KATHMANDU, MAY 24
British deaf mountaineer Michael Joseph Woods summited Mount Everest on Thursday morning, then spent two to three hours alone near the Hillary Step in what he later described as one of the hardest battles of his life, before being assisted down by his guide Sherpa in a descent that tested every limit of his endurance.
Woods, 36, a BBC British Sign Language presenter, reached the summit of Everest (8,848.86m) at 8:25 AM on May 21, accompanied by climbing guides Phurba Sherpa and Fudorchi Sherpa, and high-altitude photographer Pasang Aryal, all from 8K Expeditions. The summit was confirmed by Khim Lal Gautam, Field Office Chief at Everest Base Camp.
But the ordeal that followed overshadowed the triumph. During his descent, Woods lost contact and found himself stranded alone near the Hillary Step for an estimated two to three hours. In a social media post after reaching safety, he was emphatic about what had kept him going in that moment: "My kids came into my mind and I fought my way back down to stay alive."
Woods also moved to correct early reports of the incident. "I was not rescued. My guide Sherpa came back up to meet me around halfway, approximately 8,400m, to support me on my descent back to Camp 4," he wrote, adding that he would share the full story in due course.
8K Expeditions Managing Director Lakpa Sherpa confirmed that Woods and a Sherpa guide who had also faced difficulties near the summit were guided safely to South Col by the expedition's Sherpa team. Another Sherpa climber who had been in trouble just below the summit was taken to Camp III safely, Lakpa added.
Reflecting on the full experience, Woods wrote: "There were moments during this expedition where I genuinely didn't know if I could make it, especially after being sick and struggling with energy, but somehow I found a way to keep fighting all the way to the top of the world. This is not just a summit for me. This is years of dreaming, sacrifice and proving to myself that anything is possible if you refuse to give up."
The Everest ascent is part of Woods' Seven Summits challenge, an attempt to scale the highest peak on each of the seven continents. He has already summited Kilimanjaro (July 2, 2025), Mount Elbrus (June 5, 2025), and Aconcagua (January 22, 2026). His primary motivation is fundraising for the National Deaf Children's Society, which has supported his six-year-old son from an early age.
Woods summited on a day that added 154 climbers to the season's tally. The previous day, May 20, had seen 274 reach the top, the largest single-day figure in Everest history, bringing the two-day total to over 400.
