Into Thin Air: Climbing Time on Everest Not Specified in Source

The question references Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air (1997), the definitive account of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. However, the provided source context contains no information about climbing durations on Everest, making it impossible to answer from that specific text.

General Everest Climbing Timeline (External Knowledge)

While not in the provided context, standard commercial expedition timelines are:

• Total expedition – 6-9 weeks (April-May)
• Trekking to Base Camp – 10-14 days (Lukla 2,860m → Base Camp 5,364m)
• Acclimatization rotations – 3-4 cycles: Base Camp → Camp 1 (6,065m) → Camp 2 (6,400m) → Camp 3 (7,200m) → back
• Summit push – 4-5 days: Base Camp → Camp 2 → Camp 3 → Camp 4 (South Col, 7,920m) → Summit (8,848m) → Camp 2
• Descent – 2-3 days to Base Camp

1996 Disaster Context (From Into Thin Air)

• Summit day – May 10, 1996
• Turnaround time violated – Teams summited as late as 2:00-4:00 PM (safe: 1:00 PM)
• Storm onset – Blizzard trapped climbers above South Col
• Fatalities – 8 deaths (5 on summit day: Rob Hall, Scott Fischer, Yasuko Namba, Doug Hansen, Andy Harris; 3 others)
• Krakauer's summit – Reached top ~1:00 PM; descended in deteriorating conditions

For precise timing from Krakauer's narrative, consult the book directly—particularly chapters covering the summit push (Ch. 13-15) and the storm (Ch. 16-17).