KATHMANDU: The spring climbing season on Nepal's mountains may be over, but for hundreds of Nepali Sherpa guides and high-altitude workers, the work is far from done. As the last expedition teams wrapped up on Everest, Lhotse and Makalu in late May, a quiet exodus began — seasoned Sherpas packing their gear and heading not home, but outward across the globe: to Pakistan's Karakoram, Europe's Alps and the high ranges of North America, where summer climbing seasons are now underway.

It is a pattern that has grown stronger each year. Sherpa guides, rope fixers, Icefall Doctors and high-altitude porters who spent weeks above 8,000 metres in the Khumbu are now fixing ropes, building routes and guiding international clients on some of the world's most demanding peaks far beyond Nepal's borders. Their skill, experience and track record have made Nepali Sherpas among the most sought-after high-altitude professionals in the international mountaineering market, with demand continuing to rise season after season.

The Karakoram is where the largest concentration of this season's Nepali talent has gathered. Nepal's biggest expedition operators — Seven Summit Treks, 8K Expeditions, 14 Peaks Expeditions, Imagine Nepal Treks and Glacier Himalaya Treks — have already dispatched climbers and logistics to Pakistan, with teams active across K2, Nanga Parbat, Broad Peak and the Gasherbrums. Chhang Dawa Sherpa, Expedition Director at Seven Summit Treks, has himself reached the region to lead exclusive expeditions on the ground. "Climbers have already reached the base camps for acclimatisation rotations, while Sherpa guides are now busy fixing ropes," he said.

"From the Himalayas to the Karakoram, these climbers bring decades of high-altitude experience, countless successful ascents, and an unwavering commitment to safety, teamwork, and expedition success," said Tashi Lakpa Sherpa, CEO of 14 Peaks Expeditions, whose teams are simultaneously managing multiple Pakistani peaks this season. "While our Nanga Parbat team continues its strong progress on the mountain and has already reached Camp I, another team of 14 Peaks Expedition Sherpas is now en route to Pakistan to support our expeditions on K2, Broad Peak, Gasherbrum I, and Gasherbrum II," he added.

The season has drawn a compelling roster of international athletes. Polish extreme skier Andrzej Bargiel, the first mountaineer to ski down all Karakoram 8,000-metre peaks, is set to ski down from the top of Nanga Parbat this season. Seven Summit Treks is handling his expedition. He etched his name into history with his expedition in Pakistan, where he skied down the Gasherbrum peaks without supplemental oxygen. Prior to that achievement, he had already descended Broad Peak (8,051m) and K2 (8,611m). 

Sheikha Asma Al Thani, a record-setting Qatari athlete and member of the royal family, is targeting Gasherbrum II and Broad Peak with renowned high-altitude guide Lakpa Sherpa, also known as Makalu Lakpa, leading her bid through 14 Peaks Expeditions. Mingma G, one of Nepal's most celebrated climbers, is attempting K2 for the seventh time this season through Imagine Nepal Treks.

Among individual Nepali climbers making their mark is Siddhi Ghising, who has already summited Everest twelve times and K2 seven times, and is now in Pakistan for his eighth attempt on K2. Pasang Sherpa, with summits on Everest, Ama Dablam, Elbrus and Kilimanjaro, and Phura Sherpa, who has climbed Everest, Lhotse, Makalu and Ama Dablam, have also joined expeditions on Nanga Parbat and K2.

Beyond Pakistan, Nepali Sherpas are also guiding and supporting expeditions in the European Alps and across various ranges in the Americas, continuing a year-round circuit of high-altitude work that now spans multiple continents. 

Rajendra Bahadur Lama, Secretary General of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, said the post-spring migration to Pakistan and other international ranges has become a defining feature of the Nepali climbing calendar. He noted that not only guides but also Icefall Doctors, route-setters and high-altitude porters who work Nepal's mountains during spring are now finding year-round employment on peaks abroad, a testament to how widely Nepali high-altitude expertise is sought across the global mountaineering industry.

The Expedition Operators Association of Nepal notes that foreign climbers' trust in Nepali Sherpas has placed them not just as support staff but as lead guides, team leaders and climbers in their own right on the world's hardest mountains. As the Pakistan 2026 season moves into its critical weather windows and Sherpa teams fan out across ranges from the Karakoram to the Alps, Nepal's mountaineering community has made clear that Everest is only where the season begins.