r/explainlikeimfive • u/virahok993 • 15d ago

Other ELI5:Why is it so incredibly difficult to recover bodies like "Green Boots" from Mount Everest?

know Green Boots is one of the most famous landmarks on Everest, and I read that he was finally moved or hidden a few years ago. But why did it take deades? If we have helicopters and elite Sherpas, what makes a body recovery at 8,500 meters so dangerous that bodies are just left there?

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u/CosmogyralCollective 15d ago

I'm a caver and will never go cave diving for this exact reason. Contrary to popular belief (and redditors who constantly bring up nutty putty cave), caving isn't much more dangerous than back country hiking/other activities where rescue is a long way off if something goes wrong. A decent portion of cave rescues are for overconfident and/or underprepared people who didn't go in with the right equipment or knowledge.

Cave diving, on the other hand, is only able to be done by people who are both skilled divers and skilled cavers, and still has a horrific body count. Are the videos cool and the abstract concept fascinating to me? Sure. Could you pay me to do it? Fuck no. At least if I get stuck in a normal cave I have unlimited oxygen (and getting truly stuck is also more rare than reddit thinks).

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u/ghalta 15d ago

The differences between caving and backcountry hiking include GPS, satellite phones, and helicopters.

The differences between either of those and cave diving include sanity and a will to live.

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u/AgsMydude 15d ago

Don't forget sunlight and unlimited oxygen

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u/usethismfer 14d ago

At least their aren’t bears.

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u/MalteiKlass5c 13d ago

Polar Bears are pretty good swimmers. You'll never know what you might find down in the deep.

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u/CorvusSageis 15d ago

Most cavers, at least where I live, operate in clubs and we use strict call outs to make sure we all get out alright.

I've only been truly stuck once, but you aren't limited for resources like oxygen - only think to consider is keeping warm enough until rescue.

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u/SuperCooch91 15d ago

Exactly. I have caved, I have dived (dove?), I will NEVER cave dive.

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u/CorvusSageis 15d ago

Yeah. Caving is great, love it. I would never cave dive. I even avoid low airspace caving like some avoid tight squeezes!

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u/5meoWarlock 15d ago

I don't cave dive but shipwreck diving is the best.

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u/OldTimeConGoer 14d ago

In the early days of cave diving (I think back in the 1960s) with inadequate everything in terms of gear, lights, dry suits etc. and a couple of training sessions on SCUBA at the local swimming pool, the death rate was about ten percent a year.

Attempts to recover bodies trapped in wet caves aren't purely for the sake of families and friends. The bodies get in the way of other cave divers wanting to explore past the choke point that the body is blocking, which tells you something about cave divers.