an avalanche struck Everest Base Camp. (Photo: AP/Pasang Dawa Sherpa)

However, trekking just to Base Camp can be done several times a year with companies such as Alpine Ascents International, which charges $4,500 for the three-week trek (to Base Camp and back). And thousands of people make this journey annually.

Last year’s avalanche had little impact on the demand for climbing the mountain this year. The mountain saw almost 500 climbing permits issued. Some tour operators think that the tragedy may increase demand to go up the mountain.

“I actually think that interest in climbing Everest will go up,” said Steve Guthrie, of Mountain Madness, which has been arranging climbs and treks to Everest for over 30 years. Luckily, all of its teams that were on the mountain at the time are have been accounted for and are safe. “Not because of morbid interest but because of the exposure. It will be on people’s radar more.”

Mountain Madness has, as yet, not canceled its planned trek to Base Camp later this year. But Guthrie says it may transition the trek into an aid trip — and plan several other aid trips.

“We have many of our clients who are interested in going to help. As a company, we are going to do what we can.”

As for next year, they are waiting to see.

“We are not sure if the infrastructure will be there. We have a summit climb planned but will have to wait and see.”

“For now, all the tourists are leaving,” explained Lina Patel, an expedition leader for Himalayan Glacier Trekking, who had two crews on the mountain. “The area is in complete shock, and rescuers are just trying to get everyone off safely. The area has no power; all the offices in Kathmandu are closed. There is no way the treks next week will go ahead, and I have no idea when they will start back up again.”

But Patel also has not been put off by the recent tragedy on the mountain. “It is my second home, and I plan to lead a trek of 40 people in September.”

So if the trekking and climbing companies still want to go, would the governments ever put a stop to people going up the mountain?

“Everest is never going to be easy, and it is never going to be 100 percent safe,” Steve Guthrie explains. “I don’t think Nepal would ever shut the mountain down. It is a huge source of revenue for the country, and they need that revenue, especially now.”

Of course, the only people who can make the final decision about climbing are the Sherpas. If they don’t want to go, no one can go.

“It may be that it becomes culturally not acceptable to be on Everest anymore,” says Guthrie. “And the Sherpas might not want to climb. It does seem that the mountain might be telling us something. But for now, the situation is too dynamic. We are not sure what the future will bring.”

Let Yahoo Travel inspire you every day. Hang out with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Check out our original adventure travel series “A Broad Abroad.”