MOUNT EVEREST’S CHILLING COLD CASE: What Really Happened to ‘Sleeping Beauty’ Francys Arsentiev? thanhthao
Mount Everest — the world’s highest peak — has seen countless tales of triumph and tragedy, but few have haunted climbers and historians as much as the mystery of Francys Arsentiev, forever known as “The Sleeping Beauty of Everest.” Nearly three decades later, the chilling cold case surrounding her final climb continues to stir debate and sorrow in the mountaineering community
Francys Arsentiev was not just any climber — in 1998, she became the first American woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen. But what should have been a historic achievement quickly turned into a nightmare. Alongside her husband, Sergei Arsentiev, Francys began the descent in worsening weather conditions. The thin air, brutal winds, and freezing temperatures soon took their toll.
Some accounts from climbers on the mountain that day describe seeing Francys struggling to move, her speech slurred and her body slowing down with each step. By the time other expedition members found her, she was barely conscious, frostbite setting in, and unable to descend under her own power. Despite attempts to assist her, the conditions were too severe — and she was eventually left behind. Her final hours were spent high on the mountain, overlooking the vast Himalayan range she had fought so hard to conquer