Every year, thousands of people trek to Everest Base Camp in Nepal. This past spring, we joined them, hiking for 10 days, sometimes crawling, and often barely breathing. We could not have done it without the Sherpas. Indigenous to the Everest region, Sherpa is an ethnic group, a last name, and a job description. Often cast as “superhuman,” they are the porters and guides who risk their lives to help others reach the summit with little recognition. Our Sherpa guide, mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa,