UTAHNS GIVE UP ATTEMPT TO CLIMB EVEREST

      Bad weather, time constraints and the lack of a guide rope dashed a Utah climbing team's effort to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

      Utahns on Everest sent word Tuesday that their bid to scale the world's tallest peak was unsuccessful. But the team came off the mountain with plenty to be proud of, a team member told the Deseret News in a telephone interview from Katmandu.No one was injured. Despite its small size, Utahns on Everest made it as far up the mountain as larger, better-equipped teams. And they gave it their all.

      Stan Smith, a Salt Lake podiatrist, said he and two teammates are in great health after spending nearly six weeks on the slopes of Everest. With Smith are Keith Hooker, an emergency room physician at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, and Craig Bishop, a member of the Utah National Guard and a trilobite miner.

      "We feel completely satisfied with our efforts," Smith said. "Actually, we did as well, if not better, than expeditions that were larger."

      A five-member team of Utah climbers left Utah Aug. 16 on an adventure they'd spent five years planning and preparing for. The team received a permit in 1987 to climb the Great Couloir on the north face of Everest, which stretches 29,028 feet above the Earth's surface.

      It's not the easy route up the mountain. Only 11 people have reached the summit from the north side. In comparison, more than 175 people that tackled Everest from the south side succeeded.

      Two team members returned home earlier. Howard "Doc" Chuntz, a Provo attorney, left Everest on Sept. 26 after helping the team gain some ground on the mountain. He arrived in Utah 11/2 weeks ago. Chuntz gave up the climb after losing 25 pounds and contracting dysentery.

      Doug Hansen, owner of Hansen Mountaineering in Orem, returned to Utah Sept. 5 after he picked up a respiratory virus. Hansen began having difficulty breathing after reaching a camp at the 16,000-foot level.

      Despite its thin ranks, Utahns on Everest pressed on, Smith said.

      The team worked its way up to 24,300 feet, where it stashed some equipment. The Utahns then returned to advanced base camp, 18,500 feet, and spent a week resting. On Sept. 27, Utahns on Everest, aided by two Sherpas who pack gear for teams, began climbing back up the mountain.

      The team spent a day at Camp 2, at 20,300 elevation. Hooker stayed there, while Bishop, Smith and the Sherpas continued up the mountain. On Sept. 29, the team reached 24,000 feet.