I was also intrigued by what extreme altitude can do to the human body and mind, and the unexpected impact it can have on the decisions – and even ethics – of a person. But more than a fixation on the macabre, I wished to know the story of the handsome young man in the green boots – especially the circumstances that could allow him to remain on the mountain for so many years. I admit to feeling a certain morbid curiosity at the thought of Paljor and all the other fallen climbers on the mountain, stranded far from loved ones and frozen in time, forever displaying the moment of their death. Paljor, Wikipedia tells you, was a member of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, and was just 28 years old when he lost his life. Type “Green Boots” into a Google search and you will learn that Paljor, along with climbing partners Tsewang Smanla and Dorje Morup, perished in the 1996 storm immortalised in Jon Krakauer’s best-selling book Into Thin Air and, more recently, the big-budget thriller Everest.
Scant information is available about the man behind the nickname, however. With Paljor’s death came a wave of controversy, including whether he and his two teammates died because other climbers, in their own lust to reach the peak, callously ignored their signs of distress. “About 80% of people also take a rest at the shelter where Green Boots is, and it’s hard to miss the person lying there.” “I would say that really everybody, especially those climbing on the north side, knows about Green Boots or has read about Green Boots or has heard somebody else talking about Green Boots,” says Noel Hanna, an adventurer who has summited Everest seven times. But Paljor’s body, thanks to its prominence, came to be one of the most well-known. Many have lost their lives on Everest, and like Paljor, the vast majority of them remain on the mountain. For nearly 20 years, his body, located not far from Mount Everest’s summit, has served as a grim trail marker for those seeking to conquer the world’s highest mountain from its north face. His name is Tsewang Paljor, but most who encounter him know him only as Green Boots. His legs stretch into the path, forcing passers-by to gingerly step over his neon green climbing boots.
He has pulled his red fleece up around his face, hiding it from view, and wrapped his arms firmly around his torso to ward off the biting wind and cold. The more difficult the way and the more numerous the dangers, the greater is his victory.”Īs though napping, the climber lies on his side under the protective shadow of an overhanging rock. To win the game he has first to reach the mountain’s summit – but, further, he has to descend in safety. “It is clear that the stake risks to lose is a great one with him: it is a matter of life and death…. This is part of BBC Future’s “ Best of 2015” list, our greatest hits of the year.
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