Peninsula Daily News news sources
SEATTLE — A Seattle-based team lead by veteran mountaineer Ed Viesturs that includes a relative of noted Port Townsend mountaineer Jim Whittaker has reached the summit of Mount Everest.
It was the seventh time atop the 29,035-foot peak for Viesturs, of Bainbridge Island, who was the first American to climb all 14 of the world’s highest peaks without supplemental oxygen.
The team reached the top at about 8 a.m. Tuesday, Nepal time.
The Seattle Times reported that the group included Peter Whittaker of Rainier Mountaineering Inc. guide service based in Ashford. He is the nephew of Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit Everest in 1963.
Everest lies on the border between China and Nepal.
Each year, there are only about two periods in May, lasting between a couple of days to a week, when harsh weather conditions ease enough to allow climbing to the top.
Expedition blog is at http://blog.firstascent.com.
