As I get ready to leave for my twentieth Himalayan expedition, I can't help but be amazed that I am once again going back. What is it that keeps taking me back there?

On my first Everest climb in 1982, I met Peter Boardman, a member of Chris Bonnington’s Northeast Ridge Expedition, at Rongbuk Base Camp. I remember asking Boardman the same question: Why was he going back to Everest after his very successful first ascent of Everest's Southwest Face in 1975? His answer, a few weeks before he died on the Northeast "Pinnacles" Ridge, has haunted me: "Everest is a schizophrenic mountain," he said. "You never know which of its personalities you will encounter."

This uncertainty is part of what brings me back to Everest for a seventh expedition. That's what adventure is all about. I know every trip is going to be different. From picking an objective and securing the permits to organizing the team and staff, getting the money, assembling the food and equipment, and finally doing the climb, it is a constantly changing landscape of challenges. Sometimes it’s a lot of headaches and stress, but when it all finally comes together, it’s a great feeling.

The 1999 Mallory & Irvine Research Expedition is my tribute to a couple of climbers who, 75 years ago, pushed the envelope of human adventure with tweed jackets, leather boots, and canvas tents. These days we know what it's like up high on Everest. They didn't. Mallory and Irvine are what the spirit of adventure is all about. The purpose of our expedition is to tell their inspiring story.

I get shivers thinking about Lewis and Clark, Mallory and Irvine, John Glenn, Shackleton, Mawson, Tenzing and Hillary, Joshua Slocum, and others. So few of us will ever get (or want) that chance...to really hang it out and put it on the line. Maybe it's enough for most of us just to know that there are others out there with the spirit to look beyond the ordinary and think big.

It's not the feats people accomplish that fascinate me, it's the people that do the stuff. What were they thinking? What did they sacrifice to experience their adventure? What was the cost to them? What was their reward?

The joy of adventure and the rewards of risk keep the human spirit healthy. That's why I like being a mountain guide so much. It's all about the intrinsic satisfaction that comes from sharing the challenge of uncertainty with people and helping them realize their dreams.

As partners in International Mountain Guides, Phil Ershler, George Dunn and I have spent over 20 years and over 300 expeditions building relationships and sharing adventures with our customers. We'd like to think we can help people take something back from our adventures together, something that makes all of our lives better.

—Eric Simonson, Expedition Leader
    March 1999; Ashford, WA