Schoolgirl Bianca Adler youngest Australian to conquer Mt Everest

Melbourne climber Bianca Adler has become the youngest Australian to reach the top of Mount Everest*.

The 18-year-old conquered the world’s highest peak on Tuesday evening (Wednesday AEST), making her a record-breaking mountaineer*.

Ms Adler had attempted the ambitious* mission last year but fell short just 400m of the summit after bad weather forced her to turn around.

Ms Adler’s mother, Fiona, shared the news on the climber’s blog, Bianca’s Everest Climb.

“We just got news that Bianca is at the summit of Mt Everest! Paul [her father] was able to speak on the radio to her and she sounded a bit tired, but over the moon!,” Fiona shared.

“She said she feels good, but it’s extremely cold and very windy. She’s going to take some photos and get down as quickly as possible.

“She is there well before the masses of people still on their way up – this is important for safety as it’s meant that she’s been able to climb at her pace and not get stuck and get cold in a long queue.”

Ms Adler was on Wednesday morning (AEST) in the notorious* danger zone above 8,000m, an area where climbers can face frostbite*, hypothermia* and oxygen depletion – and sometimes, lengthy queues that delay progress both up and back down the mountain.

At the summit, mountaineers race against time to reach the top of Everest as they can only safely spend 16 to 20 hours in this zone.

Already the youngest woman to summit Manaslu (8163m) and Ama Dablam (6812m), Ms Adler previously said what she lacked in age she had in experience.

On her journey to the top, she battled through a deadly maze of ice blocks known as the Khumbu icefall.

Sherpas* had to reroute climbers due to extra danger through the icefall this year, causing a small delay at base camp.

While this year’s journey was being redesigned, Ms Adler had some time to spare.

The young climber used the delay to sharpen her acclimatisation* by sleeping on the summit of the nearby mountain Lobuche East.

“I have already climbed two 6000m peaks, and slept on the summit of one of them! So after this short rotation I will be very acclimatised. A lot more than last year” she said when the Herald Sun spoke to her in the first week of May.

Ms Adler said she was taking oxygen with her but said having the extra supply, “doesn’t make it easy … just more doable”.

Despite the “dramas” with the icefall, Ms Adler said there were similar seracs* every year.

“It does not make this season more dangerous than previous ones,” she said.

Ms Adler’s mother added that, due to safety, the teen summited Everest in the dark.

And while the news is certainly cause for celebration, Fiona reminded readers that her daughter now faces the challenge of climbing back down.

“The only downside is that she’s summited in the dark. But that’s a small price to pay for a safe and successful summit,” Fiona wrote.

“Super well done, Bink! We’re all so proud of you and all the work you’ve put into this.

“Now to get down safely …”

At the time of writing (Tuesday 8:30pm AEST), Ms Adler was safe and resting at Camp 4, according to an update on her blog that includes an audio of the climber saying that “coming down is tough”.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• Mount Everest: the highest mountain on Earth, situated on the border between Nepal and Tibet in the west of China, with a peak elevation of 8,848m from sea level
• mountaineer: a person who climbs mountains as a sport or job
• ambitious: when used to describe a project, plan, or goal, it means the task is very difficult, requires a great deal of skill, effort and resources to pull off successfully
• notorious: well-known for some bad or unfavourable quality or deed, infamous
• frostbite: injury caused by severe cold, usually to their toes, fingers, ears, or nose, that causes permanent loss of tissue
• hypothermia: a serious medical condition in which a person’s body temperature falls below the usual level after being in severe cold for a long time
• acclimatisation: process of changing to suit different conditions of life, environment, weather
• seracs: large, often unstable blocks, pinnacles, or columns of glacial ice
• Sherpas: members of the Tibetan people living on the high southern slopes of the Himalayas in eastern Nepal and known as excellent climbers who often work as guides and porters on Everest expeditions

EXTRA READING

Teen reveals toll of Everest climb

Mt Everest record for non-Sherpa

Gross find at the top of Mt Everest

Remarkable traffic jam atop Mt Everest

QUICK QUIZ

1. What is the record Ms Adler now holds?
2. How far from the summit was she last year when she was forced to turn around?
3. What altitude is the danger zone and what can climbers face there?
4. How did Ms Adler make use of the weather delay?
5. Why did Ms Adler choose to summit in the dark?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. News: condensed
Identify the most important pieces of information in this article and write a condensed version of it using 50 words or less.

Draw a picture or diagram to support your condensed news story.

Time: allow 25 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

2. Extension
Compare your condensed news story with a classmate. Did you both include the same information or are your stories quite different? Discuss your choices and then work together to create a final condensed version of the story that you both agree tells the important parts that a reader would need or want to know.

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Imaginative dialogue
Imagine you were there during Bianca Adler’s Everest summit.

Create a conversation between two characters from the article – you may need or want to include yourself as one of the characters. Don’t forget to try to use facts and details from the article to help make your dialogue as realistic as possible.

Go through your writing and highlight any punctuation you have used in green. Make sure you carefully check the punctuation used for the dialogue and ensure you have opened and closed the speaking in the correct places.