The Allure of Everest

Few places on Our planet conjure up the mystery and excitement of Mount Everest. As the highest point on Earth this is the pinnacle of high-altitude trekking, and over the past century she has attracted considerable attention and climbing attempts.

It may have been climbed in 1924, although this has never been confirmed, as both of the men making the attempt failed to return from the mountain. As Nepal did not allow foreigners to enter the country at the time, the British made several attempts on the north ridge route from the Tibetan side. The infamous 1924 expedition resulted in one of the greatest mysteries on Everest to this day: George Mallory and Andrew Irvine made a final summit attempt on 8th June but never returned, sparking debate as to whether or not they were the first to reach the top. They had been spotted high on the mountain that day but disappeared into the clouds, never to be seen again, until Mallory's body was found in 1999 some 8,150m up the north face.

With what was about to follow in continental Europe, the quest fell into abeyance for over two decades after the unsuccessful attempts of the early 1920s, but following the Second World War there came a renewed drive to conquer Everest, and in 1953 the British dispatched a ninth expedition with two climbing pairs selected, each tasked to reach the 8,848-metre summit. With only a handful of days each year offering favourable conditions to make possible the full ascent, across the world all eyes were now firmly fixed on Nepal...

The first pair, Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, came within 100m of the summit on 26th May 1953, but were agonisingly forced to turn back after running into oxygen problems. However, their work in route finding and trail-braking paved the way for the second expedition which set off two days later: As we know, the illustrious climbing pair on this occasion were Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. The men reached the summit at 11:30am local time on 29th May 1953. They paused at the top of the world to take photographs and bury a few sweets and a small cross in the snow before descending.

News of the expedition's success reached London on the morning of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation on 2nd June 1953. A few days later, the Queen gave orders that Hillary (a New Zealander) was to be knighted in the Order of the British Empire for the ascent, while Tenzing (a Nepali Sherpa who was a citizen of India) was to be granted the George Medal by the UK. Hillary and Tenzing have also been recognised in Nepal. In 2009, statues were raised in their honor, and in 2014, Hillary Peak and Tenzing Peak were named for them.

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It is truly inspiring to fathom this accomplishment when considering the sheer physical and mental challenge that lay before them, to navigate their way aided by such basic equipment, through the unknown - the death zone - where so many before them had perished, amidst some of the most inhospitable conditions imaginable, over the Hillary step (as it has since been coined), and up to the top of the world’s highest mountain.

The peak of Mount Everest actually extends into the upper troposphere and penetrates the stratosphere, which can expose it to the fast and freezing 100mph winds of the jet stream. In February 2004, a wind speed of 175mph was recorded at the summit. These winds can literally blow climbers off the mountain! Now, of course, we can’t take you right up to the summit, but our trek to Everest Base Camp (5,364m) will definitely give you a taste of the high-altitude conditions those heroes faced during the first-recorded ascent 67 years ago. As part of our itinerary, too, you’ll transit to the Himalayan Khumbu via Lukla, which houses the Tenzing-Hillary Airport, renamed in January 2008 in honour of the duo.

Obviously, tourism in Nepal has been heavily impacted this year by coronavirus, however there is positive news on the horizon: Nepal is officially reopening its borders to global travellers on 17th October 2020. Their Tourism and Civil Aviation Ministry has based the decision largely on falling numbers of covid cases, and naturally we welcome the opportunity it provides for international travellers to return and tackle some of the world’s most exhilarating treks.

Up for a challenge? Book with us now for 2021 and take advantage of our covid guarantee: If for any reason you can’t travel next year, we’ll allow you to defer to either 2022 or 2023 FOR FREE!!! Why wait? Kick off your international travel plans in style with a once-in-a-lifetime Himalayan adventure with Choose a Challenge.