British climber makes 19th ascent of Everest, most by a non-Sherpa

Kathmandu: A British climber beat his own record on Sunday for the most climbs of Mount Everest by a non-Sherpa, making his 19th ascent of the world's highest mountain, a hiking official said.

Britain's Kenton Cool, 51, climbed the 8,849-m (29,032-foot) peak in the morning and was descending to lower camps, said Rajan Bhattarai of Nepali expedition organising company Himalayan Guides.

Fellow climbers hailed the record as "legendary".

"His experience, charisma, and strength make him a valuable part of the Everest community," said Adrian Ballinger of U.S.-based Alpenglow Expeditions.

"He's just a great person to share stories from two decades on the mountain," Ballinger, a nine-time summiteer of Everest now leading an expedition on the Chinese side of the mountain, told Reuters in a text message.

Cool first climbed Everest in 2004 and has since repeated the feat almost every year.

On Sunday, he was accompanied by a Sherpa, Dorji Gyaljen, who logged his 23rd climb.

Another Nepali Sherpa, Kami Rita, holds the record for the greatest number of ascents of Everest by any person at 30.

Cool used the Southeast Ridge route, also known as South Col, which is the standard route to the summit pioneered by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953. The route remains the most popular path among climbers.

Everest has been climbed by more than 8,000 people, many of them multiple times, since it was first scaled by Hillary and Norgay more than 70 years ago.

Mountain climbing is a major tourism activity and a source of income as well as employment for Nepal, home to eight of the world's 14 tallest peaks, including Everest.

Nepal has issued 468 permits, each costing climbers $11,000, for the climbing season that ends this month.