This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Two days after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal in April, Norbu Tenzing was on a plane to Kathmandu.
The quake had killed 9,000 people and injured more than 23,000, and Tenzing, vice president of the American Himalayan Foundation, said he didn't know what to expect.
"People really had no idea the extent of the damages," he said.
When he arrived, Tenzing said he saw thousands of people walking around in a daze, unsure of where to go after their homes, temples and villages had been destroyed.
"Now, three months later," he said, "we are slowly getting into a recovery mode."
Part of that recovery, Tenzing said, is dependent on the return of the outdoor-recreation industry and the role it plays in Nepal's economy.
Speaking at the kickoff breakfast of the 2015 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market Wednesday, Tenzing, the son of a famed sherpa who was one of the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest, said it is time for outdoor adventurers and retailers to return to Nepal.
"Nepal is going to need a lot of help," he said. "We need to get back on our feet again."
Tenzing was joined at the breakfast by Peter Athans, who is known as "Mr. Everest" for summiting the world's tallest peak seven times.
Athans said many parts of Nepal are up and running, and the country's leaders are hopeful about its ability to endure and move forward.
"It's time to visit this place," he said. "It's time to give something back to what we've taken images from for years and years and we've taken inspiration from."
Roughly 1,550 manufacturers and 27,000 attendees are expected to participate in this year's market, which runs through Saturday.
The Outdoor Retailer Summer Market Show generates more than $25 million in direct spending for Utah and Salt Lake City, according to Visit Salt Lake statistics.