Tenzing Norgay

10 great Sherpa mountaineers

History , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
10 great Sherpa mountaineers

As the Everest season approaches we will be hearing a lot about the successes of western climbers in the Himalayas over the next few months, but very little about the superstars of high altitude mountaineering. It’s time this was rectified, so here are ten of the greatest tigers of the snow.

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Frank Smythe is more interesting than George Mallory

History , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 14 Comments
Frank Smythe is more interesting than George Mallory

The headline ‘Mallory’s body discovered on Everest in 1936’ appeared widely on social media sites last week. Had new revelations emerged about whether Mallory reached the summit of Everest? No, the real subject of the story wasn’t George Mallory at all, but arguably a much more interesting character.

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5 ways to prove a summit claim

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5 ways to prove a summit claim

If a climber reaches the top of a mountain and no one is around to see them, have they reached the summit? Lots of people make false summit claims, for all sorts of reasons, so how can you be sure? Here are some of the ways of proving a summit claim.

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Where on earth are Tenzing Peak and Hillary Peak anyway?

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Where on earth are Tenzing Peak and Hillary Peak anyway?

Two mountains in Nepal are to be named after Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary, according to a number of baffling media reports last week. Is this really true, and what mountains are they? Once again I will rummage through the detritus of mainstream media waffle, and try to shed some light on the story.

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Everest comes to London: celebrating the 1953 Everest expedition

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Everest comes to London: celebrating the 1953 Everest expedition

Although I’ve lived here for 17 years, I’ve never been a big one for taking advantage of London’s art galleries and exhibitions. Last weekend was an exception because it had a mountaineering theme. I spent the afternoon at two exhibitions celebrating the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of Everest.

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Is it a bad thing the world is becoming more accessible?

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Is it a bad thing the world is becoming more accessible?

Today is the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. I expect there will be quite a few editorial pieces published today reflecting on how the mountain has changed in the intervening years. I expect most of them will lament the changes as a bad thing, but I’m going to adopt a slightly different stance in this post.

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A tribute to Sherpas, the tigers of the snow

Reviews and tributes , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 17 Comments
A tribute to Sherpas, the tigers of the snow

This is a post I have been meaning to write for a while. Much has been written by westerners about Sherpas over the last hundred years, but the voice of the Sherpas themselves is rare. I can’t provide it, but I can provide my own perspective of a people who have given me many happy memories, taken me to places I could never have been without them, and put their lives at risk to help me.

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Why Tenzing is the greatest Everest climber

Opinion and advice , , , , , , , , , , , , , 9 Comments
Why Tenzing is the greatest Everest climber

While George Mallory, Edmund Hillary, Reinhold Messner and Eric Shipton all deserve their place in the Everest pantheon, if there’s to be an award for the greatest of all Everest climbers, then IMHO it should go to Tenzing Norgay, because he had to work so much harder to achieve his ambition than any of the other climbers.

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