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May 12, 2018

Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay: Who Dares to Follow Their Icy Steps?

It was the year 1953, in the month of May. Two men stared at the perilous journey ahead that few men dared to travel. They were willing to rest the fate of their lives in the frozen hands of Mother Earth. Would you have the nerves of steel that Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay had as they faced the spine-chilling Mount Everest?

These two men, however, were not the first to attempt the climb. The first attempt to summit Mount Everest was in 1921 by George Leigh Mallory and his team of climbers.1 They had not been able to complete their ascent due to an unforgiving storm. With the determination to reach the summit, where no man had ever stood before, Mallory made a second attempt a year later in 1922. This time, Mallory and his team were able to trek more than 27,000 feet up the behemoth of a mountain! On this climb, several of the Sherpa, people who live on the borders of Nepal and Tibet that are well known for their astounding capabilities in mountaineering, on his team were killed by an avalanche. This was still not enough to satisfy Mallory’s thirst for adventure! Third times the charm, right? Maybe? No? Mallory made his third and final attempt to conquer one of the seven natural wonders of the world in 1924. Except, this time he and his partner, Andrew Irvine, threw all caution out the window and set their minds to reach the top no matter what troubles they faced. To this day, no one knows if they reached the top. After they departed on their trek… they were never seen again.2

Mallory and Irvine’s final attempt | Courtesy of Sujoy Das

Now let’s shift the focus to New Zealand… Auckland, New Zealand to be exact. This is where the soon famous Edmund Hillary resided, passing through life as a beekeeper by day and a mountain climber by night. By the time he attempted the climb of Mount Everest in 1953, he was at the age of thirty-four years, and luckily he had the assistance and camaraderie of a skilled Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, who was thirty-nine years old.3 Thanks to the thirty years that had passed since Mallory’s attempt, Hillary and Norgay had more advanced climbing equipment than Mallory had, such as more advanced oxygen equipment, a form of portable communication through radio, and clothing that would better suit the environment.4 Although this equipment was not the only things they had that Mallory didn’t. The two had something that is the difference between life and death… a greater sense of caution.

Edmund Hillary (left) and Tenzing Norgay (right) | Courtesy of National Geographic

The two departed to accomplish their goal on the 28th of May and managed to climb an astonishing 27,900 feet. Now you’re probably thinking, “Oh, 27,900 feet? Yeah, that’s a little challenging, but I could probably do that.” Sorry to break it to you, but these were no ordinary 27,900 feet. Along the way, Hillary and Norgay faced blinding blizzards, the risk of avalanches, or the risk of falling into an icy abyss, as well as running out of oxygen.5 Another risk that is faced when mountain climbing is altitude sickness. This is what happens when one ascends or descends in altitude too quickly without allowing one’s body to adjust to the different pressures and altitude. It can be life threatening if it is not treated or prevented.

After a long, freezing, and brutal night, the two were able to reach the top of the world at 11:30 a.m on May 29, 1953. This also happened to be the birthday of Tenzing Norgay! Prior to reaching the summit, Hillary climbed his way up a forty-foot rocky ledge and pulled Norgay up by rope. This ledge came to be known as the Hillary Step.

Word spread that the two accomplished the unimaginable! News of this accomplishment even got to Queen Elizabeth II just two days later on June 1.6 In commemoration of this accomplishment, Hillary was knighted by the Queen, but since Norgay was not a citizen of London he received a British Empire Medal. This concludes the immense journey that was traveled by our two unwavering men.

  1. C. G. Bruce, “Mount Everest,” The Geographical Journal 57, no. 1 (January 1921): 5-7.
  2. Vanessa Bush, “The Wildest Dream: The Biography of George Mallory,” Booklist, Literature Resource Center (Aug. 2000): 2097.
  3. Peter H. Hansen, “Tenzing’s Two Wrist-Watches: The Conquest of Everest and Late Imperial Culture in Britain 1921-1953,” Past & Present, no. 157 (1997): 168-171.
  4. L. G. C. E. Pugh, “Scientific Aspects of the Expedition to Mount Everest, 1953,” The Geographical Journal 120, no. 2 (June 1954): 184.
  5. Walther Kirchner, “Mind, Mountain, and History Revisited,” Journal of the History of Ideas 55, no. 2 (1994): 303-5.
  6. “The Society’s News,” The Geographical Journal 120, no. 2 (June 1954): 246-248.

Recent Comments

44 comments

  • Robert Freise

    The monumental experience that Norgay and Hillary had with climbing such a majestic peak was very daring and courageous. The frigid temperatures and lack of a abundance of oxygen must have driven these men into many challenging obstacles. I have always wanted to challenge my self and climb a mountain peak. It is crazy that these men where so advantageous and determined to accomplish their goal.

  • Faten Al Shaibi

    I will never think of doing such things.It is certainly a fatal experience, but I loved the challenge self and the Insisting on achieving the goal despite its difficulty. I liked the author’s style of recounting the experiences of climbers and how Hillary and Norgay ended up at the top of the mountain . A beautiful story learning that patience is the key to the success.

  • Caden Floyd

    I could never imagine accomplishing such an outstanding goal. I’m still wondering if Mallory and Irvine made it to the top first, but I guess no one will never truly know. If only they were a little more cautious they might have lived to tell the tale. Then a beekeeper of all people decides that he wants to go and attempt to conquer the highest point in the world. The picture of Norgay and Hillary makes me happy to see such big smiles on their face, which were well deserved. It might have been easier with the new technology they had, but the danger they faced was very real and they played it smart. I think the accolades they received at the end of the article are outstanding and very well deserved.

  • Mariana Valadez

    I had never heard of this story before reading this article. It is so crazy to read that they actually made it to the top despite the obstacles. In my opinion I don’t think I would ever try to do this. I acknowledge their determination to reach the top, however, I would not have it in me to do so. It must take a lot of courage and will power to achieve this goal.

  • Valeria Perez

    The determination displayed by all of these men is astounding! When we think of adventures we never think about the planning and precautions that are involved when planning. In this case, it was the lack of these two factors which ultimately took the life of George Mallory and Andrew Irvine.
    I was surprised at how fast Norgay and Hillary climbed the Everest. Practically twenty-four hours! I bet that after they came down they then felt they could conquer the world.

  • Kaitlyn Killebrew

    I love the adrenaline rush from doing something extreme like bungee jumping and skydiving, but if someone asked me to hike up Mt.Everest; I would be hesitant. First there has to be lots of preparations before the trip and then there’s all the possibilities of disaster like they stated. Risks of avalanche, sleeping in the cold, altitude sickness. Yes we have better tools and equipment to better help people climb but I don’t believe that to be my forte. I did appreciate the dark humor in the beginning. Failed one time, how bout the the second? Well third times a charm right? And that was when they were never seen again. Maybe some things were just not meant to be and it’s best to throw out that “try try again” statement.

  • kendrick Harrison

    Having seen a few documentaries about people who’ve died trying to reach the top of Mount Everest, this gave me anxiety. The dangers, even present to climbers today, are terrifying. Frostbite or freezing to death, falling off a mountain, and altitude sickness are the big ones.
    The pair, Hillary and Tenzing, treading to the top in stormy conditions, even if were being cautious was a feat that most humans will never achieve. Meeting queen Elizabeth II was likely icing on the cake as far as bragging rights goes!

  • Cooper Dubrule

    I find it amazing that despite facing seemingly bad odds, Hillary are Norgay still set out to achieve their goal, facing the unforgiving challenge that had taken many lives before. What amazed me most about it is how relatively early they were able to complete the climb. As for the way this article was structured, I really enjoyed how the author took us back to the earlier attempts to climb in order to better illustrate just how much of a challenge it is to make it to the top, and survive.

  • Montserrat Moreno Ramirez

    The great Mt. Everest, known for many things but the most remarkable the many lives it’s taken and the number of people who have attempted to climb in spite of all the risks and many dangers that this extreme activity could bring. Also is incredible how these 2 young men were able to accomplish the unimaginable and even got recognized by the queen Elizabeth II

  • Avery Looney

    The introduction to this article was well written and really captured my attention. Being able to climb Mount Everest has to be one of the most draining things you could do mentally and physically. I have a new found respect for anyone who has attempted this incredibly dangerous trek. It is astonishing that Hillary and Norway were able to complete this climb with the climbing equipment they had in the 1950’s. The two men were fearless pioneers who accomplished the impossible.

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