Yesterday (February 17, 1980) was the 30th anniversary of the first-ever summit of Mount Everest in the Winter season.

Two Polish mountaineers, Krzysztof Wielicki and Leszek Cichy, reached the top of the world’s highest peak in 1980, going down in history as the first people to get there in winter.Over the last 30 years, seven people have so far completed the challenge in winter time, however, in Summer, the journey is easier, so 3,500 have managed to summit Everest.

The 20-strong group which initially set off for the mountain was whittled down to two – the final leg of the journey upwards took seven hours, said Leszek Cichy to Polish Radio.
There isn’t much snow in the Himalayas in winter, as it is blown off by heavy wind. Mount Everest is fortified against mountaineers with large slabs of ice, strong winds and frost. The temperatures in tents at night dropped to minus 40˚C.

“We were high up on the ridge, the nearest people were several hours walking distance away from us. The only thing that allows us to keep in touch was radio. The wind was strong. And, as we were descending, dusk set in and snow from western face blew in the air. And we found ourselves on the border between what is real and unreal, on the border between shadow and the sun, night and day, and also, in a way, between life and death,” Cichy said, referring to the last stages of the ascent.
* Source : – http://himalman.wordpress.com/

* Related Links :

- Polish Himalayas – The Ice Warriors. /Version english and polish/

- Krzysztof Wielicki the famous Polish climber./ Version polish and english /

- Leszek Cichy the famous Polish climber. /Version english and polish/

- Polish winter expedition 1980: Everest – part 1

- Polish winter expedition 1980: Everest – part 2

- Polish winter expedition 1980: Everest – part 3

- Polish winter expedition 1980: Everest – part 4

* Polish Himalayas – Become a Fan

* Previous story :

- Himalaya Spring 2010 expeditions.

- The Deadly Side of Mt. Everest.

- Mt.Everest 2010: An Interview with Phil Crampton of Altitude Junkies.

- Everest 2010 season – Expeditions with any British Teams or Britons.

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** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

Updated: Jan 25, 2010
Note: List is preliminary and subject to changes

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EVEREST TRAVERSES

Gavin Turner double traverse
American Gavin Turner will attempt a world first: Everest double traverse, from Nepal to Tibet and back, via Everest summit.

Gavin has been training for the undertaking during the last two years. He climbed Cho Oyu (with O2 from C3) and returned all the way back to ABC on summit day. In Washington, he climbed Rainier 7 times to the summit, including 4 solo ascents.
www.everestdoubletraverse.org

Andrew Lock Everet, take 3 Tibet/Nepal No-O2 traverse
After completing the 14×8000ers quest on Shisha Pangma last fall, Australian Andrew Lock aims for excellence by summiting Everest without O2 from Tibet and then traverse to Nepal. Andrew has summited Everest twice before, both times with supplementary Oxygen.
www.humanedgetech.com/expedition/lock

EVEREST SOUTH

Nobukazu Kuriki No-O2 ascent
After a failed attempt last year, Japanaese Nobukazu Kuriki plans to give Everest another shot this spring without O2.
www.plus-blog.spor tsnavi.com/bt_nobukazu2

Argentinean bicentennial expedition
The expedition goal is to summit Everest by May 2010, exactly 200 years after Argentina’s May Revolution.

All team members are Bariloche residents trained in the Andes. Climbers are Ramon Chiocconi, Alvar Puente, Marcelo Topo Deza, Carlos Charly Galosi and Leonardo Cuny Proverbio.

Brazil-Guatemala expedition
Manoel Morgado (BRA) with Andrea Cardona (GUAT) who will attempt the first Central American lady summit of Everest.
wwww.manoelmorgado.com.br

Waldemar Niclevicz’s Brazilian expedition
Waldemar Niclevicz and Irivan Gustavo Burda will guide climbers to the summit.

* update (February 1, 2010) Meanwhile, Brazilian Waldemar Niklevicz updated ExWeb that his planned Everest expedition has been postponed for 2011.
www.niclevicz.com.br

Brad Jackson and Sandy Hoby Australian Everest 2010 Expedition
After a failed attempt in 2008 as members in Altitude Junkies’ team, Australians Brad and Sandy are ready for a second round.
www.everest2010.com.au

Ta Loeffler Mountain of Learning
After a failed attempt in 2007, Ta of Newfoundland is back to Everest, climbing again from its south side. Ta hopes to bag Everest and Vinson in order to complete the 7 Summits quest.
www.taloeffler.com

Anne-Mari Hyrylinen – Skyclimbers Finnish expedition
The team’s mission is to help Anne-Mari Hyrylinen to become the first Finnish female Everest summiteer. The team will climb via the South Col route.
www.skyclimbers.com

Altitude Junkies
After a large number of expeditions in Tibet, leader Phil Crampton got a taste of Everest south side last year and goes for more this spring as leader of a fully-supported expedition.
www.altitudejunkies.com

Dawa Steven Eco Everest expedition 2010
Dawa Steven and his Eco Everest Expedition plan clean the peak up to 8000 m and above.

The plan this year is to bring down 1000 kgs of trash from above Camp 2 and 6000 kgs from Camp 2 and below.
www.asian-trekking.com

Peak Freaks
Tim Rippel’s outfit will return to Everest south side.
www.peakfreaks.com

Alpine Ascents International
The Everest regulars are back for another year.
www.alpineascents.com

Adventure Consultants
Another regular Everest commercial outfit back for more.
www.adventureconsultants.com/adventure/Everest

Explore Your Planet
Fresh from Antarctica, Scott Woolums is expected back on Everest south side this spring, leading a fully-supported expedition.
exploreyourplanet2009.blogspot.com/

RMI guides
Everest mega-summiteer Dave Hahn (the non-Sherpa climber with most Everest summits bagged) is back for more, leading RMI’s 2010 expedition.
www.rmiguides.com

IMG
Eric Simonson’s International Mountain Guides are back for Everest and Lhotse.
www.mountainguides.com

Mountain Madness
Ready to bag his 10th Everest summit, Willie Benegas will lead for MM as usual.
www.mountainmadness.com

Summit Climb
Dan Mazur is appointing Arnold Coster as leader on Everest south side. The US-based company is also launching teams on Everest north side and Lhotse.
www.summitclimb.com

Expedition Hanesbrands
Canadian Jamie Clarke aims for his second Everest summit.
climbwithus.com

Jagged Globe
Tim Calder will lead J-Gs team on Everests South Col route. The UK-based outfitter is also launching a team on the peak’s north side. www.jagged-globe.co.uk

Dream Guides
Fully-supported expedition led by 6-time Everest summiteer British Kenton Cool and Rob Casserley.
www.dreamguides.com

Kari Kobler & Partner
The Swiss expedition outfitter offers expeditions on both sides of Everest, Lhotse, Makalu and Cho Oyu. www.kobler-partner.ch

Costa Rica “David’s Braves” expedition
A Christian group known as Los Valientes de David (David’s Braves) hope to climb Everest for Jesus. Led by Enmanuel Menendez.
http://esparzacostarica.blogspot.com

HimEx
Of Discovery fame and Nangpa La/David Sharp infame, Russell Brice returns to Everest south side this year.
www.himex.com

EVEREST NORTH

Gerlinde & Ralf
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner and husband Ralf Dujmovits will return to Everest north face for an oxygen-less attempt. Ralf has climbed all 14, 8000ers (Everest with O2), Gerlinde has Everest and K2 left.
www.gerlinde-kaltenbrunner.at
www.amical.de

Alfredo Garcia no O2 ascent
Spanish Alfredo Garcia (28) will attempt Everest with Pedro Garcia and Martin Corrales. Garcia previously summited Gasherbrum II (2006), Cho Oyu (2007) and Broad Peak (2008).

The team will carry two emergency canisters but climb without O2.
www.everest2010.es

Jordan Romero Everest at 13

Together with his father Paul and Karen Lundgren; Big Bear Lake resident Jordan Romero hopes to summit Everest at the ripe age of 13.
www.jordanromero.com

Project-Himalaya
Jamie McGuinness is back in Tibet, leading a fully-supplied expedition.
www.project-himalaya.com

7Summits-Club
Alex Abramov and his 7Summit-Club team will be back to their usual Everest playground: the north side.
www.7summits-club.com

Adventure Peaks
The UK-based outfitter will also be climbing from the north side.
www.adventurepeaks.com

SummitClimb
Dan Mazur will lead a team on Big E’s north side.
www.summitclimb.com

Kari Kobler & Partner
The Swiss expedition outfitter offers expeditions on both sides of Everest, plus Lhotse, Makalu and Cho Oyu.
www.kobler-partner.ch

Jagged-Globe
The British outfitter is guiding both sides.
www.jagged-globe.co.uk

Lhotse

Meagan McGrath back for more

After her solo, partial Antarctica ski this winter (Patriot Hills-South Pole), Canuck Aerospace Engineer Meagan McGrath will lead a trekking group to Everests BC and then climb Lhotse, before attempting K2 in summer.
www.meaganmcgrathadventurer.com

Marco Confortola+K2 Sherpa rescuer (tentative)
2008 K2 survivor Marco Confortola plans to climb Lhotse with one of the Sherpas who saved his life.
www.marcoconfortola.it

SummitClimb
SummitClimb’s Everest leader Arnold Coster will also guide a group attempting Lhotse.
summitclimb.com

IMG
Also IMG will guide both Everest and Lhotse.
gwww.mountainguides.com

Kari Kobler & Partner
The Swiss expedition outfitter offers expeditions on both sides of Everest, plus Lhotse and Makalu.
www.kobler-partner.ch

Annapurna double-headers

Edurne Pasabans ultimate double-header for the 14×8000ers
I’m definitely’ going to Annapurna in spring, but I’m also considering another attempt (my fifth) on Shisha Pangma during the same season, Edurne Pasaban told media.

Leading a climbing-filming expedition by Al Filo de lo Imposible (on the edge of the impossible) Spanish TV documentary series; Edurne teams up with regular partners Alex Chicon, Asier Izaguirre and cameraman Ferran Latorre.
www.edurnepasaban.net
www.endesayedurnepasaban.com
blogs.rtve.es/alfilo/posts

Jae-Soo Kim’s Kolon Sports South Korean expediton
Partner of the late MI-Sun Go, 10×8000ers summiteer Jae-Soo Kim is continuing her (and his own) 14×8000er project.

S.Korea Expressway Corporation Team
Mi-Gon Kim, Hong-Bin Kim are heading to Annapurna after Manaslu.

S. Korea’s BuSan Dynamic Team
Chang-Ho Kim is climbing Annapurna after a preparatory climb on a another (yet unconfirmed) 8000er.

Annapurna

Oh Eun-Sun: the final
Racing faster than anyone for the 14×8000ers, South Korean Oh Eun Sun chain-climbed Kangchenjunga, Dhaulagiri, Nanga Parbat and Gasherbrum I in just four months before dangerous conditions on Annapurna prevented her from completing her record quest. Now she is back and ready to finish the task, teaming up with her two regular Sherpas.
oes.blackyak.co.kr

Piotr Pustelnik: The Knight’s comeback
The Himalayan Knight is back to face his last 8000er for the fifth time.

Piort is dedicating the climb to long-time friend and climbing mate Piotr Morawski, perished in a crevasse on Dhaulagiri last year. Morawski’s death put an end to the legendary “Three Peters” (Pustelnik, Morawski and Slovak Peter Hamor) who had accomplished some of the foremost Himalaya expeditions in later years.
This time, Piotr is putting together a team of seasoned Himalaya climbers, including Russian 11×8000er summiteer Serguey Bogomolov.
www.trekandmore.pl
himalman.wordpress.com

Joao Garcia for his final 8000er
Joao Garcia will attempt to become the first Portuguese 14×8000er summiteer on Annapurna.
www.joaogarcia.com

Young-Seok Park’s south face expedition
Following a new route on Everest SW face last year, South Korean 14×8000er summiteer Young-Seok Park now aims for Anna’s mighty south face.
www.parkyoungseok.com

Carlos Pauner for his “tough 9th”
With eight 8000ers bagged, Spanish Carlos Pauner hit a series of glitches on Shisha Pangma and Manaslu last year, now hoping for vindication on Annapurna.
www.carlospauner.com

Kangchenjunga

Nicholas Rice
American Nick Rice plans to give Kangchenjunga a shot, most likely by the British Route on the south face, and then head back to Pakistan for his second attempt on K2.
www.nickrice.us

Makalu

Field Touring Alpine – led by Fabrizio Zangrilli
American mountain guide Fabrizio Zangrilli will lead Australian/US outfitter Field Touring Alpine’s first expedition on Makalu.
www.fieldtouring.com
fabriziozangrilliguiding.blogspot.com

British Service SE Ridge expedition
UK military plan a second attempt on Makalu South East Ridge with team of 8 climbers drawn from across the 3 services.
raf.mod.uk

Kari Kobler & Partner
The Swiss expedition outfitter offers expeditions on both sides of Everest, Lhotse, Makalu and Cho Oyu.
www.kobler-partner.ch

Dhaulagiri

Chilean Expedicin Bicentenario Dhaulagiri
Ernesto Olivares will lead Juan Andres Covarrubias Alcalde, Juan Manuel Santa Cruz Campaa, Andre Claro Gubbins, Martin Riesco Wachholtz, Marcelo Grifferos Caceres and Francisco Larrain Amuntegui.
www.dhaulagiri2010.cl

Manaslu

Carlos Soria for his 9th 8000er at 71
Veteran Spanish climber Carlos Soria hopes to tick off his Himalaya no 9 at age 71.
http://www.carlossoriaalpinista.com

Shisha Pangma

Amical Alpin

Herbert Wold if appointed leader on Amical’s commercial expedition.
Amical.de

Cho Oyu

SummitClimb
Dan Mazur’s American outfit will hit Cho Oyu this spring.
summitclimb.com

Adventure Peaks
UK-based outfit AP will be there as well.
www.adventurepeaks.com

Amical Alpin
The Germany-based outfit will be led by Andreas Sippel.
Amical.de

Kari Kobler & Partner
The Swiss outfit has also announced a Cho Oyu expedition in spring, 2009.
Kobler-partner.ch

* * Related Links :

- 2010 climbing season kick-off: Everest and Himalaya list of expeditions!

- Everest 2010: No Everest Traverses in 2010.

- Alan Arnette’s Everest 2010 Coverage Begins, Double Traverse Announced!

* Polish Himalayas – Become a Fan

* Previous story :

- The Deadly Side of Mt. Everest.

- Mt.Everest 2010: An Interview with Phil Crampton of Altitude Junkies.

- Everest 2010 season – Expeditions with any British Teams or Britons.

* zapraszam do subskrypcji mojego bloga :

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

Author : Kraig Becker

The Outpost, the official blog of Outdoorzy.com, has an interesting post up January 22, 2010 that examines the costs of climbing the Seven Summits, the highest peaks on all seven continents.

Seven Summits map (click to enlarge).

The article looks at several broad categories and gives a good estimate of what each of them costs. For instance, they say that it’ll set you back roughly $1170 for training to ensure you know what you’re doing on those mountains, and another $9200 in airfare just to fly to the various countries that is home to one of these mountains. Throw in another $1500 for “incidentals”, which covers such things as visas and passports, and things start to add up quickly.

Of course, the largest category is for the guide services necessary to climb the 7 (+1) mountains. The Outpost says that you can expect to pay between $105,850 – $169,900 on guides depending on who you choose to go with. They do note that this is an area that can be highly customized, and that’s why there is such a large variance in the cost. Guide services are not all created equal, and sometimes you get what you pay for. Besides, do you really want to go cut-rate on this kind of trip?

The one category that I might disagree with their estimate on is gear, which they say will cost you $2000. In my opinion that is on the very low side, as I’ve seen down suits and thermal boots for Everest that will cost you that much alone. But I suppose, that this is, once again, an area that can really vary greatly, and you do indeed get what you pay for here as well.

So what’s the bottom line? Outdoorzy says that the grand total of making a Seven Summits bid is about $119,720 – $183,870. That doesn’t include the time you’ll need to get off work, as most of us aren’t sponsored climbers either.

* Source : – http://theadventureblog.blogspot.com/

* Richard “Dick” Bass is the owner of Snowbird Ski Resort in Utah and the first man to climb the “Seven Summits.”

* Related Links : - Seven Summits.

- Mount McKinley or Denali in Alaska. /Version english and polish/

- Climb Mt. Vinson - highest peak in Antarctica.

- Climb Aconcagua - one of the Seven Summits list. /Version english and polish/

* Polish Himalayas – Become a Fan

* Previous story :

- The Deadly Side of Mt. Everest.

- Mt.Everest 2010: An Interview with Phil Crampton of Altitude Junkies.

- Everest 2010 season – Expeditions with any British Teams or Britons.

* zapraszam do subskrypcji mojego bloga :

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

Author : Kraig Becker

It feels a little odd to be writing about the Everest 2010 season before Christmas, but when our friend Alan Arnette has already launched his coverage, I’m just trying to keep up. As regular readers know, Alan has the best coverage of Everest that you’ll find anywhere, and it looks like he’s going to surpass himself in the spring climbing season.

Mt. Everest – Everest 2010 season

Today we get a new entry that true Everest junkies will enjoy, as it is An Insider’s Look at Everest 2010, kicking things off with an interview with Phil Crampton, the owner of the Altitude Junkies, one of the best, and most reputable guide services on the mountain.

Alan begins the blog post with a little background on Phil, and his experience guiding in the Himalaya. From there, he goes into the interview itself, asking Phil about his thoughts for the spring climbing and trekking season in Nepal, whether or not he thinks it will be a “normal” year on Everest, and much more. The past few season’s on Everest haven’t been “normal” so to speak, thanks in part to the closures of Tibet, and the uncertainty of gaining access from that side of the mountain. Phil also talks about the rising costs of making a climb on Everest and the differences he found between climbing the North and South sides of the mountain.

All in all, Phil expects this to be a very good year on Everest, with a lot of the uncertainty from the past two years out of the picture. That should make a lot of climbers and trekkers more secure in their travels come spring time, but as Alan points out, we’re still 16 weeks away from the start of that season, and a lot can change between now and then.

* Source : – http://theadventureblog.blogspot.com/

** Previous story :

- Everest 2010 season – Expeditions with any British Teams or Britons.

* zapraszam do subskrypcji mojego bloga :

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

bean to cup

Author : Colin Wallace.

I am hoping to keep up to date with any British Teams or Britons on other permits climbing Mount Everest this season.

Are you climbing Mount Everest this Spring? If so please let me know and I will then add you to the list below.

Please remember that I have ONLY listed those members who are travelling on a British UK Passport.

List of the British teams climbing on Mount Everest 2010 season :

Adventure Peaks – Everest North Ridge Expedition – www.adventurepeaks.com

Bonita Norris – Global Angel’s 2010 Everest Expedition – www.bonitanorris.blogspot.com

Geordie Stewart – Northeast Ridge route – www.geordiestewart7summits.com

Jagged Globe – 2010 South Col Everest expedition – www.jagged-globe.co.uk

Adventure Extreme Expeditions – North Col route – www.mountaindynamics.co.uk

Trekking Encounters – South Col Route – www.trekkingencounters.com

Dream Guides – South Col Route – www.dream-guides.com

To keep up to date on how the British teams are doing while on Mount Everest please view our Dispatches.

* Source : – http://www.everest1953.co.uk/

Mount Everest The British Story For all information concerning the British on Mount Everest, we will provide the answers to many questions. From their first expedition to those of today, you will find a comprehensive history, list of summiteers, amazing facts, a gallery and much more.

** Previous story :

- K2 : Life and Death on the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain by Ed Viesturs.

- No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World’s 14 Highest Peaks by Ed Viesturs.

* zapraszam do subskrypcji mojego bloga :

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

In 1976 legendary climber Major Michael ‘Bronco’ Lane joined the first all-military expedition to climb Mount Everest.

Michael 'Bronco' Lane reached the summit of Mount Everest on the 16th May 1976 with fellow partner John 'Brummie' Stokes while on the Joint British Army & Royal Nepalese Army Everest Expedition. Bronco then went on to be leader of the 1983 Special Air Service Regiment Everest Expedition.

‘Bronco Lane is an exceptional soldier whose spirit of adventure and readiness to take risks has led him to the most extreme and dangerous places on earth - including the summit of Mt. Everest.’ - General Michael Rose.

Brummie and Bronco, Brummie being the one on the right.

Source: John "Brummie" Stokes

1. You joined the Army Mountaineering Association while in the Special Air Service. Do you think you would of started climbing if it wasn’t for the Army?

I joined the Army aged 16 as a Junior Leader in November 1961 after being introduced to basic mountaineering whilst participating on an Ullswater Outward Bound Course. 'Topper Brown' my first Troop Sergeant had been an instructor at Tywyn Army Outward Bound School and he continued to nurture an interest in general. However it was not until I joined 22 SAS Regiment in 1967 and found myself in a Mountain Troop that I really developed my involvement.

2. Its been 33 years since you were on the Summit of Mount Everest. Do you still remember your time up there?

Yes I do have a series of selected memories, probably nurtured by my still giving the odd slide presentation. Besides the obvious ones of isolation, cold and effects of altitude the single over-riding aspect is one of a total focus to just keep going -eight to ten steps at a time - then a long pause to recover and move on again, for as long as it takes.

3. You left your top camp at 6am for the summit and had agreed with Brummie Stokes that if you were not on the summit by midday you would turn around and head back. You both reached the summit at 3.15, what happened to your turn around time?

We paused on reaching the South Summit at 1pm, when a short break in the clouds gave us a tantalising view of the Hillary Step and the final summit slopes.

I remember looking at my watch, noting the time and turning to Brum gave him a 'thumbs up'! He replied with an affirmative 'thumbs up' and I continued to traverse the cornice ridge across to the Step. In a similar situation I very much doubt if any mountaineer anywhere near the summit of Everest would have reacted differently.

4. On the descent you and Brummie Stokes were forced to bivouac because of the bad weather. During that night did you ever imagine that you would survive to see the morning?

We left the summit at about 15:40 in poor visibility and with very little oxygen left. We had cached a spare bottle at 28,000 feet and our over-whelming need was to find this. We safely abseiled back down the Hillary Step and somehow reached the South Summit, after which a combination of thick cloud, total lack of trail and no oxygen had us stumbling onwards, in a pretty bad state. Then, just at last light and without any illumination, we arrived at our upright orange bottle stuffed in a snow bank.

Totally exhausted in the darkness we huddled facing each other sitting on our sacks with the bottle between us. Brum had the first go at connecting and could not get a secure join and slumped. In total desperation, I took off my outer mitt and wearing just my thin contact glove was able to get a sound coupling. We swapped over the mask every few minutes through-out the long night. Both of us experienced hallucinations and rubbed each others backs and legs to stimulate circulation, as we slipped in and out of unconsciousness. Fortunately never both of us together.

Around about midnight, the storm died down and it became a cold, clear but luckily a windless night, which was our salvation.

I do not recall ever thinking "I'm not going to make it". Possibly soldiers have that part of their psyche removed early in basic training, as there will be lots of times on active operational service when all that goes through the mind is "Stick It! Stick It! Stick!" to keep you alive.

5. Due to the cold you lost 5 fingers and 10 toes. How long did it take you to recover from this ordeal?

Three months later during a very hot summer, we had the frost bitten digits surgically removed by Mr Charles Renton, a well respected surgeon at Hereford County Hospital. It would take a further six months for the stumps to heal sufficiently for our return to active service with the unit.

6. Is it true that you gave the National Army Museum your 5 fingers and 10 toes for them to exhibit in the museum?

Yes. They had originally been donated to the London Wellcome Museum for their medical exhibition and following a re-organisation were returned and I kept them in my garage. Some years later whilst giving a lecture at the National Army Museum Chelsea, to promote my book Military Mountaineering, I was asked if I had anything suitable for a permanent loan. So the digits found another useful home, from where they have made special 'guest' appearances here and there.

7. What is your view on the many commercial expeditions that are on Everest every year?

Amongst the many negative aspects, to my mind the one major plus factor is that a good percentage of the wealth generated today on Everest remains with the Sherpa peoples of the Solu Khumbu.

8. Of all the mountains you have climbed on around the world which is your favourite?

In the summer of 1972 I was a member of the 12 strong AMA Axel Heiburg Expedition in the Canadian Arctic. We split into teams of four and ours spent six weeks in the field climbing virgin peaks accessed by glaciers. We climbed over 30 and I named one 'Kneecap' in recognition of Brum who was absent having his shattered kneecap removed, following an incident in the Dhofar War when he'd tried to stop an AK47 round.

9. Today, most items used on Everest are lighter, smaller and of better quality. Which item used today would you of liked back in 1976?

Double Plastic High Altitude Boots so I could still walk around barefooted!

And finally, my last question.

10. Do you think that George Mallory and Andrew Irvine climbed the Second Step?

Yes I most certainly do!

The above Questions & Answers are (C) Copyright of Mount Everest The British Story

* Source : - http://www.everest1953.co.uk/BroncoLane.html

* zapraszam do subskrypcji mojego bloga :

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

1. Kinga Baranowska, first Polish woman to reach the summit of Kangchenjunga. Kinga Baranowska pierwszą Polką, która zdobyła Kanczendzonge.

2. Biggest tragedy of Polish climbers in Himalayas - Mount Everest Expedition 1989. Everest za cenę życia.

3. Breaking news: Piotr Morawski lost on Dhaulagiri. Piotr Morawski zginął na Dhaulagiri. /Version english and polish/

4. Polish-Italian winter expedition to Shisha Pangma (8027m), 2005 /Version polish and english/

5. Polish winter expedition to K2, (8611m), 2002/3

6. Winter Manifesto of Krzysztof Wielicki - Manifest zimowy Krzysztofa Wielickiego /Version polish and english/

** Previous story : - EVENTS

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** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

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This article is a few years old now but still a good read if you have not seen it before!

In the Beginning

The project started a couple of years ago after the 1999 and 2001 Mallory/Irvine Expeditions on the big mountain set out to try and locate the bodies of the two climbers and see whether any evidence could be found of summit success. It was known that they were carrying a camera and the frozen conditions might have preserved the film.

George Mallory's body was famously located in 1999 and his possessions returned to his relatives. They wanted to pass on the mountaineering items to a heritage association, but nothing existed; Mary Rose picked up on the void and became involved. Fortunately the BMC had plans to open a museum and the items have now become the centre piece of the National Mountaineering Museum's displays.

Mary Rose was fascinated by the whole business and set about finding funding for an investigative project. The first stage was to document the items of clothing found on Mallory's body and to cross check with the Expedition Report to ascertain whether an answer could be found to the 75 year-old clothing debate - were the climbers were warm enough to be able to survive a summit attempt? Did their clothing offer enough flexibility to allow them to climb the obstacles on the route.

There were some fragments of clothing left on the body and these were tested through Southampton University's Textile Conservation Centre at Winchester and the normal mountaineering test labs at the University of Leeds. These gave crucial insights into the seven layers of thin natural fibre clothing worn. It had been calculated that the garments worn had a tog value of 3.5 togs.

Over the last year similar fabric and construction methods were researched so that a set of garments could be made up almost identical to the original items - not an easy job as patterns have changed, materials developed and construction methods improved.

As a reference point, Mary's Rose's husband - who is the same size as Mallory - and Alan Hinkes donned ancient and modern high altitude clothing side by side. Hinkes noticed how close fitting the 1924 replica garments were compared to his bulky modern suit plus the absence of zips - only just been invented in the 1920s - which must have made toilet breaks significantly more fiddly.

Side By Side

Alan's modern clothing weighed 4.825 kg compared to just 4.160 kg for the Mallory replicas, and the 1920s garments also offered better movement as the layers slid easily over each other.


(C)OUTDOORSmagic

The making of the Replicas

The team was headed up by Vanessa Anderson (a student on Derby Uni's MA) and Joyce Meader who took us through the up to seven layers worn: essentially silk, wool, silk, wool and finishing with an outer layer of Burberry cotton gabardine, with the hassles of sourcing the products.

It was interesting to note that elastic was not around then so there was no way to use underwear as it is used nowadays. Also many of the woollen items would have had to be had knitted by the families of the expedition members. It became obvious why Bernard Shaw's take on the outfits used was like 'a Connemara picnic surprised by a snowstorm'.

The boots have still not been investigated properly (any prospective PhD's wanting a subject?), but had novel hob-nails (attached through the 3mm leather sole, but insulated from the feet by a 10mm felt) and were calculated to weigh 0.8kg - compared to the 1953 footwear at 1.2kg, Al Hinkes's at 1.4 kg and Chris Bonington's at 1.8kg.

Three layers of socks worked with three layers of long-johns and military-style puttees. Compare this to the original lightweight boot revolution headed up by the KSB, which weighed in at just over 0.5 kg and it can be surmised how the 1924 initiated the current trend for lightweight outdoor items.

Documents from the 1910 era recorded how Hope and Kirkpatrick alpine summited with 2.8kg packs (that weighed just 0.8kg when empty!). No glove information has been developed and a call to anyone who might be able to shed light on the subject was put out. Another interesting item revealed was a woollen Buff type object (made from the best Merino), that had a multitude of uses ranging from head gear to kidney warmers.

Conclusions - It Was Possible

The conclusion was drawn that Mallory and Irvine had the correct clothing to enable them to survive at that altitude, plus the ability to climb easily while wearing it all.

They were also working in conjunction with the clothing and with the levels of fitness that allowed them to reach that altitude, would theoretically have been able to successfully summit the world's highest mountain.

* Source: OUTDOORSmagic

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Andrew Comyn (Sandy) Irvine was born in Birkenhead England on the 8th April 1902. His father, William Fergusson Irvine, a business man, married Andrews mother, Lilian Davies-Colley, and eventually went on to have a large family. Andrew had four brothers, Hugh, Kenneth, Alexander (known as Alec) and Thomas (known as Tur) plus one sister, Evelyn.

Andrews childhood was full of adventure as most youngsters were, but he was also brought up with strict rules and discipline from both very religious parents. Andrew was educated at Birkenhead and Shrewsbury School’s before going to Merton College in Oxford to study engineering. Andrew was also a very keen sportsman and became a member of the Oxford crew for the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race in 1922 and 1923.

Andrew was very good with his hands, and he had the ability to fix or improve anything mechanical. It was during the First World War, while Andrew was still a schoolboy, he sent the War Office a design on paper to allow a machine gun to fire from a propeller-driven aeroplane without damaging the propeller’s blades.

In 1919, Andrew rode his motorcycle to the top of a 3000-foot Welsh mountain, Foel Grach, where he surprised Noel Odell and his wife who had climbed it on foot.

In 1923 Andrew was chosen for a expedition to Spitsbergen, where he excelled on every front. It was during this expedition that Noel Odell, the expedition’s leader, had discovered that it was Andrew riding the motorcycle on top of Foel Grach. Noel Odell was so impressed by Andrew that he recommended Andrew for the third British Mount Everest expedition. Andrew was selected on the grounds that he might be the ’superman’ that the expedition needed. Andrew was 21 years old when this opportunity arose.

In 1924 Andrew showed that he was not frighten of hard work. He made major changes to the oxygen apparatus, maintained the expedition’s stoves, camp beds, cameras and many other important devices. Andrew became very popular and respected by his older colleagues.

Andrew was to find himself teamed up with George Leigh Mallory on the last summit attempt after a previous two attempts had failed. Using oxygen for this attempt they reached Camp V1 with no real problem.

On the 8th June 1924 expedition member Noel Odell reported seeing them at 12:50 pm ascending one of the major “steps” on the ridge and “going strongly for the top”. That was the last time they were seen alive.

When Odell returned to the tent at Camp V1 the following day to see if Mallory and Irvine were there, he found the inside of tent covered in bits and pieces from the oxygen apparatus. So it looks like that the young Andrew was still maintaining the oxygen apparatus the night before or the morning of their summit attempt.

The body of Andrew ‘Sandy’ Irvine has never been found.

The above Questions & Answers are (C) Copyright of Mount Everest The British Story

* Source : – http://www.everest1953.co.uk/ChrisBonington

** take a look at my photo gallery which pictures the story of the discovery and climbing the Mt. Everest :

- discovery and climbing Everest.

** Previous story : - George Leigh Mallory one of the famous British climber.

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** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.