It's 63 years to the day since Sir Edmund Hillary was the first person to summit Mt Everest, but things have changed a lot since then.
Two of New Zealand's famous modern summiteers say cowboy guiding outfits are putting people's lives at risk.
Six people have died up the mountain just in the past few weeks.
The Christchurch Nepalese community met today to mark and celebrate the first climb of Everest. Among the guests were double amputee Mark Inglis and engineer Wayne Alexander, who summited Mt Everest together 10 years ago.
Everest has been under the spotlight lately due to the recent deaths of six climbers.
"The issue on Everest isn't the commercialism; it's, I believe, the professionalism," says Mr Inglis.
He says there are some professional and more expensive guiding operations.
"Then there's what only what can be described as some rat bags, and that's always been an issue."
Australian woman Maria Strydom died near the summit a week ago. Her family have hit out at the guiding company that took her up.
Mr Inglis says the fact is, Everest is still an incredibly dangerous place.
"The sensationalisation of Everest means that more people want to go, but they don't understand the intensity of the training, the focus that you need and the seriousness that Everest is."
And some people are simply risk-takers by nature.
"Also, some people do want to sail close to the wind; it's a human trait," says Mr Alexander.
Everest expeditions range in price from around $35,000 to $195,000 per person and, maybe here more than anywhere on Earth, you get what you pay for.
"You buy cheap and it's not a good place to find out. You know, it will cost you your life," says Mr Inglis.
For climbers, one of the most vital safety matters is picking the right guide. People desperate to reach the summit often can't think straight when they're low on oxygen.
"We had to scream and yell at some people in our team to turn them around, but it meant they survived," Mr Inglis.
The local Nepalese community says they talk about it often.
"I think we can reduce the pressure by limiting the climbing groups year by year," says Dr Bohala Pradhan from the Non Resident Nepali Association.
But the retired summiteers say there are already rules in place; it's just a matter of somehow getting them enforced.
Newshub.
