Tale of the first ascent of the world’s highest peak

Kanchha Sherpa, the last surviving member of the 1953 British Everest Expedition shares his memories of the successful ascent.

— By Rajiv Joshi

Well, George, we knocked the bastard off!

Sir Edmund Hillary told his friend George Lowe while returning from the first-ever ascent of Mt Everest in 1953. Though discovered as the highest peak on earth in the 1850s, Mt Everest was relatively unknown to many people. The successful summit, however, made Mt Everest famous worldwide.

Attempts to climb Mt Everest, however, had begun in the 1920s. Various expeditions were organized from the northern side as it was difficult to obtain a permit for foreigners from the Nepali side. When Nepal opened its borders to foreigners in the 1950s, expedition teams started attempting the mountain from the southern side. In 1950, a small group led by a British, Bill Tilman, undertook an exploration trip to Mount Everest.

The team developed a standard route to Everest via the south col. Next year, another British expedition led by Eric Shipton traveled to Nepal to survey a new route via the south face. The exploration teams at that time identified various routes from the Nepali side. But the only one they considered feasible was taking the route via the Khumbu Icefall, Western Cwm (a broad, flat, gently heaving glacial valley basin at the base of the Lhotse Face of Mt. Everest), traversing to the South Col.

In 1952, members of the Swiss expedition team made two attempts on Everest in spring and autumn. Two members of the spring team — Robert Lambert and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa — reached the record altitude of 8,510 m. on the southeast ridge. They had to retreat because of the unsettled weather conditions. A year later, Tenzing Norgay, now with the British expedition, and Sir Edmund Hillary reached the summit of Mt Everest.

Darjeeling, in 1952 with his friends at the age of 19 to search for some work, returned to the Everest region a year later as part of the British Everest Expeditions. “We headed straight to Tenzing’s house. As Tenzing knew my father, he allowed me to stay with him,” Sherpa shared at his home in Namche Bazaar some months ago. “I helped Tenzing with household chores.”

Before meeting Tenzing, Kanchha had no idea that Mt Everest, which locals knew as Chomolungma, was the highest mountain in the world. “I was happy to know that the highest mountain in the world is in our backyard and that foreigners were planning to climb it,” he added.

Tenzing, a Sirdar of the British expedition, included Kanchha in the team. “I was both surprised and happy,” he added.

It is tough to travel to Kathmandu these days. Tenzing and Kanchha, and eight other Sherpas walked to Kathmandu from Birgunj. They stayed in Kathmandu for two weeks. Kanchha first met Hillary in Bhaktapur.
“He was the first foreigner that I met. I had not seen any foreigners before that. I had only heard that they were red-haired and white-eyed. I was surprised to see that tall man (Hillary),” Kanchha shared.

After the equipment arrived, a jumbo team of 400 people, 15 expedition members from England and New Zealand, and 20 Sherpas and porters trekked to Namche via the Dolalghat-Risingo-Chitre route. “It took 16 days to reach Namche from Bhaktapur,” said Kanchha.

It was the ninth British expedition led by Col. John Hunt. The expedition was organized and financed by the Joint Himalayan Committee. The team comprised Britishers Charles Evans, George Band, Tom Bourdillon, Alfred Gregory, Wilfrid Noyce, Griffith Pugh, Tom Stobart, Michael Ward, Michael Westmacott, Charles Wylie; New Zealander Edmund Hillary, George Lowe, and Nepali Tenzing Norgay and Sherpa Annullu. James Morris, a correspondent of The Times newspaper, also accompanied the team.

“At that time, supplies were cheap, but money was scarce. The daily wage of Rs 8 (US$ o.7 cents) in silver coins was a big thing for us. We were also provided good gear, but it wouldn’t fit,” said Kanchha.
It took the team about a week to find the appropriate trail in the Khumbu Icefall. “Supplies were running out at the time we reached the Icefall. It was not as easy as it is today. Everything had to be built, even the bridges,” Kanchha shared.

The team fell ten trees in Namche Bazaar and carried the lumber to the Khumbu Icefall to build a wooden bridge over the crevasse. “It was the toughest part. We were terrified when crossing the bridge. But after crossing the bridge, the trail was easier,” he added.
Tenzing and Hillary got the opportunity to climb Everest only after the first choice pair, Bourdillon and Evans, returned unsuccessfully, said Kanchha. Tenzing and Hillary started on May 28 and reached the summit a day later, he added.

The record-making duo spent only about 15 minutes at the summit. Hillary took the iconic photo of Tenzing posing with his ice-ax. Additional photos were taken looking down the mountain as proof of the successful ascent.