Climbers gear up for the annual assault on Everest, and the mountain is ready to rumble. Unsteady, melting glacial ice triggers avalanches that tear down the slopes of Everest, turning the trek through the Kumbu Ice Falls to Camp One into a deadly game of Russian roulette. Millionaire adventurer, David Tait, pushes through the treacherous Ice Falls, and races to become the first team-member to reach the summit. Canadian climber Rejean Audet finds out that it takes more than heart to conquer Everest -- and an avalanche buries a team of climbers, turning the adventure of a lifetime into a fight for survival.

With a rogue storm front closing in on Everest, the window for a summit bid is rapidly closing. Most climbers retreat in the face of the on-coming storm, but for former college football player, John Golden, and his long-time climbing partner, John Shea, it's go time. Golden shattered his knee in a freak football accident years ago, and now walks on a surgically reconstructed knee. With every step, Golden pushes himself and his knee closer and closer to the breaking point. On Everest, he's just one slip away from stranding himself and the entire team on the slopes of the world's deadliest mountain.

Astronaut, Scott Parazynski, and senior citizen Dawes Eddy attempt a history-making summit bid. Veteran of 5 Space Shuttle missions, Scott is vying to become first person to walk in space and stand on top of the world's highest peak. For 66-year-old Dawes, a successful climb would make him the oldest American to reach the summit of Mount Everest. The climbers quickly find out that the mountain doesn't give up the prize easily. They'll have to run a lethal gauntlet of shifting ice, deep crevasses, and avalanches - if they make it through these obstacles, the Death Zone lies dead ahead, and the summit just beyond.

Hundreds of climbers head for the summit on the same day, leading to human traffic jams on the icy slopes of Everest. At 28,000 feet up, the traffic is deadly. With the bottled oxygen supply running low and hypothermia setting in, Russ's guides take matters into their own hands, pushing aside rival teams to clear a path to the summit.

The season is drawing to a close, and the weather is growing worse by the day. With a storm system closing in on Everest, Russ gives the go-ahead for his final team of climbers to begin their ascent, betting that they'll make it to the summit and back before the deadly storm hits. But he's gambling on the weakest team of the season. To beat the storm and survive Everest, they'll need to climb like their lives depend on it - because they do.