Getting close ...

As of Tuesday afternoon, Apa Sherpa had phoned into Jerry Mika at Base Camp to say that he was near the "balcony" and was nearing the summit from the south side of Mount Everest, according to SuperSherpas Expedition spokeswoman Katie Eldridge. At about 1:30 p.m. (Mountain time) the team of seven or eight Sherpas, led by Utahns Apa Sherpa and Lhakpa Sherpa, were approximately four hours into their big summit push from Camp 4. It's estimated they may reach the summit, if the weather holds, between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., Utah time. If that happens, the all-Sherpa team will be the first team to summit from Everest's south side this year.

Stay tuned ...