1 00:00:06,000 --> 00:00:12,074 Watch any video online with Open-SUBTITLES Free Browser extension: osdb.link/ext 2 00:00:28,087 --> 00:00:31,079 (WIND WHISTLES) 3 00:00:39,647 --> 00:00:42,639 (GENTLE MUSIC) 4 00:00:44,767 --> 00:00:47,759 (SLOW, MUFFLED BREATHING) 5 00:00:56,847 --> 00:00:59,839 (MUSIC BUILDS) 6 00:01:02,487 --> 00:01:03,967 (STATIC ON RADIO) 7 00:01:03,967 --> 00:01:05,607 MAN ON RADIO: Well, now, the Himalay as... 8 00:01:05,607 --> 00:01:07,087 (STATIC) 9 00:01:07,087 --> 00:01:09,287 MAN ON RADIO: Well, we introduce to you this morning 10 00:01:09,287 --> 00:01:12,767 Ed Hillary, a very interesting personality in the alpine world. 11 00:01:12,767 --> 00:01:14,967 Good morning, Ed. EDMUND HILLARY: Good morning. 12 00:01:14,967 --> 00:01:17,287 How many attempts have been made on Everest altogether? 13 00:01:17,287 --> 00:01:19,327 Well, there have been at least 10. 14 00:01:19,327 --> 00:01:21,127 Well, why have the others failed? 15 00:01:21,127 --> 00:01:24,007 A combination of circumstances which hasn't been right. 16 00:01:24,007 --> 00:01:26,327 Well, do you think it's possible to climb Everest? 17 00:01:26,327 --> 00:01:28,487 Yes, I definitely think it's possible to climb it 18 00:01:28,487 --> 00:01:31,287 and, well, I'm sure it will be done some day. 19 00:01:31,287 --> 00:01:34,279 (RADIO STATIC) 20 00:01:43,047 --> 00:01:48,127 MAN: It's only 60 years ago, but it was a completely different world, 21 00:01:48,127 --> 00:01:50,447 and the idea that you would be the first man 22 00:01:50,447 --> 00:01:52,767 to stand on the highest point on earth 23 00:01:52,767 --> 00:01:56,442 is a quest, a romantic quest, 24 00:02:08,567 --> 00:02:11,567 MAN 2: There was a real race on for the world's highest peak, 25 00:02:11,567 --> 00:02:13,287 And it wasn't just Britain, 26 00:02:13,287 --> 00:02:15,287 There were other nations in the queue, 27 00:02:15,287 --> 00:02:20,327 This really was Britain's last chance to grab this great prize, 28 00:02:20,327 --> 00:02:23,319 (RISING MUSIC) 29 00:02:29,887 --> 00:02:33,197 MAN: Nobody knew if someone could survive at 29,000 feet, 30 00:02:34,207 --> 00:02:38,598 Like the guys going into space, you know, you 're breaking frontiers, 31 00:02:40,727 --> 00:02:45,207 MAN 2: There is a physiologic limit of what human beings can take, 32 00:02:45,207 --> 00:02:47,007 I'm sure they didn't want to die, 33 00:02:47,007 --> 00:02:50,920 but you 're taking risks in which death is one of the outcomes, 34 00:02:59,327 --> 00:03:01,557 MAN: You are going into the unknown, 35 00:03:02,567 --> 00:03:04,607 Could it be done? 36 00:03:04,607 --> 00:03:08,919 Back in 1953, it was a great big question mark, 37 00:03:17,847 --> 00:03:20,839 EDMUND HILLARY: I think it's all really a matter of challenge, 38 00:03:22,647 --> 00:03:25,847 Not so much challenge only with the mountain, 39 00:03:25,847 --> 00:03:28,767 but challenge with oneself, 40 00:03:28,767 --> 00:03:33,487 seeing if you can force yourself to overcome your fears 41 00:03:33,487 --> 00:03:37,007 and hopefully, ultimately, get to the top, 42 00:03:37,007 --> 00:03:39,999 (WONDROUS MUSIC) 43 00:04:01,447 --> 00:04:03,722 (NEWSREEL FANFARE) 44 00:04:04,727 --> 00:04:06,527 VOICEOVER: Members of the British Everest expedition 45 00:04:06,527 --> 00:04:08,407 have begun assembling on the Subcontinent 46 00:04:08,407 --> 00:04:10,087 where deputy leader Major Wylie 47 00:04:10,087 --> 00:04:12,287 is looking forw ard to the adventure to come. 48 00:04:12,287 --> 00:04:14,487 We are very pleased that the first stage 49 00:04:14,487 --> 00:04:17,207 of our journey to Mount Everest is over. 50 00:04:17,207 --> 00:04:19,647 We are now off tow ards the hills. 51 00:04:19,647 --> 00:04:22,327 If we get some fine weather tow ards the end of May 52 00:04:22,327 --> 00:04:24,247 just before the monsoon arrives 53 00:04:24,247 --> 00:04:26,807 we should have a chance of getting to the top. 54 00:04:26,807 --> 00:04:29,799 (FANFARE CONTINUES) 55 00:04:33,567 --> 00:04:36,559 (PENSIVE MUSIC) 56 00:04:48,287 --> 00:04:50,642 (MEN CHATTER INAUDIBLY) 57 00:04:58,687 --> 00:05:01,287 The first time I joined up with the expedition 58 00:05:01,287 --> 00:05:04,006 was at the British Embassy in Kathmandu, 59 00:05:05,047 --> 00:05:09,327 We had 13 Western members of the expedition, 60 00:05:09,327 --> 00:05:13,081 John Hunt, a senior army officer, was expedition leader, 61 00:05:14,087 --> 00:05:16,127 I'd really never heard of John Hunt before 62 00:05:16,127 --> 00:05:18,960 and the first time I met him was in Kathmandu, 63 00:05:19,967 --> 00:05:23,207 MAN: I was very keen to have people I knew already 64 00:05:23,207 --> 00:05:25,967 so I had big question marks about Ed, 65 00:05:25,967 --> 00:05:28,367 I can only say that from the moment I met Ed 66 00:05:28,367 --> 00:05:31,767 I knew that here was somebody who would be a dominating influence, 67 00:05:31,767 --> 00:05:34,804 He was a tower of strength, 68 00:05:36,447 --> 00:05:38,567 MAN ON RADIO: Mr Hillary, as a matter of interest, 69 00:05:38,567 --> 00:05:40,407 how long have you been climbing? 70 00:05:40,407 --> 00:05:42,087 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, I've been climbing, I suppose, 71 00:05:42,087 --> 00:05:44,207 for altogether about 10 years. 72 00:05:44,207 --> 00:05:46,887 And how many trips have you done out of New Z ealand climbing? 73 00:05:46,887 --> 00:05:50,163 I have already had a couple of expeditions to the Himalay a. 74 00:05:53,287 --> 00:05:56,207 INTERVIEWER: You were quite strictly brought up, weren't you? 75 00:05:56,207 --> 00:05:58,527 EDMUND HILLARY: I was brought up during the Depression 76 00:05:58,527 --> 00:06:03,396 and my family was pretty short on cash during that period, 77 00:06:05,247 --> 00:06:08,327 I was just a rough old country boy, as it were, 78 00:06:08,327 --> 00:06:10,287 INTERVIEWER: A beekeeper, A beekeeper, 79 00:06:10,287 --> 00:06:14,567 lused to wander around our farm dreaming about great adventures 80 00:06:14,567 --> 00:06:17,400 and climbing mountains and all that sort of thing, 81 00:06:19,207 --> 00:06:20,927 INTERVIEWER: What a contrast between 82 00:06:20,927 --> 00:06:22,727 beekeeping on the one hand and climbing mountains, 83 00:06:22,727 --> 00:06:24,247 EDMUND HILLARY: Oh, not really, 84 00:06:24,247 --> 00:06:25,807 In the beekeeping, I was constantly 85 00:06:25,807 --> 00:06:28,767 lugging around 80-pound boxes of honey, 86 00:06:28,767 --> 00:06:31,887 And my brother was also doing beekeeping, and we competed, 87 00:06:31,887 --> 00:06:33,887 And I think the sense of competition 88 00:06:33,887 --> 00:06:37,038 carried on to my mountaineering activities, 89 00:06:44,927 --> 00:06:49,637 MAN: Well, the party were first all together as a team in Kathmandu, 90 00:06:51,047 --> 00:06:54,127 Before us we had 17 days of marches to Tengboche, 91 00:06:54,127 --> 00:06:56,766 which is where we were going to place our first base camp, 92 00:07:00,247 --> 00:07:02,407 We had to cross a succession 93 00:07:02,407 --> 00:07:04,447 of high ridges and deep valleys, 94 00:07:04,447 --> 00:07:06,247 We could really get gradually fit 95 00:07:06,247 --> 00:07:10,718 and - most important - get to know each other as a team, 96 00:07:21,567 --> 00:07:24,447 MAN: Everything had been calculated to the last detail - 97 00:07:24,447 --> 00:07:27,247 7,5 tons of material, 98 00:07:27,247 --> 00:07:30,487 443 packages, all numbered, 99 00:07:30,487 --> 00:07:34,924 and the contents of each listed down to the last matchbox or needle, 100 00:07:38,087 --> 00:07:39,887 EDMUND HILLARY: It is a team expedition 101 00:07:39,887 --> 00:07:42,640 and it's very much in the form of a pyramid of effort, 102 00:07:43,647 --> 00:07:46,559 13 Western members of the expedition, 103 00:07:47,567 --> 00:07:50,007 30 permanent high-altitude Sherpas, 104 00:07:50,007 --> 00:07:53,767 These are men who will be carrying loads for us to great altitudes, 105 00:07:53,767 --> 00:07:56,607 Some 600 Nepalese porters 106 00:07:56,607 --> 00:08:00,043 carried loads across country into our climbing regions, 107 00:08:05,007 --> 00:08:06,727 MAN: Because there had been no less 108 00:08:06,727 --> 00:08:09,167 than seven British attempts on the mountain, 109 00:08:09,167 --> 00:08:12,727 we felt that by right, the mountain should be climbed by Britain 110 00:08:12,727 --> 00:08:14,887 and by extension the British Commonwealth, 111 00:08:14,887 --> 00:08:19,207 The Swiss so nearly got to the summit in 1952, 112 00:08:19,207 --> 00:08:21,447 The Americans were waiting in the wings, 113 00:08:21,447 --> 00:08:23,767 And so there was huge pressure on John Hunt 114 00:08:23,767 --> 00:08:29,399 with this colossal expectation that this quest had to succeed, 115 00:08:34,127 --> 00:08:36,167 INTERVIEWER: Mr Hillary, how many New Z ealanders 116 00:08:36,167 --> 00:08:37,887 are in this year's expedition? 117 00:08:37,887 --> 00:08:41,357 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, only two of us. There's George Lowe and myself. 118 00:08:42,367 --> 00:08:44,367 MAN: George Lowe and my father were great friends, 119 00:08:44,367 --> 00:08:47,607 They had climbed extensively in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, 120 00:08:47,607 --> 00:08:49,767 They were very good climbers together 121 00:08:49,767 --> 00:08:52,645 and had a tremendous rapport, 122 00:08:58,447 --> 00:09:01,407 MAN 2: We had 18 days of trekking 123 00:09:01,407 --> 00:09:04,407 and during that period of getting to know one another 124 00:09:04,407 --> 00:09:06,847 there was always a little bit of a funny edge 125 00:09:06,847 --> 00:09:09,042 towards the New Zealanders, 126 00:09:10,447 --> 00:09:14,207 Both Ed and I had been to ordinary high schools, 127 00:09:14,207 --> 00:09:16,887 They, of course, the greater number of them, 128 00:09:16,887 --> 00:09:19,447 had been to public schools, 129 00:09:22,447 --> 00:09:25,757 We did come from a different background, there was no doubt, 130 00:09:37,247 --> 00:09:38,927 HUNT: Kathmandu is only about 131 00:09:38,927 --> 00:09:40,963 4,000 feet above sea level, 132 00:09:41,967 --> 00:09:45,039 The foot of Everest is about 18,000, 133 00:09:46,327 --> 00:09:48,527 Our 17 days approach march 134 00:09:48,527 --> 00:09:50,887 was an essential part of my policy 135 00:09:50,887 --> 00:09:52,684 of acclimatisation, 136 00:09:54,767 --> 00:09:57,447 MAN: The whole thing is a race against time, 137 00:09:57,447 --> 00:10:01,007 There was a constant fear that the monsoon would come, 138 00:10:01,007 --> 00:10:02,687 So that's why John Hunt said, 139 00:10:02,687 --> 00:10:07,367 "We want to be in a position to climb Everest on May 15," 140 00:10:07,367 --> 00:10:11,447 The later in May, the more likely that the monsoon would arrive, 141 00:10:11,447 --> 00:10:13,677 It's always a race against time, 142 00:10:18,087 --> 00:10:22,407 EDMUND HILLARY: As we got steadily higher, our excitement increased 143 00:10:22,407 --> 00:10:26,286 and more and more great peaks were coming into view, 144 00:10:27,607 --> 00:10:32,967 And over it all towered the summit pyramid of Everest 145 00:10:32,967 --> 00:10:35,727 only 20 miles away, 146 00:10:35,727 --> 00:10:39,127 but still 20,000 feet above us, 147 00:10:39,127 --> 00:10:42,367 INTERVIEWER: Mr Hillary, you started climbing in New Z ealand, didn't you? 148 00:10:42,367 --> 00:10:44,207 EDMUND HILLARY: Oh, yes, I started in New Z ealand. 149 00:10:44,207 --> 00:10:46,960 (ROMANTIC MUSIC ON NEWSREEL) 150 00:10:50,967 --> 00:10:53,567 NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: And there's Mount Cook, the 'Cloud Piercer', 151 00:10:53,567 --> 00:10:57,207 reaching majestically skyw ard for over 12,000 feet. 152 00:10:57,207 --> 00:10:59,007 EDMUND HILLARY: A friend and I decided 153 00:10:59,007 --> 00:11:01,077 to have a short trip to Mount Cook, 154 00:11:02,127 --> 00:11:07,727 The closer we got, the more impressed I was with the magnificent mountains, 155 00:11:07,727 --> 00:11:09,527 NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: Those jagged peaks there 156 00:11:09,527 --> 00:11:13,202 provide the real alpinist with some of the best climbing outside Europe. 157 00:11:14,887 --> 00:11:18,647 EDMUND HILLARY: That night, inside the Hermitage where I was staying, 158 00:11:18,647 --> 00:11:20,367 two young men came in, 159 00:11:20,367 --> 00:11:25,927 I heard the whisper go around - "They have just climbed Mount Cook," 160 00:11:25,927 --> 00:11:28,927 These chaps were really living, 161 00:11:28,927 --> 00:11:32,247 I felt, "What a hopeless life I lead, 162 00:11:32,247 --> 00:11:36,525 "no great adventures, nothing particularly exciting," 163 00:11:40,127 --> 00:11:44,882 And that's when I decided that I was going to take up mountaineering, 164 00:11:53,207 --> 00:11:55,367 HUNT: Well, after 17 days 165 00:11:55,367 --> 00:12:00,760 our caravans arrived at the Monastery of Tengboche at over 12,000 feet, 166 00:12:05,247 --> 00:12:07,487 PETER HILLARY: Once they got up to Tengboche Monastery 167 00:12:07,487 --> 00:12:09,682 it's getting pretty cold, 168 00:12:12,047 --> 00:12:15,527 The low-country porters largely only had cotton clothes 169 00:12:15,527 --> 00:12:18,527 so they get paid off and they return to their villages 170 00:12:18,527 --> 00:12:21,803 and Sherpa porters take over, 171 00:12:23,567 --> 00:12:25,727 The Sherpas who stay on the expedition 172 00:12:25,727 --> 00:12:28,407 might have had previous experience of climbing, 173 00:12:28,407 --> 00:12:30,847 although not many did, 174 00:12:30,847 --> 00:12:32,927 Tenzing was an exception to that 175 00:12:32,927 --> 00:12:35,127 in that he did have quite a lot of experience, 176 00:12:35,127 --> 00:12:37,127 In fact, he really had more experience 177 00:12:37,127 --> 00:12:39,516 at climbing on Mount Everest than anyone else, 178 00:12:43,407 --> 00:12:46,047 MAN: Without the Sherpas you can't climb Everest 179 00:12:46,047 --> 00:12:47,719 and my father was the head man, 180 00:12:50,847 --> 00:12:52,567 People respected him, 181 00:12:52,567 --> 00:12:57,436 They knew that he had been climbing Everest with foreigners since 1935, 182 00:12:58,487 --> 00:13:01,047 You know, he'd been up six times already, 183 00:13:03,167 --> 00:13:05,527 EDMUND HILLARY: I knew Tenzing by repute, 184 00:13:05,527 --> 00:13:07,927 You know, he'd done a lot of mountaineering 185 00:13:07,927 --> 00:13:10,847 and I knew he was very highly regarded, 186 00:13:10,847 --> 00:13:14,767 But I wasn't able really to communicate well with him, 187 00:13:14,767 --> 00:13:19,716 His English was very limited and my Nepali was very limited, 188 00:13:20,727 --> 00:13:25,403 He had a flashing smile, absolutely charming smile, 189 00:13:27,767 --> 00:13:30,645 It was impossible not to like him, 190 00:13:34,407 --> 00:13:37,327 In the next fortnight, we had a period of training 191 00:13:37,327 --> 00:13:41,206 and testing ourselves and our equipment at altitudes, 192 00:13:42,687 --> 00:13:45,727 MAN: Well, in 1953, getting to the summit of Everest 193 00:13:45,727 --> 00:13:50,243 in terms of physiologic capability was a big unknown, 194 00:13:52,007 --> 00:13:55,283 It was like sending somebody into space, 195 00:13:58,687 --> 00:14:01,727 They knew from altitude experiments in chambers 196 00:14:01,727 --> 00:14:03,527 that altitude can make you seize 197 00:14:03,527 --> 00:14:06,887 and one of the ideas was that people would haemorrhage in their brains 198 00:14:06,887 --> 00:14:09,560 because their blood vessels would be so dilated, 199 00:14:10,727 --> 00:14:14,845 There were lots of reasons to think that there might be a stroke, 200 00:14:17,287 --> 00:14:20,324 Nobody knew whether or not it could really be done, 201 00:14:28,407 --> 00:14:32,287 MAN: When Ed was heading up the mountain in 1953, 202 00:14:32,287 --> 00:14:35,767 13 people had already died on the mountain 203 00:14:35,767 --> 00:14:38,887 and I think that for anyone who would be climbing at that time 204 00:14:38,887 --> 00:14:42,007 it would be something of a daunting statistic - 205 00:14:42,007 --> 00:14:46,558 13 deaths and zero summits at that point, 206 00:15:10,127 --> 00:15:12,287 HUNT: Now, about six miles up from Tengboche 207 00:15:12,287 --> 00:15:14,287 looking north is the Khumbu Glacier 208 00:15:14,287 --> 00:15:16,407 where we were to place our main base camp 209 00:15:16,407 --> 00:15:18,523 for the attack on the mountain, 210 00:15:24,847 --> 00:15:28,447 This icefall was to be our next great obstacle 211 00:15:28,447 --> 00:15:30,756 and I sent a party to explore it, 212 00:15:31,887 --> 00:15:35,207 Ed Hillary led this first party, 213 00:15:35,207 --> 00:15:38,199 (EERIE MUSIC) 214 00:15:46,727 --> 00:15:49,480 EDMUND HILLARY: The Western Cwm is guarded by a great icefall,,, 215 00:15:54,447 --> 00:15:59,316 ,,a tumbled mass of ice dropping 2,500 feet to the Khumbu Glacier, 216 00:16:01,847 --> 00:16:03,727 We first had to discover whether it 217 00:16:03,727 --> 00:16:05,718 was possible to ascend this icefall, 218 00:16:10,087 --> 00:16:12,407 The icefall was a constant hazard 219 00:16:12,407 --> 00:16:15,487 and we had no alternative but to make a route through country 220 00:16:15,487 --> 00:16:19,366 which we knew to be unjustifiable in the ordinary alpine climb, 221 00:16:24,207 --> 00:16:27,802 MAN: It's like a waterfall that's come off and has frozen, 222 00:16:29,527 --> 00:16:32,807 The weight of the glacier above them is shoving, 223 00:16:32,807 --> 00:16:35,196 It's all a jumble of ice, 224 00:16:37,647 --> 00:16:41,927 It is unstable objective danger 225 00:16:41,927 --> 00:16:43,997 that you have no control over, 226 00:16:47,967 --> 00:16:52,961 Crazy! My God, You 're dumb to be going up a route like that, 227 00:16:54,247 --> 00:16:58,445 But you just can't go any other way but through the icefall, 228 00:17:03,887 --> 00:17:07,327 MAN 2: In '52, the Swiss went up the icefall 229 00:17:07,327 --> 00:17:10,399 and said, "It's a thing that's always on the move," 230 00:17:12,967 --> 00:17:16,607 And it's a dangerous place for that reason, 231 00:17:16,607 --> 00:17:20,805 More people are killed in the icefall than anywhere else on Everest, 232 00:17:22,687 --> 00:17:25,679 (CREAKING AND CRACKING) 233 00:17:30,167 --> 00:17:34,207 It's immense, It's 2,500 feet high, 234 00:17:34,207 --> 00:17:37,756 And we had to go up the middle of it, 235 00:17:43,167 --> 00:17:46,207 MAN 2: Ed Hillary, George Lowe, Mike Westmacott and myself 236 00:17:46,207 --> 00:17:49,207 were the four of us chosen to make the first route through 237 00:17:49,207 --> 00:17:51,641 in a week or five days if we could,,, 238 00:17:52,927 --> 00:17:55,407 ,,and then of course to make it safe 239 00:17:55,407 --> 00:17:57,687 by a lot of step-cutting, a lot of fixed ropes 240 00:17:57,687 --> 00:18:00,407 so that eventually it would be possible 241 00:18:00,407 --> 00:18:05,356 for loaded porters to carry the stores safely through it, 242 00:18:06,927 --> 00:18:09,919 (TENSE MUSIC) 243 00:18:25,367 --> 00:18:27,247 WESTMACOTT: The icefall was a dangerous place 244 00:18:27,247 --> 00:18:29,767 because things did collapse without warning 245 00:18:29,767 --> 00:18:33,316 and if you were in the way, it was a thoroughly bad thing, 246 00:18:43,527 --> 00:18:45,324 (CRACKING) 247 00:18:54,247 --> 00:18:56,327 BAND: You had these great towers of ice 248 00:18:56,327 --> 00:18:59,167 and great lumps and strips the size of a row of cottages 249 00:18:59,167 --> 00:19:02,045 that could slump down at any moment, 250 00:19:05,767 --> 00:19:09,316 We gave names to the more dangerous parts, 251 00:19:11,007 --> 00:19:13,167 There was Mike's Horror, Hillary's Horror, 252 00:19:13,167 --> 00:19:18,241 an area called the Nutcracker, the Atom Bomb area, 253 00:19:21,927 --> 00:19:23,567 WESTMACOTT: There are certain,,, 254 00:19:23,567 --> 00:19:25,247 ,,what climbers call objective dangers 255 00:19:25,247 --> 00:19:27,442 which basically you can't do much about, 256 00:19:29,647 --> 00:19:32,719 There's also a risk of falling into a crevasse, 257 00:19:34,407 --> 00:19:37,967 BAND: We had these light aluminium ladders about six feet long 258 00:19:37,967 --> 00:19:41,277 which we could bolt together across the crevasses, 259 00:19:48,927 --> 00:19:50,647 And there were so many crevasses 260 00:19:50,647 --> 00:19:53,366 that we soon ran out of all the ladders we had, 261 00:19:55,047 --> 00:19:57,927 So we had to send down to where the nearest trees grew, 262 00:19:57,927 --> 00:19:59,887 which would be about three days' walk away, 263 00:19:59,887 --> 00:20:04,642 to cut small tree trunks to make little log bridges, 264 00:20:05,647 --> 00:20:08,115 (WOOD CREAKS) 265 00:20:11,007 --> 00:20:13,567 And you balanced as well as you could, 266 00:20:26,487 --> 00:20:30,878 For us, it was clearly going to be the only way to climb Everest, 267 00:20:35,007 --> 00:20:37,447 CONEFRE Y: Ed Hillary wanted to please, 268 00:20:37,447 --> 00:20:39,727 He wanted to be on the summit team, 269 00:20:39,727 --> 00:20:42,287 He would've known that only a few people 270 00:20:42,287 --> 00:20:44,327 would get a chance to go for the summit 271 00:20:44,327 --> 00:20:47,047 so from very early on he wanted to impress John Hunt 272 00:20:47,047 --> 00:20:49,967 and he felt there was time pressure on him 273 00:20:49,967 --> 00:20:52,720 to recce the icefall to get it prepared, 274 00:21:03,687 --> 00:21:06,167 PETER HILLARY: My father was never afraid of hard work, 275 00:21:06,167 --> 00:21:09,287 but part of that was to cover I think what Dad felt 276 00:21:09,287 --> 00:21:13,724 were a lot of psychological or emotional inadequacies, 277 00:21:16,407 --> 00:21:19,287 He had been raised with high expectations 278 00:21:19,287 --> 00:21:21,527 and they sent him off to Auckland Grammar School 279 00:21:21,527 --> 00:21:23,757 two years too young, 280 00:21:24,807 --> 00:21:27,487 EDMUND HILLARY: I was only 11 years old 281 00:21:27,487 --> 00:21:30,126 and I was rather terrified, really, 282 00:21:31,207 --> 00:21:33,007 When lunchtime came, 283 00:21:33,007 --> 00:21:35,007 I would go out the back of the school 284 00:21:35,007 --> 00:21:38,363 and there were a whole lot of ants living there, 285 00:21:39,407 --> 00:21:41,847 When I first went to Auckland Grammar, 286 00:21:41,847 --> 00:21:45,237 the only friends I really had were the ants, 287 00:21:49,087 --> 00:21:53,285 I was a dreamer until I started climbing, 288 00:22:02,287 --> 00:22:05,887 HUNT: The icefall was really chaotic 289 00:22:05,887 --> 00:22:07,647 and yet they forced a way 290 00:22:07,647 --> 00:22:11,686 and Ed's job of route finding was a particularly good show, 291 00:22:14,367 --> 00:22:15,927 BAND: The New Zealanders 292 00:22:15,927 --> 00:22:18,367 had a lot more snow and ice climbing experience 293 00:22:18,367 --> 00:22:20,967 than the average European climber 294 00:22:20,967 --> 00:22:24,607 because their mountains are very like the Himalayas in miniature, 295 00:22:24,607 --> 00:22:27,599 (SOARING MUSIC ON NEWSREEL) 296 00:22:31,007 --> 00:22:33,127 NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: The Southern Alps - 297 00:22:33,127 --> 00:22:35,367 the great mountain tangle which sprawls northw ards 298 00:22:35,367 --> 00:22:38,598 in an almost unbroken chain of rock and ice. 299 00:22:46,367 --> 00:22:48,167 INTERVIEWER: Well, Ed, how do the Southern Alps 300 00:22:48,167 --> 00:22:49,727 compare with the Swiss Alps? 301 00:22:49,727 --> 00:22:51,527 That's where the English climbers get their training. 302 00:22:51,527 --> 00:22:53,647 EDMUND HILLARY: Here in New Z ealand, with our terrific glaciation, 303 00:22:53,647 --> 00:22:56,247 a greater amount of our climbing is done on snow and ice - 304 00:22:56,247 --> 00:22:58,247 in many w ays very similar to the Himalay a. 305 00:22:58,247 --> 00:23:00,047 They're rather different from the Swiss Alps 306 00:23:00,047 --> 00:23:02,887 where the predominant feature for climbing is rock. 307 00:23:02,887 --> 00:23:06,207 NEWSREEL ANNOUNCER: Mount Aspiring, New Z ealand's Matterhorn - 308 00:23:06,207 --> 00:23:08,567 a shark's tooth of a mountain whose dangerous slopes 309 00:23:08,567 --> 00:23:10,807 demand skill and careful climbing. 310 00:23:10,807 --> 00:23:12,367 EDMUND HILLARY: Our New Z ealand mountains 311 00:23:12,367 --> 00:23:14,323 are really a wonderful training ground for the Himalay a. 312 00:23:17,407 --> 00:23:21,087 VENABLES: Kiwis have that tough resilience 313 00:23:21,087 --> 00:23:23,207 so I think that the younger British climbers 314 00:23:23,207 --> 00:23:24,847 were somewhat in awe 315 00:23:24,847 --> 00:23:30,080 of these formidable Kiwis brought in to reinforce the team, 316 00:23:37,887 --> 00:23:39,607 HUNT: Now, the next big doubt 317 00:23:39,607 --> 00:23:42,007 was regarding the lip of the coomb itself 318 00:23:42,007 --> 00:23:43,804 at the very top of the icefall, 319 00:23:44,847 --> 00:23:48,840 You see, there was an enormous, gaping crevasse, 320 00:23:51,047 --> 00:23:53,402 Could we get into the coomb? 321 00:23:58,687 --> 00:24:00,767 PETER HILLARY: The decision on who would be going 322 00:24:00,767 --> 00:24:02,487 all the way to the top 323 00:24:02,487 --> 00:24:05,285 was very much the leader's prerogative, 324 00:24:12,087 --> 00:24:15,047 John Hunt would evaluate the team 325 00:24:15,047 --> 00:24:17,242 throughout the course of the expedition, 326 00:24:22,287 --> 00:24:23,927 So there was a fair amount of 327 00:24:23,927 --> 00:24:26,727 sort of posturing and positioning going on 328 00:24:26,727 --> 00:24:30,287 as people tried to put themselves in the best light 329 00:24:30,287 --> 00:24:32,323 for that sort of opportunity, 330 00:24:38,247 --> 00:24:39,967 BAND: I think amongst the British 331 00:24:39,967 --> 00:24:41,967 there wasn't any particular jockeying for position, 332 00:24:41,967 --> 00:24:45,607 but I think our two New Zealanders, Hillary and Lowe, 333 00:24:45,607 --> 00:24:47,247 were perhaps rather more straightforward 334 00:24:47,247 --> 00:24:49,442 in wanting to get as high as possible, 335 00:25:00,407 --> 00:25:03,407 They were the sort of colonials that would make good 336 00:25:03,407 --> 00:25:05,727 and we were perhaps a little bit more inhibited - 337 00:25:05,727 --> 00:25:08,927 the public school type that wouldn't push our way forward 338 00:25:08,927 --> 00:25:11,566 unless Hunt had said, "Look, you 're the chap to do it," 339 00:25:12,567 --> 00:25:16,247 EDMUND HILLARY: I'd always hoped that George Lowe and I 340 00:25:16,247 --> 00:25:19,207 would be the final summit pair, 341 00:25:19,207 --> 00:25:22,487 but there was no time that John Hunt, our leader, 342 00:25:22,487 --> 00:25:27,887 wanted to have two New Zealanders stand on top of Mount Everest, 343 00:25:27,887 --> 00:25:30,487 So I had to look around and find someone 344 00:25:30,487 --> 00:25:34,560 who was as fit as I was and who could do a good job, 345 00:25:35,567 --> 00:25:38,320 Tenzing was that person, 346 00:25:44,287 --> 00:25:47,597 MAN: Nobody alive had more experience of Everest, 347 00:25:50,287 --> 00:25:52,727 He really understood the value of it 348 00:25:52,727 --> 00:25:55,287 and how it could change his life, 349 00:25:56,487 --> 00:25:59,127 Tenzing had been very, very poor, 350 00:25:59,127 --> 00:26:01,247 He had struggled, 351 00:26:01,247 --> 00:26:04,047 He wanted his children to go to good schools, 352 00:26:04,047 --> 00:26:07,447 He wanted more for them than he'd had, 353 00:26:07,447 --> 00:26:11,042 Tenzing understood what climbing Everest meant, 354 00:26:15,287 --> 00:26:19,367 My father was a bit of an anomaly as far as a Sherpa goes 355 00:26:19,367 --> 00:26:22,757 because he always wanted to climb Everest, 356 00:26:25,607 --> 00:26:29,327 That's very unusual for a poor kid from Tibet, 357 00:26:29,327 --> 00:26:33,927 So unlike many other Sherpas who actually climb just to make a living, 358 00:26:33,927 --> 00:26:35,807 he was a mountaineer at heart, 359 00:26:35,807 --> 00:26:40,517 His drive was to go to the top just like Ed Hillary, 360 00:26:46,247 --> 00:26:49,887 HUNT: As we walked on into the coomb, the crevasses grew fewer 361 00:26:49,887 --> 00:26:53,967 and we realised that the coomb itself was open to us, 362 00:26:53,967 --> 00:26:56,959 (DRAMATIC MUSIC) 363 00:27:14,127 --> 00:27:16,247 HUNT: We are now established at Base Camp 364 00:27:16,247 --> 00:27:19,007 and the first problem is to get our supplies 365 00:27:19,007 --> 00:27:22,636 up to Camp 4 high up in the Western Cwm, 366 00:27:23,647 --> 00:27:26,447 Owing to the climbing difficulties in the icefall, 367 00:27:26,447 --> 00:27:30,235 laden porters require three days to reach Camp 4, 368 00:27:33,687 --> 00:27:35,607 CONEFRE Y: There was this idea in those days 369 00:27:35,607 --> 00:27:37,647 of laying siege to a mountain, 370 00:27:37,647 --> 00:27:40,167 This meant you would do it in a very systematic way - 371 00:27:40,167 --> 00:27:43,047 you would set up a camp and you would set up another camp 372 00:27:43,047 --> 00:27:45,687 and get higher and higher, 373 00:27:45,687 --> 00:27:47,927 VENABLES: You build up this pyramid of camps 374 00:27:47,927 --> 00:27:53,047 to get enough tents, food, cooking fuel, oxygen - 375 00:27:53,047 --> 00:27:56,927 to get enough of those supplies where you can rest 376 00:27:56,927 --> 00:27:59,395 before going up to the next stage, 377 00:28:05,887 --> 00:28:09,487 And to do that, people have got to go up and down the mountain, 378 00:28:09,487 --> 00:28:12,407 Ideally, people go up to a camp and then go back down again 379 00:28:12,407 --> 00:28:15,007 'cause if everyone goes up to a camp and then stays there 380 00:28:15,007 --> 00:28:17,441 they then consume all the food they've carried up, 381 00:28:36,567 --> 00:28:38,447 CONEFRE Y: People tried to come up with solutions 382 00:28:38,447 --> 00:28:40,727 which would help the team to get to the top, 383 00:28:40,727 --> 00:28:42,527 people from around the world 384 00:28:42,527 --> 00:28:45,407 sending in madcap suggestions on inventions, 385 00:28:45,407 --> 00:28:47,087 Somebody had an ingenious device 386 00:28:47,087 --> 00:28:48,727 which was a type of harpoon 387 00:28:48,727 --> 00:28:51,116 with an incendiary device on the end of it, 388 00:28:52,127 --> 00:28:55,407 The idea was that it would burn its way into the ice 389 00:28:55,407 --> 00:28:57,207 and give a secure holding 390 00:28:57,207 --> 00:28:59,327 so people could haul themselves up, 391 00:28:59,327 --> 00:29:02,047 Most of them were completely crazy ideas, 392 00:29:02,047 --> 00:29:04,287 VOICEOVER: My method involves the use of a hand cable 393 00:29:04,287 --> 00:29:06,527 laid in adv ance by aircraft... 394 00:29:06,527 --> 00:29:08,087 VOICEOVER 2: With my relay w armth 395 00:29:08,087 --> 00:29:09,807 personal heating apparatus, 396 00:29:09,807 --> 00:29:11,687 air could be passed through a heating chamber 397 00:29:11,687 --> 00:29:13,327 and pumped via rubber tube 398 00:29:13,327 --> 00:29:14,967 to the hands, feet and head... 399 00:29:14,967 --> 00:29:18,007 VOICEOVER 3: May I mention a Wonder Gun 400 00:29:18,007 --> 00:29:20,287 for driving steel bolts into concrete... 401 00:29:20,287 --> 00:29:22,047 VOICEOVER 4: I suggest that a woollen suit 402 00:29:22,047 --> 00:29:23,607 be wired in much the same w ay 403 00:29:23,607 --> 00:29:25,167 as an electric blanket... 404 00:29:25,167 --> 00:29:26,647 VOICEOVER 5: It should be possible 405 00:29:26,647 --> 00:29:29,567 to ascend the mountain using a large helium-filled balloon. 406 00:29:29,567 --> 00:29:32,877 A significant amount of helium would be required. 407 00:29:39,167 --> 00:29:42,447 MAN: Nearly all of the technological innovations 408 00:29:42,447 --> 00:29:44,687 that were used on the 1953 expedition 409 00:29:44,687 --> 00:29:47,087 arose from things developed by the military 410 00:29:47,087 --> 00:29:49,123 during the Second World War, 411 00:29:51,847 --> 00:29:54,847 They tested the windproof equipment they were going to be wearing 412 00:29:54,847 --> 00:29:57,919 in the wind tunnel at Farnborough Aircraft Factory, 413 00:30:05,207 --> 00:30:08,127 30 different firms, UK firms, 414 00:30:08,127 --> 00:30:11,164 were involved in designing the boots alone, 415 00:30:15,007 --> 00:30:19,125 The ascent of Everest in '53 had become a question of national pride, 416 00:30:20,407 --> 00:30:23,367 When World War II ended, Britain was completely bankrupt 417 00:30:23,367 --> 00:30:25,967 and because of the austerity, the postwar austerity in Britain, 418 00:30:25,967 --> 00:30:27,685 the really awful days that had past,,, 419 00:30:30,167 --> 00:30:32,887 ,,it was the last great colonial project, 420 00:30:32,887 --> 00:30:35,765 the last hurrah of the British Empire, 421 00:30:47,487 --> 00:30:49,567 PETER HILLARY: My father and Tenzing 422 00:30:49,567 --> 00:30:52,727 kept volunteering to help in different situations 423 00:30:52,727 --> 00:30:56,845 to demonstrate their competency as being one of the summit teams, 424 00:30:57,847 --> 00:31:00,967 Dad could see that there were a whole lot of reasons 425 00:31:00,967 --> 00:31:04,721 why this could be a great combination for success, 426 00:31:06,087 --> 00:31:09,124 They were very at home in this alpine environment, 427 00:31:10,127 --> 00:31:13,039 They were hungry, They wanted the top, 428 00:31:23,447 --> 00:31:26,247 CONEFRE Y: There's a point where they were partnered together 429 00:31:26,247 --> 00:31:28,487 and they were racing down the Khumbu Icefall, 430 00:31:28,487 --> 00:31:31,206 trying to prove that they could do it quickly, 431 00:31:32,647 --> 00:31:35,127 But as a sort of product of his over-exuberance, really, 432 00:31:35,127 --> 00:31:37,846 he's racing through it and something goes wrong, 433 00:31:39,127 --> 00:31:41,687 EDMUND HILLARY: Tenzing and I headed back down to Base Camp, 434 00:31:43,247 --> 00:31:45,847 When we were about halfway down the icefall 435 00:31:45,847 --> 00:31:48,566 we came to one of the crevasses, 436 00:31:51,687 --> 00:31:54,967 On one side of it there was a great chunk of ice 437 00:31:54,967 --> 00:31:57,847 and we had used this as a stepping stone 438 00:31:57,847 --> 00:31:59,644 to reach the other side, 439 00:32:01,247 --> 00:32:03,841 (TENSE MUSIC) 440 00:32:33,407 --> 00:32:34,967 CONEFRE Y: It was slightly ironic 441 00:32:34,967 --> 00:32:37,447 that it was Ed Hillary, who was such a good climber, 442 00:32:37,447 --> 00:32:39,324 that it should happen to him, 443 00:32:43,087 --> 00:32:44,887 EDMUND HILLARY: People have often said to me, 444 00:32:44,887 --> 00:32:46,567 "You must've been very thankful, 445 00:32:46,567 --> 00:32:48,927 "Tenzing having saved your life like that," 446 00:32:48,927 --> 00:32:50,567 but I don't think I was, 447 00:32:50,567 --> 00:32:53,843 You know, I'd have been very annoyed if he hadn't saved my life, 448 00:33:01,367 --> 00:33:03,567 HUNT: Camp 4 has now been established 449 00:33:03,567 --> 00:33:05,247 and we have successfully carried 450 00:33:05,247 --> 00:33:08,205 the three tons of supplies up here, 451 00:33:14,047 --> 00:33:16,167 VENABLES: You don't conquer a mountain, 452 00:33:16,167 --> 00:33:17,967 If you 're lucky enough, 453 00:33:17,967 --> 00:33:21,357 the mountain gives you a chance to stand on the top, 454 00:33:22,367 --> 00:33:26,076 You 're trying to overcome your own weaknesses, 455 00:33:37,687 --> 00:33:40,367 CONEFRE Y: Ed Hillary, he was so kind of gung-ho 456 00:33:40,367 --> 00:33:42,167 and he always wanted to be out front, 457 00:33:42,167 --> 00:33:45,007 he always wanted to be in the lead, 458 00:33:45,007 --> 00:33:49,159 He wasn't brash, He was a quieter, sort of more reserved, character, 459 00:33:52,007 --> 00:33:54,680 PETER HILLARY: Dad was quite a complicated person, 460 00:33:55,687 --> 00:33:59,327 I think my father had quite a few demons 461 00:33:59,327 --> 00:34:01,607 born out of being a perfectionist, 462 00:34:01,607 --> 00:34:06,727 but also the sense of inferiority - nothing is ever quite good enough, 463 00:34:06,727 --> 00:34:10,959 I think it came out of a very complicated family background, 464 00:34:15,527 --> 00:34:17,687 EDMUND HILLARY: My father really wasn't very interested 465 00:34:17,687 --> 00:34:19,767 in adventurous activities, 466 00:34:19,767 --> 00:34:22,807 He was a man of very strong beliefs, 467 00:34:22,807 --> 00:34:28,598 The climbing of mountains he probably regarded as a bit of a waste of time, 468 00:34:33,767 --> 00:34:36,486 I fought with my father, 469 00:34:38,567 --> 00:34:42,287 And I would usually end up being taken over to the woodshed 470 00:34:42,287 --> 00:34:45,085 and being given a good thumping, 471 00:34:47,527 --> 00:34:49,287 I'm rather proud of the fact 472 00:34:49,287 --> 00:34:52,643 that I never actually admitted I was wrong,,, 473 00:34:54,607 --> 00:34:56,677 ,,even if I had been, 474 00:35:13,247 --> 00:35:16,239 (TYPEWRITER CLICKS) 475 00:35:18,007 --> 00:35:19,727 (DING!) 476 00:35:19,727 --> 00:35:23,247 WESTMACOTT: Well, of course it was of tremendous interest to all of us 477 00:35:23,247 --> 00:35:25,602 who would be chosen for the final push, 478 00:35:30,807 --> 00:35:35,119 VENABLES: In those days, the leader's word was absolute,,, 479 00:35:36,127 --> 00:35:39,756 ,,particularly for men who had all been in the armed forces, 480 00:35:41,687 --> 00:35:44,087 Hunt had to make the decision, 481 00:35:44,087 --> 00:35:47,367 He would say who were going to be the lucky ones 482 00:35:47,367 --> 00:35:49,676 who were going to have a crack at the summit, 483 00:35:55,047 --> 00:35:57,207 It was at our Base Camp 484 00:35:57,207 --> 00:35:59,487 and John Hunt got everybody round 485 00:35:59,487 --> 00:36:05,005 and outlined his plans for the rest of the expedition, 486 00:36:06,967 --> 00:36:10,926 The crucial thing, of course, was the attempts for the summit, 487 00:36:11,927 --> 00:36:13,727 VENABLES: At that meeting, 488 00:36:13,727 --> 00:36:16,847 that extraordinary meeting with this team 489 00:36:16,847 --> 00:36:18,887 totally isolated from the rest of the world, 490 00:36:18,887 --> 00:36:21,196 thousands of miles from home,,, 491 00:36:24,367 --> 00:36:27,247 ,,those men, each thinking, "Oh, wouldn't it be wonderful 492 00:36:27,247 --> 00:36:29,920 "if I was one of the lucky ones," 493 00:36:32,287 --> 00:36:35,687 BAND: You 're all chosen as basic climbers to go to the top, 494 00:36:35,687 --> 00:36:39,157 but there are all these other jobs to be done as well, 495 00:36:42,807 --> 00:36:45,927 PETER HILLARY: My father was absolutely determined 496 00:36:45,927 --> 00:36:49,636 that he was going to have an opportunity to climb this mountain, 497 00:36:50,927 --> 00:36:52,407 NORBU TENZING: One of the conditions 498 00:36:52,407 --> 00:36:54,527 for my father to go with the English team 499 00:36:54,527 --> 00:36:57,967 was that he'd have a chance to go to the top, 500 00:36:57,967 --> 00:37:01,087 There was no other climber quite as accomplished, 501 00:37:01,087 --> 00:37:04,127 WESTMACOTT: All of us would have liked to have a crack at the top, 502 00:37:04,127 --> 00:37:06,087 but the first attempt on the summit 503 00:37:06,087 --> 00:37:10,205 was to be made by Tom Bourdillon with Charles Evans,,, 504 00:37:15,247 --> 00:37:18,447 ,,and, "If needed, the second attempt," he said, 505 00:37:18,447 --> 00:37:21,678 "is going to be made by Ed Hillary and Tenzing," 506 00:37:24,167 --> 00:37:25,847 PETER HILLARY: I'm sure my father 507 00:37:25,847 --> 00:37:28,725 would have loved to have been in the first team, 508 00:37:32,127 --> 00:37:35,802 Tenzing was probably quite conflicted by it, 509 00:37:38,967 --> 00:37:42,167 HUNT: The next stage, and the really crucial one, 510 00:37:42,167 --> 00:37:45,125 is up the Lhotse Face to the South Col, 511 00:37:46,567 --> 00:37:50,447 VENABLES: John Hunt said, "OK, Tom Bourdillon with Charles Evans, 512 00:37:50,447 --> 00:37:52,487 "We'll send the two of them up first, 513 00:37:52,487 --> 00:37:55,327 "They can do a huge leap from the South Col 514 00:37:55,327 --> 00:37:57,761 "right to the summit in a day," 515 00:38:05,607 --> 00:38:08,647 HUNT: The first major task in this plan fell to George Lowe, 516 00:38:08,647 --> 00:38:12,887 He was to make a route up the Lhotse Face and prepare the way 517 00:38:12,887 --> 00:38:15,845 for the high-carrying parties to reach the col, 518 00:38:16,847 --> 00:38:19,680 This was to be finished by 15 May, 519 00:38:26,367 --> 00:38:28,087 CONEFRE Y: Basically what he said was, 520 00:38:28,087 --> 00:38:31,927 "We want to be in a position to climb Everest on May 15," 521 00:38:31,927 --> 00:38:34,687 because there was a constant fear in the back of Hunt's mind that 522 00:38:34,687 --> 00:38:38,919 “The monsoon would come and end all our hopes," 523 00:38:40,007 --> 00:38:43,920 But they had to get up this thing called the Lhotse Face, 524 00:38:47,847 --> 00:38:50,767 EDMUND HILLARY: This is a vast 4,000-foot snow-and-ice face 525 00:38:50,767 --> 00:38:54,555 leading up steeply to the South Col at 26,000 feet, 526 00:38:55,687 --> 00:38:57,887 (WIND HOWLS) 527 00:38:57,887 --> 00:39:01,287 George Lowe, my fellow New Zealander, spent much time and energy 528 00:39:01,287 --> 00:39:03,881 bashing a route up this difficult problem, 529 00:39:05,127 --> 00:39:07,647 LOWE: Well, the work on the face was very difficult 530 00:39:07,647 --> 00:39:09,447 and made more difficult and atrocious 531 00:39:09,447 --> 00:39:13,406 by the weather and daily falls of snow which covered the tracks, 532 00:39:15,287 --> 00:39:17,927 I shared my high perch for a long time with Ang Nyima, 533 00:39:17,927 --> 00:39:20,316 a splendid little Sherpa, 534 00:39:23,807 --> 00:39:26,127 WESTMACOTT: George Lowe worked on the Lhotse Face 535 00:39:26,127 --> 00:39:31,565 without oxygen for over a week up to about 24,500 feet, 536 00:39:33,887 --> 00:39:37,287 LOWE: The cold was terrific and the wind was bad 537 00:39:37,287 --> 00:39:40,367 and all the time I was hoping to get the traverse complete 538 00:39:40,367 --> 00:39:43,245 and the route right through to the South Col, 539 00:39:44,607 --> 00:39:49,007 But I was thrashed by the weather and the altitude was affecting me, 540 00:39:49,007 --> 00:39:52,636 We didn't seem to be able to make the last 1,000 feet to the col, 541 00:39:56,127 --> 00:39:58,247 CONEFRE Y: John Hunt's big mistake 542 00:39:58,247 --> 00:40:01,207 was that he underestimated the Lhotse Face, 543 00:40:01,207 --> 00:40:03,243 It's just so big, 544 00:40:10,687 --> 00:40:13,804 He didn't give enough support to George Lowe, 545 00:40:15,407 --> 00:40:17,847 LOWE: It really was myself and Ang Nyima, 546 00:40:17,847 --> 00:40:20,127 Whenever they did send up support, 547 00:40:20,127 --> 00:40:23,358 within 24 hours, they were not able to carry on, 548 00:40:26,367 --> 00:40:28,247 HACKETT: Being at high altitude, 549 00:40:28,247 --> 00:40:30,681 you never feel very well, 550 00:40:34,647 --> 00:40:37,727 Each breath of air we take in at high altitude 551 00:40:37,727 --> 00:40:39,447 has fewer oxygen molecules 552 00:40:39,447 --> 00:40:43,599 so we need more breaths in order to get the same amount of oxygen, 553 00:40:48,887 --> 00:40:51,007 WHITTAKER: Put a pillow over your mouth 554 00:40:51,007 --> 00:40:53,687 and try and breath through it as you 're running, 555 00:40:53,687 --> 00:40:56,607 (PUFFS) You just suck in air, you 're trying to get enough air 556 00:40:56,607 --> 00:40:59,287 and the oxygen debt builds up until you just can't go any,,, 557 00:40:59,287 --> 00:41:02,007 You have to stop, (PUFFS HEAVILY) 558 00:41:02,007 --> 00:41:04,567 Take three, four breaths to a step, 559 00:41:04,567 --> 00:41:08,327 five breaths to a step, six breaths to a step, 560 00:41:08,327 --> 00:41:10,287 15 breaths to a step, 561 00:41:10,287 --> 00:41:12,527 You 're just not getting the air, 562 00:41:12,527 --> 00:41:14,836 (WIND HOWLS) 563 00:41:15,847 --> 00:41:20,125 LOWE: Up there, your mind somehow gradually accepts slowness, 564 00:41:23,247 --> 00:41:25,527 I thought I was going extremely well, 565 00:41:25,527 --> 00:41:29,281 but in fact we were staggering about like men in a dream, 566 00:41:37,487 --> 00:41:40,727 HUNT: We had spent 10 days on the Lhotse Face - 567 00:41:40,727 --> 00:41:43,327 considerably more than I'd reckoned on - 568 00:41:43,327 --> 00:41:48,247 but we had still not broken through to the South Col, 569 00:41:48,247 --> 00:41:51,080 The time factor was becoming critical, 570 00:41:55,527 --> 00:41:57,847 BAND: Watching the progress on the Lhotse Face, 571 00:41:57,847 --> 00:42:00,647 there was no doubt that the momentum of the attack 572 00:42:00,647 --> 00:42:03,007 seemed to be winding down, 573 00:42:03,007 --> 00:42:04,887 and the first inklings of the monsoon 574 00:42:04,887 --> 00:42:08,004 were building up in the Bay of Bengal, 575 00:42:09,287 --> 00:42:12,120 VENABLES: It was a very, very critical time, 576 00:42:13,247 --> 00:42:14,807 You could imagine Hunt 577 00:42:14,807 --> 00:42:17,407 feeling that this whole great enterprise was just unravelling 578 00:42:17,407 --> 00:42:19,887 and, "If we don't get a grip on this thing soon 579 00:42:19,887 --> 00:42:21,407 "we're going to lose our chance, 580 00:42:21,407 --> 00:42:22,887 "The monsoon will arrive 581 00:42:22,887 --> 00:42:25,887 "and we won't even have reached the South Col, let alone the summit," 582 00:42:25,887 --> 00:42:28,401 (MORSE CODE BEEPS) 583 00:42:37,167 --> 00:42:40,647 MAN: This is London calling the British Mount Everest expedition. 584 00:42:40,647 --> 00:42:42,687 Here is the latest weather bulletin. 585 00:42:42,687 --> 00:42:46,367 Western disturbance apparently moving eastw ards 586 00:42:46,367 --> 00:42:49,127 across the extreme north of Nepal 587 00:42:49,127 --> 00:42:52,087 is likely to cause cloudy to overcast skies 588 00:42:52,087 --> 00:42:54,237 with occasional thunderstorms... 589 00:42:55,687 --> 00:42:58,847 CONEFRE Y: The later in May it was, 590 00:42:58,847 --> 00:43:01,441 the more likely that the monsoon would arrive, 591 00:43:03,567 --> 00:43:05,207 When the monsoon comes, 592 00:43:05,207 --> 00:43:09,447 you get huge dumps of snow and they make climbing much more difficult, 593 00:43:09,447 --> 00:43:12,967 You don't want to be climbing through large amounts of soft snow, 594 00:43:12,967 --> 00:43:14,639 wading your way through it, 595 00:43:16,687 --> 00:43:19,407 The British expeditions of the 1930s had all failed 596 00:43:19,407 --> 00:43:21,238 because the monsoon had come early, 597 00:43:22,247 --> 00:43:25,159 And so all of this was piling on the pressure, you know? 598 00:43:35,207 --> 00:43:37,847 BAND: So even though the route 599 00:43:37,847 --> 00:43:40,647 hadn't actually been made all the way to the South Col 600 00:43:40,647 --> 00:43:43,767 John Hunt had to make a sort of crucial decision 601 00:43:43,767 --> 00:43:47,167 to start sending up the team of 14 Sherpas 602 00:43:47,167 --> 00:43:49,317 to carry all the stores we needed, 603 00:43:57,727 --> 00:44:00,847 HUNT: Nothing must endanger the getting of our stores to the col 604 00:44:00,847 --> 00:44:03,839 in time for our attempts on the summit, 605 00:44:08,447 --> 00:44:10,847 EDMUND HILLARY: On 21 May, Tenzing and myself 606 00:44:10,847 --> 00:44:14,567 led a band of 14 high-altitude Sherpas up the Lhotse Face, 607 00:44:14,567 --> 00:44:17,559 (DRAMATIC MUSIC) 608 00:44:26,007 --> 00:44:30,327 13 Sherpas struggled up to the col that day, without oxygen, 609 00:44:30,327 --> 00:44:34,527 The 14th only just failed to make it, and his load was carried on, 610 00:44:34,527 --> 00:44:37,564 We were proud of them, and grateful, 611 00:44:39,447 --> 00:44:41,247 It was a 10,5-hour day, 612 00:44:41,247 --> 00:44:43,647 They carried 30 pounds each, and their only nourishment 613 00:44:43,647 --> 00:44:46,241 was a single cup of tea apiece for breakfast, 614 00:44:49,767 --> 00:44:53,327 BAND: And so we were able to equip the camp properly 615 00:44:53,327 --> 00:44:56,887 with tents, sleeping bags, oxygen equipment and food, 616 00:44:56,887 --> 00:44:59,355 and that was one of the biggest achievements, 617 00:45:07,447 --> 00:45:08,927 EDMUND HILLARY: The South Col is probably 618 00:45:08,927 --> 00:45:10,406 the most barren spot in the world, 619 00:45:12,207 --> 00:45:14,007 The continual strong wind 620 00:45:14,007 --> 00:45:17,567 is always blowing over the dreary waste of rock and ice, 621 00:45:17,567 --> 00:45:19,327 Adding an air of desolation 622 00:45:19,327 --> 00:45:21,567 are the remnants of the Swiss tents of the previous year, 623 00:45:21,567 --> 00:45:24,957 with pieces of tattered cloth still clinging to them, 624 00:45:29,527 --> 00:45:33,687 NORBU TENZING: 1952, the Swiss had invited my father to climb Everest, 625 00:45:33,687 --> 00:45:37,487 and he had been up where no human had been before, 626 00:45:37,487 --> 00:45:40,206 but bad weather turned them back, 627 00:45:43,047 --> 00:45:45,487 LOWE: I remember André Roch, of the Swiss party, said, 628 00:45:45,487 --> 00:45:48,927 "On the col there's a smell of death," 629 00:45:48,927 --> 00:45:51,367 We thought that was Continental dramatics, 630 00:45:51,367 --> 00:45:53,722 but when we'd been there, we understood, 631 00:45:57,327 --> 00:46:00,087 WHITTAKER: I'm telling you, the cold, 632 00:46:00,087 --> 00:46:01,967 you can feel it coming up the extremities, 633 00:46:01,967 --> 00:46:05,087 You know you 're gonna freeze your hands and toes, 634 00:46:05,087 --> 00:46:07,247 and you just feel the cold creeping up, 635 00:46:07,247 --> 00:46:11,407 It's a race between the body and what you hope you can do, 636 00:46:11,407 --> 00:46:15,167 You know that you 're dying a little bit up there, 637 00:46:15,167 --> 00:46:18,159 (WIND WHISTLES RELENTLESSLY) 638 00:46:24,167 --> 00:46:26,007 EDMUND HILLARY: A major step had been achieved, 639 00:46:26,007 --> 00:46:28,680 and we then returned once more to the Western Cwm, 640 00:46:32,527 --> 00:46:36,918 Without wasting any time, we brought into action our assault plan, 641 00:46:39,527 --> 00:46:42,647 CONEFRE Y: Hunt wanted to have two attempts on the summit, 642 00:46:42,647 --> 00:46:45,287 but he realised that he couldn't have two attempts 643 00:46:45,287 --> 00:46:47,887 which were using open-circuit oxygen sets, 644 00:46:47,887 --> 00:46:49,807 WESTMACOTT: In the open-circuit, 645 00:46:49,807 --> 00:46:53,767 when you breathe out, the expired air goes to the atmosphere, 646 00:46:53,767 --> 00:46:55,287 and when you breathe in, 647 00:46:55,287 --> 00:46:58,847 the atmospheric air comes with an addition of a puff of oxygen 648 00:46:58,847 --> 00:47:00,678 from your oxygen set, 649 00:47:04,287 --> 00:47:06,487 CONEFRE Y: The thing about open-circuit oxygen sets 650 00:47:06,487 --> 00:47:08,487 is that they use a lot of oxygen, 651 00:47:08,487 --> 00:47:11,967 so he would have to get an awful lot of oxygen 652 00:47:11,967 --> 00:47:14,127 up onto the South Col and to the Southeast Ridge, 653 00:47:14,127 --> 00:47:15,607 so he sort of thought, 654 00:47:15,607 --> 00:47:17,807 "Well, no, we're not gonna be able to do this," 655 00:47:17,807 --> 00:47:20,007 But there was an alternative form of oxygen set, 656 00:47:20,007 --> 00:47:21,963 which was called a closed circuit, 657 00:47:23,567 --> 00:47:26,087 WESTMACOTT: The closed-circuit, when you breathe out 658 00:47:26,087 --> 00:47:28,527 the carbon dioxide goes through a canister 659 00:47:28,527 --> 00:47:32,127 of something called soda lime, which extracts the carbon dioxide 660 00:47:32,127 --> 00:47:34,407 and gives you back the oxygen into the set, 661 00:47:34,407 --> 00:47:37,444 and you 're completely insulated from the outside air, 662 00:47:40,807 --> 00:47:46,167 Now, if it works, the closed system can be more efficient 663 00:47:46,167 --> 00:47:49,207 than the open-circuit system, 664 00:47:49,207 --> 00:47:52,607 CONEFRE Y: The people who are using the closed-circuit set 665 00:47:52,607 --> 00:47:55,087 can start from lower down, 666 00:47:55,087 --> 00:47:57,447 But the thing about a closed-circuit set 667 00:47:57,447 --> 00:48:00,207 was that the only person who really knew how to use them 668 00:48:00,207 --> 00:48:03,007 was the person who had designed them, Tom Bourdillon, 669 00:48:03,007 --> 00:48:05,687 WESTMACOTT: And the first attempt on the summit, 670 00:48:05,687 --> 00:48:07,727 using the closed-circuit oxygen, 671 00:48:07,727 --> 00:48:11,163 was to be made by Tom Bourdillon with Charles Evans, 672 00:48:13,247 --> 00:48:17,126 John Hunt went ahead to the South Col in support, 673 00:48:23,567 --> 00:48:26,007 PETER HILLARY: Evans and Bourdillon left Advanced Base 674 00:48:26,007 --> 00:48:27,847 down in the Western Cwm 675 00:48:27,847 --> 00:48:30,566 and climbed up the South Col to camp, 676 00:48:31,847 --> 00:48:34,367 WESTMACOTT: Tom and Charles were to go all the way 677 00:48:34,367 --> 00:48:36,358 from the South Col to the top, 678 00:48:37,927 --> 00:48:40,487 I thought at the time they had a chance, 679 00:48:40,487 --> 00:48:43,206 but it was a hell of a long way, 680 00:48:51,647 --> 00:48:54,047 PETER HILLARY: If Bourdillon and Evans reach the summit, 681 00:48:54,047 --> 00:48:56,207 John Hunt might go, "Job done, 682 00:48:56,207 --> 00:48:58,721 "We're all going home, Everyone's safe," 683 00:49:04,487 --> 00:49:08,007 But the weather closed in and everyone got stuck for two days, 684 00:49:08,007 --> 00:49:11,363 including Bourdillon and Evans on the South Col, 685 00:49:13,367 --> 00:49:16,647 My father and Tenzing left Advanced Base 686 00:49:16,647 --> 00:49:18,647 down on the Western Cwm 687 00:49:18,647 --> 00:49:22,287 to come up to the South Col to be the second summit team, 688 00:49:22,287 --> 00:49:25,527 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, we left Base Camp in the Western Cwm, 689 00:49:25,527 --> 00:49:27,367 There was our support party - 690 00:49:27,367 --> 00:49:30,803 George Lowe, Alf Gregory and several Sherpas, 691 00:49:35,207 --> 00:49:37,527 And then Tenzing and myself, who were the actual assault party, 692 00:49:37,527 --> 00:49:39,165 with the open-circuit, 693 00:49:51,887 --> 00:49:55,407 PETER HILLARY: As my father and Tenzing were departing from Camp 4, 694 00:49:55,407 --> 00:49:57,841 Bourdillon and Evans were making their summit bid, 695 00:50:04,447 --> 00:50:06,567 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, we went up the Lhotse Face 696 00:50:06,567 --> 00:50:10,162 and across the long traverse that leads up to the South Col, 697 00:50:17,647 --> 00:50:19,927 And we're just about up to the South Col 698 00:50:19,927 --> 00:50:22,607 when we notice the support party, 699 00:50:22,607 --> 00:50:26,607 George started shouting and jumping around, 700 00:50:26,607 --> 00:50:29,447 And we looked up and we saw Evans and Bourdillon 701 00:50:29,447 --> 00:50:32,287 going up the tiny little peak far above us, 702 00:50:32,287 --> 00:50:34,562 onto the top of the South Summit, 703 00:50:36,127 --> 00:50:39,287 I think it was somewhere around about 12:00 in the morning, 704 00:50:39,287 --> 00:50:43,127 and we thought, "Ooh, they've,,, South Summit, 12:00, 705 00:50:43,127 --> 00:50:45,561 "They've time to get to the top, 706 00:50:48,247 --> 00:50:50,044 "They're going to climb it," 707 00:50:52,527 --> 00:50:55,567 PETER HILLARY: You know, when Bourdillon and Evans went out of sight, 708 00:50:55,567 --> 00:50:57,407 there would've been very high emotions, 709 00:50:57,407 --> 00:50:59,523 because these guys wanted to be up there, 710 00:51:03,887 --> 00:51:07,800 EDMUND HILLARY: We crossed over and reached the South Col, 711 00:51:13,007 --> 00:51:15,447 A little later in the day, we kept an eye out 712 00:51:15,447 --> 00:51:17,447 for the clouds that come over the mountain, 713 00:51:17,447 --> 00:51:20,687 and we were a bit worried about Evans and Bourdillon, 714 00:51:20,687 --> 00:51:22,767 But, uh, I think it was about 3:30, 715 00:51:22,767 --> 00:51:25,007 George once again caught sight of them 716 00:51:25,007 --> 00:51:27,767 coming down the couloir from the Southeast Ridge, 717 00:51:27,767 --> 00:51:29,485 down towards the South Col, 718 00:51:33,567 --> 00:51:35,247 LOWE: And it was a long time 719 00:51:35,247 --> 00:51:36,760 before they actually started to come down, 720 00:51:41,727 --> 00:51:46,198 And when they were coming down, they were clearly very, very tired, 721 00:51:52,327 --> 00:51:54,767 PETER HILLARY: When Bourdillon and Evans came down, 722 00:51:54,767 --> 00:51:57,201 Dad walked out to meet them, 723 00:52:03,567 --> 00:52:05,727 People tend to see it in terms of 724 00:52:05,727 --> 00:52:09,447 this really good guy going out to meet them and help them back, 725 00:52:09,447 --> 00:52:11,563 and there was that, absolutely, 726 00:52:13,167 --> 00:52:16,807 But there was another part, which was inside, where he,,, 727 00:52:16,807 --> 00:52:18,567 ,,he wanted to climb this mountain, 728 00:52:18,567 --> 00:52:21,161 He needed to know, "Where did they get to?" 729 00:52:25,687 --> 00:52:27,167 EDMUND HILLARY: And they told us 730 00:52:27,167 --> 00:52:28,647 that they'd reached the South Summit alright, 731 00:52:28,647 --> 00:52:30,607 had a look at the summit ridge, 732 00:52:30,607 --> 00:52:34,680 but hadn't had sufficient time or oxygen or energy to go any further, 733 00:52:45,207 --> 00:52:47,087 CONEFRE Y: They were in a terrible state, 734 00:52:47,087 --> 00:52:50,127 Most of the day Charles Evans had been climbing with an oxygen set 735 00:52:50,127 --> 00:52:51,607 which didn't work properly, 736 00:52:51,607 --> 00:52:54,447 so he'd been inhaling carbon dioxide as well as oxygen, 737 00:52:54,447 --> 00:53:00,087 But I think also Tom Bourdillon was very,,,emotionally in a bad state, 738 00:53:00,087 --> 00:53:02,287 because it really meant a lot to him, you know, 739 00:53:02,287 --> 00:53:05,996 He had designed this oxygen set which had failed, 740 00:53:07,087 --> 00:53:11,080 So they were in a bad way, physically and emotionally as well, 741 00:53:13,167 --> 00:53:16,607 GREGORY: Tom Bourdillon kept saying, "We should've had a go, 742 00:53:16,607 --> 00:53:18,647 "We should've gone on," you know, 743 00:53:18,647 --> 00:53:20,444 "We should've gone on," 744 00:53:25,087 --> 00:53:26,847 VENABLES: Evans and Bourdillon 745 00:53:26,847 --> 00:53:28,883 were very strong, very experienced climbers, 746 00:53:32,127 --> 00:53:35,517 Having climbed higher than any human beings had ever been before,,, 747 00:53:37,167 --> 00:53:38,967 ,,having got to the South Summit 748 00:53:38,967 --> 00:53:43,167 and looked across at this final, almost knife-edged ridge, 749 00:53:43,167 --> 00:53:47,127 Charles Evans did say to Ed Hillary something like, 750 00:53:47,127 --> 00:53:52,645 "That last ridge looks really hard, I don't know if you can do it," 751 00:54:00,527 --> 00:54:03,519 (WIND RUSHES) 752 00:54:13,447 --> 00:54:16,727 HACKETT: Above 26,000 feet is what we call the death zone, 753 00:54:16,727 --> 00:54:20,087 because you are slowly dying, 754 00:54:20,087 --> 00:54:23,523 It's not a place for humans, 755 00:54:29,167 --> 00:54:32,247 GREGORY: John Hunt was a leader leading from the front, 756 00:54:32,247 --> 00:54:35,087 And as the front now was up above the South Col, 757 00:54:35,087 --> 00:54:37,007 that's why he wanted to stay, 758 00:54:37,007 --> 00:54:40,682 and we realised that he really wasn't strong enough to stay, 759 00:54:42,447 --> 00:54:44,047 VENABLES: It was a classic case 760 00:54:44,047 --> 00:54:47,487 of someone having been too high too long, 761 00:54:47,487 --> 00:54:49,807 GREGORY: He'd gone beyond the limit, 762 00:54:49,807 --> 00:54:52,007 like Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, 763 00:54:52,007 --> 00:54:55,966 And he was eventually persuaded to go down with them, 764 00:54:57,767 --> 00:55:00,767 They were exhausted and we were worried about them 765 00:55:00,767 --> 00:55:03,998 and we dug out some oxygen to help them, 766 00:55:05,567 --> 00:55:07,847 HUNT: Well, I hated to leave the col, 767 00:55:07,847 --> 00:55:09,527 but after a certain amount of discussion, 768 00:55:09,527 --> 00:55:12,207 I saw that I could not weaken the second party, 769 00:55:12,207 --> 00:55:16,917 So I left Ed with the parting instruction not to give in, 770 00:55:19,367 --> 00:55:21,887 CONEFRE Y: This was a great moment on the expedition 771 00:55:21,887 --> 00:55:25,487 in which the leader sacrifices his own personal ambition, 772 00:55:25,487 --> 00:55:27,887 and Ed Hillary says, "Never at any moment 773 00:55:27,887 --> 00:55:30,560 "have I respected John Hunt more," 774 00:55:47,087 --> 00:55:49,007 LOWE: You know, it was touch and go, 775 00:55:49,007 --> 00:55:51,407 because the monsoon comes in the first week of June, 776 00:55:51,407 --> 00:55:54,607 and it was tight, on the last days of May, 777 00:55:54,607 --> 00:55:56,967 (WIND RUSHES) 778 00:55:56,967 --> 00:56:00,207 CONEFRE Y: For Hillary and Tenzing to make an attempt on the summit, 779 00:56:00,207 --> 00:56:02,047 they couldn't go from the South Col, 780 00:56:02,047 --> 00:56:04,407 because they would have to carry too much oxygen, 781 00:56:04,407 --> 00:56:08,559 So the only way was to start from higher up, then go for the summit, 782 00:56:11,727 --> 00:56:14,447 (WIND RUSHES) 783 00:56:14,447 --> 00:56:17,167 EDMUND HILLARY: The following day was extremely windy and cold, 784 00:56:17,167 --> 00:56:19,556 and no movement upwards was possible, 785 00:56:20,807 --> 00:56:23,167 We spent the day preparing the oxygen and gear, 786 00:56:23,167 --> 00:56:26,523 with the hope that the following day would prove clear and fine, 787 00:56:30,767 --> 00:56:34,927 CONEFRE Y: They would use oxygen at night, flowing at a very low rate, 788 00:56:34,927 --> 00:56:36,567 because it would help them sleep 789 00:56:36,567 --> 00:56:39,001 and make them feel slightly warmer as well, 790 00:56:42,727 --> 00:56:44,727 WHITTAKER: Night-time is a tough time, 791 00:56:44,727 --> 00:56:47,036 You lay there listening to the mountain,,, 792 00:56:50,967 --> 00:56:54,367 ,,listening to the wind, listening to the avalanche, 793 00:56:54,367 --> 00:56:56,642 Thinking, "Oh, my God," you know, 794 00:56:58,887 --> 00:57:00,957 Demons come, 795 00:57:08,367 --> 00:57:11,967 LOWE: The original plan was that Gregory and three Sherpas 796 00:57:11,967 --> 00:57:14,127 would carry the high camp, 797 00:57:14,127 --> 00:57:19,007 One Sherpa had collapsed on the col and gone down previously, 798 00:57:19,007 --> 00:57:20,884 leaving us two Sherpas, 799 00:57:24,807 --> 00:57:28,527 On the morning of the day we intended to do the carry, 800 00:57:28,527 --> 00:57:30,687 we poked our head into the pyramid tent 801 00:57:30,687 --> 00:57:32,917 and found Sherpa Pemba in a very bad condition, 802 00:57:35,087 --> 00:57:36,887 It was obvious that he wouldn't carry, 803 00:57:36,887 --> 00:57:40,596 and so we had the job of sharing the load, 804 00:57:47,087 --> 00:57:49,367 GREGORY: First of all, early in the day 805 00:57:49,367 --> 00:57:52,837 we knew that we'd have to reorganise the loads and take more, 806 00:57:54,887 --> 00:58:00,280 George Lowe and I and Ang Nyima left about a quarter to nine, 807 00:58:05,847 --> 00:58:09,407 LOWE: Ed and Tenzing left the South Col an hour behind us 808 00:58:09,407 --> 00:58:12,727 to conserve their energy and to go faster through our steps 809 00:58:12,727 --> 00:58:14,763 and so conserve their oxygen, 810 00:58:16,047 --> 00:58:19,487 And we took off carrying between 50 and 60 pounds, 811 00:58:19,487 --> 00:58:22,687 and Ed, I think we estimated his at 63 pounds, 812 00:58:22,687 --> 00:58:25,485 which is quite an enormous load for that altitude, 813 00:58:28,407 --> 00:58:32,247 The wind was very strong on the col, 814 00:58:32,247 --> 00:58:35,247 We had very difficult conditions, 815 00:58:35,247 --> 00:58:37,397 We moved up this ridge looking for a flat spot, 816 00:58:44,967 --> 00:58:47,527 GREGORY: For a long time we couldn't find a camp site,,, 817 00:58:48,967 --> 00:58:52,087 ,,until at last Tenzing found one, 818 00:58:52,087 --> 00:58:55,716 a nearly flat spot underneath a rocky bluff, 819 00:58:57,847 --> 00:59:00,087 EDMUND HILLARY: They helped us to the highest camp 820 00:59:00,087 --> 00:59:02,007 ever put up on Everest or any other mountain, 821 00:59:02,007 --> 00:59:04,680 at 27,900 feet, 822 00:59:15,567 --> 00:59:18,604 VENABLES: No-one had ever camped this high before, 823 00:59:20,807 --> 00:59:23,647 George Lowe and Alf Gregory take a few pictures 824 00:59:23,647 --> 00:59:26,727 and then shake hands and say, "Well, 'bye now, Good luck, 825 00:59:26,727 --> 00:59:29,207 "We'd better be off down," 826 00:59:29,207 --> 00:59:33,767 And then there's a wonderfully poignant moment, 827 00:59:33,767 --> 00:59:37,127 PETER HILLARY: Ang Nyima is very tired, he should go down, 828 00:59:37,127 --> 00:59:40,167 But he said to Dad that he wanted to stay 829 00:59:40,167 --> 00:59:43,284 so he could make some tea when they came down, and help them, 830 00:59:44,567 --> 00:59:47,807 I know Dad was very touched by that, 831 00:59:47,807 --> 00:59:51,927 But eventually they start back down again, 832 00:59:51,927 --> 00:59:55,442 VENABLES: Leaving Hillary and Tenzing completely alone, 833 01:00:00,247 --> 01:00:03,007 EDMUND HILLARY: It was with certain feelings of sorrow 834 01:00:03,007 --> 01:00:05,447 that we saw George and Greg and Sherpa Ang Nyima 835 01:00:05,447 --> 01:00:08,407 descending down the mountain, leaving us up there all alone, 836 01:00:08,407 --> 01:00:11,167 We'd have much preferred to have a bit of company for the night, 837 01:00:11,167 --> 01:00:13,886 However, they had to get down - our oxygen was running short, 838 01:00:15,727 --> 01:00:19,887 PETER HILLARY: You 're totally on your own, really out on a limb, 839 01:00:19,887 --> 01:00:22,207 There's no radio contact with anyone, 840 01:00:22,207 --> 01:00:23,727 You could disappear 841 01:00:23,727 --> 01:00:26,605 and everyone will just wonder, "Whatever happened to them?" 842 01:00:28,327 --> 01:00:31,287 I think it would've been very exciting, 843 01:00:31,287 --> 01:00:34,279 very Ionely and very scary, 844 01:00:37,447 --> 01:00:39,836 (WIND WHISTLES AND HOWLS) 845 01:00:47,167 --> 01:00:50,247 EDMUND HILLARY: It took us two hours of solid work to set up the tent 846 01:00:50,247 --> 01:00:53,478 on two strips of ground a yard wide and 10 feet long, 847 01:00:58,647 --> 01:01:01,007 CONEFRE Y: Towards the top of Everest, 848 01:01:01,007 --> 01:01:03,567 you get these very, very powerful winds, 849 01:01:03,567 --> 01:01:06,807 and they were very precariously attached to this slope 850 01:01:06,807 --> 01:01:08,327 and all the time they're worried 851 01:01:08,327 --> 01:01:10,124 they're gonna be blown off the mountain, 852 01:01:11,847 --> 01:01:14,087 DOUGLAS: When the wind gets up in the evening 853 01:01:14,087 --> 01:01:15,967 you 're in quite a dangerous position 854 01:01:15,967 --> 01:01:17,844 because you 're pinned to the mountain, 855 01:01:19,047 --> 01:01:21,207 The noise is really frightening, 856 01:01:21,207 --> 01:01:24,199 (WIND HOWLS AND RUSHES RELENTLESSLY) 857 01:01:33,887 --> 01:01:37,482 CONEFRE Y: That night was the coldest ever recorded on the expedition, 858 01:01:43,127 --> 01:01:45,127 HACKETT: It's such a dehydrating environment, 859 01:01:45,127 --> 01:01:46,847 and there's only one way to make water, 860 01:01:46,847 --> 01:01:49,315 and that is you have to melt snow or ice, 861 01:01:50,407 --> 01:01:53,807 You 're breathing eight times more than you are at sea level, 862 01:01:53,807 --> 01:01:55,967 You can lose more than a litre a day 863 01:01:55,967 --> 01:01:58,807 just from the heavy breathing at high altitude, 864 01:01:58,807 --> 01:02:00,687 In addition, the air is so dry 865 01:02:00,687 --> 01:02:02,678 that it sucks the moisture right from your skin, 866 01:02:12,607 --> 01:02:14,967 EDMUND HILLARY: I made myself as comfortable as possible, 867 01:02:14,967 --> 01:02:18,407 half sitting and half reclining on the upper shelf, 868 01:02:18,407 --> 01:02:22,407 It wasn't comfortable, but I could at least brace my feet and shoulders 869 01:02:22,407 --> 01:02:26,559 to help our meagre anchors hold the tent in the gusts of wind, 870 01:02:30,847 --> 01:02:32,327 VENABLES: High-altitude climbing 871 01:02:32,327 --> 01:02:36,115 is all about being comfortable in uncomfortable places, 872 01:02:38,807 --> 01:02:43,007 He was very good at basic day-to-day survival, as was Tenzing, 873 01:02:43,007 --> 01:02:45,680 and I think that's where they really scored, 874 01:02:54,967 --> 01:02:57,207 EDMUND HILLARY: Early in the night, the wind dropped, 875 01:02:57,207 --> 01:03:01,247 We had some oxygen, which we used for sleeping purposes 876 01:03:01,247 --> 01:03:05,047 for about four hours out of the 16 hours we spent there, 877 01:03:05,047 --> 01:03:07,047 For the four hours, at least, we did doze, 878 01:03:07,047 --> 01:03:08,767 but as soon as the oxygen cut out 879 01:03:08,767 --> 01:03:12,043 we'd immediately wake up and start feeling cold, 880 01:03:13,527 --> 01:03:15,287 CONEFRE Y: He's all the time thinking, 881 01:03:15,287 --> 01:03:17,247 "I don't want to use tomorrow's oxygen," 882 01:03:17,247 --> 01:03:19,967 There's just little things go wrong, 883 01:03:19,967 --> 01:03:23,247 They've lugged up an enormous black oxygen cylinder 884 01:03:23,247 --> 01:03:25,447 which they planned to use for sleeping oxygen, 885 01:03:25,447 --> 01:03:27,447 But, unfortunately, having lugged this bottle up, 886 01:03:27,447 --> 01:03:30,007 they discovered that somebody has gone back with the adaptor for it, 887 01:03:30,007 --> 01:03:32,282 so the bottle is useless, 888 01:03:34,287 --> 01:03:36,847 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, I didn't have the complete conviction 889 01:03:36,847 --> 01:03:38,997 that we were going to be successful, 890 01:03:43,207 --> 01:03:45,167 I was very aware of the fact 891 01:03:45,167 --> 01:03:47,887 that very good expeditions had attempted the mountain 892 01:03:47,887 --> 01:03:51,197 and had got very high but had not succeeded, 893 01:03:59,687 --> 01:04:02,884 At 6:30am we started off from our tent, 894 01:04:04,887 --> 01:04:08,596 We wasted no time in preparing the oxygen apparatus and equipment, 895 01:04:12,367 --> 01:04:14,727 CONEFRE Y: It's all about oxygen at this point, 896 01:04:14,727 --> 01:04:16,927 Hillary is constantly thinking about this, 897 01:04:16,927 --> 01:04:18,887 "How much oxygen do I need? 898 01:04:18,887 --> 01:04:21,327 "What should the flow rate of the oxygen be?" You know? 899 01:04:21,327 --> 01:04:24,647 "If I have it flowing at a higher rate, then I feel better, 900 01:04:24,647 --> 01:04:27,161 "but I use up the bottle more quickly," 901 01:04:37,207 --> 01:04:39,127 DOUGLAS: It's very, very cold, 902 01:04:39,127 --> 01:04:41,767 They measure it at below -25, 903 01:04:41,767 --> 01:04:45,407 And that kind of profound, bone-chilling cold 904 01:04:45,407 --> 01:04:47,287 is almost like an assault, you know? 905 01:04:47,287 --> 01:04:49,243 It's just grim, 906 01:04:50,527 --> 01:04:53,207 CONEFRE Y: The team physiologist had said, "When you get to high altitude, 907 01:04:53,207 --> 01:04:55,567 "you 've got to climb using your oxygen sets 908 01:04:55,567 --> 01:04:57,407 "at a rate of four litres per minute, 909 01:04:57,407 --> 01:05:01,116 "Anything less than that, you 're not gonna get real benefit from it," 910 01:05:02,767 --> 01:05:05,687 EDMUND HILLARY: Our progress at first was pretty steady, 911 01:05:05,687 --> 01:05:07,407 However, we examined the oxygen supplies 912 01:05:07,407 --> 01:05:09,967 and found we couldn't go on our estimated four litres a minute 913 01:05:09,967 --> 01:05:11,887 and have a chance of getting to the top, 914 01:05:11,887 --> 01:05:13,605 Had to cut it down to three, 915 01:05:18,727 --> 01:05:23,647 PETER HILLARY: A fairly simple calculation about the oxygen flow rate 916 01:05:23,647 --> 01:05:26,447 is unbelievably difficult up there 917 01:05:26,447 --> 01:05:30,725 because you 've got an addled, oxygen-deprived mind, 918 01:06:07,687 --> 01:06:09,327 EDMUND HILLARY: After going for some time, 919 01:06:09,327 --> 01:06:11,527 we reached the bottom of a 400-foot slope 920 01:06:11,527 --> 01:06:13,807 which led up to the South Summit, 921 01:06:13,807 --> 01:06:16,605 and this slope was a tremendously steep one, 922 01:06:18,847 --> 01:06:22,203 We felt that this snow could easily avalanche, 923 01:06:23,407 --> 01:06:25,367 DOUGLAS: There was a bit of a crust, 924 01:06:25,367 --> 01:06:27,367 so you 'd think you were standing on firm ground 925 01:06:27,367 --> 01:06:29,687 and then it would give way - it would be powdery underneath, 926 01:06:29,687 --> 01:06:32,207 So Hillary is anxious about that, 927 01:06:32,207 --> 01:06:35,007 And also fear of avalanche, 928 01:06:35,007 --> 01:06:37,887 And they have this exchange, 929 01:06:37,887 --> 01:06:40,367 EDMUND HILLARY: I remember turning to Tenzing and saying to him, 930 01:06:40,367 --> 01:06:42,527 "Well, what do you think about it, Tenzing?" 931 01:06:42,527 --> 01:06:44,167 He said he didn't like it at all, 932 01:06:44,167 --> 01:06:45,885 thought it was decidedly dangerous, 933 01:06:52,127 --> 01:06:53,727 Then I said, "Well, what do you think? 934 01:06:53,727 --> 01:06:55,287 "Do you think we should go on?" 935 01:06:55,287 --> 01:06:57,926 And he said, "Just as you like," 936 01:07:00,767 --> 01:07:05,204 We climbed up it with a good deal of fear and trepidation, 937 01:07:08,247 --> 01:07:11,607 I think this is the first time I've ever had to make a decision 938 01:07:11,607 --> 01:07:14,447 as to whether something was justifiable or not, 939 01:07:14,447 --> 01:07:17,757 decided it wasn't justifiable, but we still went on, 940 01:07:21,207 --> 01:07:23,687 DOUGLAS: You 're right on the edge of what's possible 941 01:07:23,687 --> 01:07:27,487 and every step you take is putting you more into danger, 942 01:07:27,487 --> 01:07:30,763 so the temptation to turn round and go down is strong, 943 01:07:35,047 --> 01:07:37,167 EDMUND HILLARY: I'm frightened a great deal of the time 944 01:07:37,167 --> 01:07:39,127 when I'm in dangerous country, 945 01:07:39,127 --> 01:07:42,358 But I think being afraid is one of the important factors, 946 01:07:43,567 --> 01:07:45,637 It's a stimulating factor, 947 01:07:46,687 --> 01:07:49,287 Of course, if you just get petrified with fear, 948 01:07:49,287 --> 01:07:51,198 then it would be hopeless, 949 01:08:01,887 --> 01:08:04,887 PETER HILLARY: The crux of it is whether or not you 're gonna survive, 950 01:08:04,887 --> 01:08:06,927 You know, none of that is guaranteed, 951 01:08:06,927 --> 01:08:09,567 If anything goes wrong up there, 952 01:08:09,567 --> 01:08:12,007 even a relatively minor accident 953 01:08:12,007 --> 01:08:16,000 can very rapidly slide into a fatal one, 954 01:08:21,927 --> 01:08:23,567 EDMUND HILLARY: It was a great relief 955 01:08:23,567 --> 01:08:25,444 when we reached the South Summit at 9am, 956 01:08:27,847 --> 01:08:29,407 Oxygen was running short, 957 01:08:29,407 --> 01:08:32,922 so we wasted no time and set off along the ridge, 958 01:08:37,127 --> 01:08:40,802 But we were moving slowly and time was against us, 959 01:08:47,607 --> 01:08:50,807 PETER HILLARY: Evans and Bourdillon had gone to the South Summit 960 01:08:50,807 --> 01:08:54,243 and had had reservations about the route ahead, 961 01:08:55,687 --> 01:08:59,807 Evans had pointed out that there was a very difficult knife-edged ridge, 962 01:08:59,807 --> 01:09:01,927 It's serrated, 963 01:09:01,927 --> 01:09:06,047 it's got these just horrifying drops on both sides, 964 01:09:06,047 --> 01:09:10,086 They must've had concerns about whether or not they could climb it, 965 01:09:13,767 --> 01:09:15,607 VENABLES: On the left you 've got 966 01:09:15,607 --> 01:09:17,167 the immense Southwest Face of Everest, 967 01:09:17,167 --> 01:09:18,647 and if you fell down that, 968 01:09:18,647 --> 01:09:21,047 you 'd probably fall all the way back down to the Western Cwm, 969 01:09:21,047 --> 01:09:22,844 8,000 feet below, 970 01:09:25,407 --> 01:09:28,407 And then to your right is the even bigger precipice 971 01:09:28,407 --> 01:09:30,567 of the Kangshung Face, 972 01:09:30,567 --> 01:09:32,444 and that really concentrates the mind, 973 01:09:36,887 --> 01:09:38,407 EDMUND HILLARY: For the mountaineer, 974 01:09:38,407 --> 01:09:40,367 the thought of the process of dying 975 01:09:40,367 --> 01:09:42,127 is more unpleasant 976 01:09:42,127 --> 01:09:45,324 than the actual fact that you may be dead at the end of it, 977 01:09:54,047 --> 01:09:58,287 HUNT: In the meantime, watching from below down at Camp 4, 978 01:09:58,287 --> 01:10:01,916 we were all waiting most anxiously, 979 01:10:07,207 --> 01:10:10,127 BAND: Obviously we'd hoped to have our little walkie-talkies going 980 01:10:10,127 --> 01:10:12,327 right up to at least the South Col, 981 01:10:12,327 --> 01:10:15,287 but the one that was taken to the South Col didn't work, 982 01:10:15,287 --> 01:10:18,047 So in fact we realised we wouldn't actually know 983 01:10:18,047 --> 01:10:20,847 whether Hillary and Tenzing had been successful 984 01:10:20,847 --> 01:10:24,078 until they actually came down and told us, 985 01:10:27,847 --> 01:10:32,087 PETER HILLARY: No-one had any idea where they were, how they were going, 986 01:10:32,087 --> 01:10:35,602 would they be successful, or, indeed, would they come back? 987 01:10:38,167 --> 01:10:41,159 (SNOW CRUNCHES) 988 01:10:48,247 --> 01:10:50,047 EDMUND HILLARY: Our oxygen equipment 989 01:10:50,047 --> 01:10:51,807 was not all that sophisticated, 990 01:10:51,807 --> 01:10:54,447 It only had a pressure gauge on it, 991 01:10:54,447 --> 01:10:59,087 so I never really knew just how much oxygen still remained, 992 01:10:59,087 --> 01:11:02,127 My brain was working fairly energetically 993 01:11:02,127 --> 01:11:05,324 working out just how much time we had left, 994 01:11:10,287 --> 01:11:13,407 HACKETT: One of the problems with extreme altitude climbing 995 01:11:13,407 --> 01:11:15,407 is failure of oxygen systems, 996 01:11:15,407 --> 01:11:20,720 And people die on a regular basis when their oxygen packs up, 997 01:11:21,847 --> 01:11:23,927 DOUGLAS: And then there's a bit of a problem, 998 01:11:23,927 --> 01:11:25,407 Tenzing is really struggling, 999 01:11:25,407 --> 01:11:27,967 where before he was following Hillary quite nicely, 1000 01:11:31,087 --> 01:11:32,567 EDMUND HILLARY: I suddenly noticed 1001 01:11:32,567 --> 01:11:35,247 that Tenzing seemed to be in some distress, 1002 01:11:35,247 --> 01:11:37,087 And when I looked at him closely, 1003 01:11:37,087 --> 01:11:39,527 I saw that he was breathing very quickly indeed, 1004 01:11:39,527 --> 01:11:41,687 I immediately examined his oxygen set 1005 01:11:41,687 --> 01:11:44,647 and found that the outlet from his oxygen mask 1006 01:11:44,647 --> 01:11:47,286 was almost completely blocked up with ice, 1007 01:11:52,047 --> 01:11:54,641 Fortunately I was able to release this ice, 1008 01:11:58,447 --> 01:12:00,127 DOUGLAS: Because you 're suddenly hypoxic 1009 01:12:00,127 --> 01:12:01,927 and you 're not thinking straight, 1010 01:12:01,927 --> 01:12:03,687 you may not immediately think, 1011 01:12:03,687 --> 01:12:06,327 "Oh, this is because my oxygen equipment isn't working right," 1012 01:12:06,327 --> 01:12:09,683 You just think, "Oh, my God, I'm incredibly tired all of a sudden," 1013 01:12:16,887 --> 01:12:21,927 VENABLES: You have this strange, slightly surreal blur 1014 01:12:21,927 --> 01:12:25,761 of images and thoughts and ideas going through your head, 1015 01:12:32,447 --> 01:12:37,601 So you have to watch yourself and watch each other very closely, 1016 01:13:03,167 --> 01:13:04,687 EDMUND HILLARY: Well, after about an hour 1017 01:13:04,687 --> 01:13:07,607 we had made quite a distance along the ridge, 1018 01:13:07,607 --> 01:13:10,087 and then we came to a rock bluff 1019 01:13:10,087 --> 01:13:12,327 which barred the way along the ridge, 1020 01:13:12,327 --> 01:13:15,160 Now, I really thought that perhaps this was as far as we were going, 1021 01:13:17,727 --> 01:13:19,247 I took photographs 1022 01:13:19,247 --> 01:13:21,407 because the actual rock itself was very steep 1023 01:13:21,407 --> 01:13:23,796 and we knew that it could stop us, 1024 01:13:30,247 --> 01:13:33,603 PETER HILLARY: Was that step even climbable? 1025 01:13:35,367 --> 01:13:39,360 And was it climbable at 29,000 feet? 1026 01:13:40,847 --> 01:13:42,917 No-one had ever gone there before, 1027 01:13:44,287 --> 01:13:46,005 WHITTAKER: It's a hell of a step, 1028 01:13:47,887 --> 01:13:51,800 You look at that and you think, "Oh, my God, What a decision," 1029 01:13:55,407 --> 01:13:58,407 But Sir Ed took the gamble and thought, 1030 01:13:58,407 --> 01:14:01,001 "What the hell, I'm gonna go for it," 1031 01:14:06,327 --> 01:14:09,287 EDMUND HILLARY: The only way to climb it seemed to me a crack 1032 01:14:09,287 --> 01:14:12,727 where the ice was sticking to the rock, 1033 01:14:12,727 --> 01:14:17,327 and I wasn't at all sure that the ice would remain in place 1034 01:14:17,327 --> 01:14:19,557 when I was wriggling my way up, 1035 01:14:23,327 --> 01:14:25,682 I was scared stiff, 1036 01:14:30,487 --> 01:14:34,247 VENABLES: He just set forth up this nearly vertical step 1037 01:14:34,247 --> 01:14:37,727 and wedged himself in this chimney more or less with his feet, 1038 01:14:37,727 --> 01:14:42,047 his cramponed feet pressing against the rocks on the left 1039 01:14:42,047 --> 01:14:46,247 and his back pushing out against the snow on the right, 1040 01:14:46,247 --> 01:14:49,047 and just hoping the snow wouldn't give way 1041 01:14:49,047 --> 01:14:52,767 and catapult him 11,000 feet down the Kangshung Face, 1042 01:14:52,767 --> 01:14:57,087 Because it's doubtful whether Norgay could've held him on the rope 1043 01:14:57,087 --> 01:14:59,442 if he'd come off, 1044 01:15:19,047 --> 01:15:20,807 (ROCKS TUMBLE) 1045 01:15:20,807 --> 01:15:23,087 PETER HILLARY: Little slabs were breaking off 1046 01:15:23,087 --> 01:15:26,318 and Dad was not really enjoying the conditions, 1047 01:15:28,167 --> 01:15:30,247 You know, if he was back in the Southern Alps, 1048 01:15:30,247 --> 01:15:33,247 he'd probably turn around and try it another day, 1049 01:15:33,247 --> 01:15:36,207 And then, um, that little internal voice going, 1050 01:15:36,207 --> 01:15:39,127 "Ed, my boy, this is Everest, 1051 01:15:39,127 --> 01:15:41,561 "You 've got to go the extra distance," 1052 01:15:48,807 --> 01:15:52,127 EDMUND HILLARY: By jamming back on the ice with my crampons, 1053 01:15:52,127 --> 01:15:54,127 or ice spikes on my boots, 1054 01:15:54,127 --> 01:15:56,367 and scrambling on the rock in front, 1055 01:15:56,367 --> 01:16:00,758 I was able to wriggle and push my way up the crack and onto the top, 1056 01:16:03,287 --> 01:16:06,327 After recovering my breath, I took the rope in 1057 01:16:06,327 --> 01:16:07,927 and, with many a heave, 1058 01:16:07,927 --> 01:16:11,007 and old Tenzing wriggling and scrambling the same, 1059 01:16:11,007 --> 01:16:13,475 got him onto the top of the rock too, 1060 01:16:16,367 --> 01:16:18,327 VENABLES: There are times in life, you know, 1061 01:16:18,327 --> 01:16:21,007 when you have to be bold and decisive, 1062 01:16:21,007 --> 01:16:26,607 So much hung on Hillary's ability to pull out all the stops, 1063 01:16:26,607 --> 01:16:29,883 and he was able to give it that little extra, 1064 01:16:38,567 --> 01:16:40,967 CONEFRE Y: When Hunt had to go down from the South Col 1065 01:16:40,967 --> 01:16:43,127 he turned to Ed and he said, 1066 01:16:43,127 --> 01:16:46,007 "Look, you know, this is our last chance, 1067 01:16:46,007 --> 01:16:48,965 "You 're carrying a lot of people's hopes on your back," 1068 01:16:51,487 --> 01:16:54,527 WESTMACOTT: What would we do if they failed? 1069 01:16:54,527 --> 01:16:57,847 Because that was a feeling, particularly in John Hunt's mind, 1070 01:16:57,847 --> 01:17:01,806 I don't think anybody dared express an opinion, 1071 01:17:14,007 --> 01:17:15,887 EDMUND HILLARY: We continued on 1072 01:17:15,887 --> 01:17:18,007 and we were getting distinctly tired and rather desperate, 1073 01:17:18,007 --> 01:17:20,646 for the summit seemed to be continually eluding us, 1074 01:17:25,567 --> 01:17:27,567 VENABLES: Beyond the Hillary Step, 1075 01:17:27,567 --> 01:17:31,047 it's still a fair distance horizontally to the summit 1076 01:17:31,047 --> 01:17:35,086 and you 're going over three or four broad hummocks, 1077 01:17:36,367 --> 01:17:38,887 And as you get to the crest of one of these hummocks, 1078 01:17:38,887 --> 01:17:41,007 there's another one beyond, 1079 01:17:41,007 --> 01:17:43,680 and you think, "Is this ridge ever gonna end?" 1080 01:17:55,487 --> 01:17:58,447 DAVID SHLIM: There's just certain human beings 1081 01:17:58,447 --> 01:18:00,727 able to put one foot in front of the other, 1082 01:18:00,727 --> 01:18:05,367 you know, relentlessly, psychologically able to do it, 1083 01:18:05,367 --> 01:18:07,517 whereas other people would fail, 1084 01:18:14,647 --> 01:18:17,327 EDMUND HILLARY: We cut steps along the top, round bump after bump, 1085 01:18:17,327 --> 01:18:19,204 keeping looking for the top, 1086 01:18:21,447 --> 01:18:25,887 And finally we actually reached the summit itself, 1087 01:18:25,887 --> 01:18:28,879 (STIRRING MUSIC BUILDS) 1088 01:19:16,887 --> 01:19:19,367 I looked at Tenzing, 1089 01:19:19,367 --> 01:19:22,247 and even underneath his oxygen mask and balaclava 1090 01:19:22,247 --> 01:19:25,127 I could see his infectious grin of sheer pleasure, 1091 01:19:25,127 --> 01:19:27,167 We shook hands, 1092 01:19:27,167 --> 01:19:29,522 To Tenzing this was not enough, 1093 01:19:31,407 --> 01:19:33,287 And we thumped each other on the back 1094 01:19:33,287 --> 01:19:35,164 until we had no breath left, 1095 01:19:37,007 --> 01:19:41,127 I glanced at my watch, It was 11:30, 1096 01:19:41,127 --> 01:19:44,119 (STIRRING MUSIC CONTINUES) 1097 01:19:48,967 --> 01:19:51,887 On top we only spent quarter of an hour, 1098 01:19:51,887 --> 01:19:55,207 We were conscious all the time that our oxygen was running short 1099 01:19:55,207 --> 01:19:58,324 and that we had no time to waste and we must get down again, 1100 01:19:59,887 --> 01:20:02,765 I took my oxygen off in order to take photographs, 1101 01:20:06,487 --> 01:20:09,087 Tenzing dug a little hole in the snow 1102 01:20:09,087 --> 01:20:12,318 and in that he put a gift to the gods, 1103 01:20:17,287 --> 01:20:19,127 Had a good look round at the view, 1104 01:20:19,127 --> 01:20:20,727 and also I took photographs 1105 01:20:20,727 --> 01:20:22,727 down all the main ridges of the mountain 1106 01:20:22,727 --> 01:20:25,287 just to have some proof that we'd been on top, 1107 01:20:36,167 --> 01:20:40,604 And photographed Tenzing waving his ice axe with four flags tied to it, 1108 01:20:42,687 --> 01:20:45,607 It was a tremendous moment for both of us, 1109 01:20:45,607 --> 01:20:48,599 (STIRRING MUSIC CONTINUES) 1110 01:21:45,487 --> 01:21:48,479 (STIRRING MUSIC CONTINUES) 1111 01:22:47,407 --> 01:22:50,399 ('ONLY TO BE' B Y SIX 60 PLAYS) 1112 01:23:08,807 --> 01:23:11,287 ♪ Only to be 1113 01:23:11,287 --> 01:23:13,967 ♪ I live in expectancy 1114 01:23:13,967 --> 01:23:16,487 ♪ No wonder it feels 1115 01:23:16,487 --> 01:23:19,127 ♪ Like this wasn't meant for me 1116 01:23:19,127 --> 01:23:23,407 ♪ But, girl, my mind is so confined 1117 01:23:23,407 --> 01:23:27,807 ♪ That there ain't no point in reasoning 1118 01:23:27,807 --> 01:23:31,207 ♪ Now that it's clear to see 1119 01:23:31,207 --> 01:23:33,807 ♪ It was all in front of me 1120 01:23:33,807 --> 01:23:38,207 ♪ And I'm right where I'm supposed to be 1121 01:23:38,207 --> 01:23:42,007 ♪ Yeah, yeah 1122 01:23:42,007 --> 01:23:46,567 ♪ I'm left just turning pages 1123 01:23:46,567 --> 01:23:48,637 ♪ Mmm 1124 01:23:50,047 --> 01:23:52,407 ♪ Yeah 1125 01:23:52,407 --> 01:23:57,967 ♪ Well, I know that it's worth the ride 1126 01:23:57,967 --> 01:24:01,516 ♪ Ain't it good to be alive? 1127 01:24:11,527 --> 01:24:13,927 ♪ So what will it be? 1128 01:24:13,927 --> 01:24:16,807 ♪ My dreams or my company 1129 01:24:16,807 --> 01:24:19,127 ♪ To lose what is me 1130 01:24:19,127 --> 01:24:21,887 ♪ Or follow the path I see 1131 01:24:21,887 --> 01:24:26,327 ♪ Boy, my mind is so confined 1132 01:24:26,327 --> 01:24:30,447 ♪ That I don't even know where to begin 1133 01:24:30,447 --> 01:24:34,007 ♪ But it took me so long to find 1134 01:24:34,007 --> 01:24:36,607 ♪ That I could leave it all behind 1135 01:24:36,607 --> 01:24:40,967 ♪ 'Cause I've got everything I'd ever need 1136 01:24:40,967 --> 01:24:44,847 ♪ Yeah, yeah 1137 01:24:44,847 --> 01:24:49,727 ♪ I'm left just turning pages 1138 01:24:49,727 --> 01:24:52,647 ♪ Mmm 1139 01:24:52,647 --> 01:24:55,247 ♪ Yeah 1140 01:24:55,247 --> 01:25:00,647 ♪ Well, I know that it's worth the ride 1141 01:25:00,647 --> 01:25:05,198 ♪ Ain't it good to be alive? 1142 01:25:14,087 --> 01:25:16,687 ♪ 'Cause only to be 1143 01:25:16,687 --> 01:25:19,487 ♪ Was all that you got from me 1144 01:25:19,487 --> 01:25:21,927 ♪ You told me it's real 1145 01:25:21,927 --> 01:25:24,807 ♪ And nothing comes easily 1146 01:25:24,807 --> 01:25:26,727 ♪ 'Cause that was the truth 1147 01:25:26,727 --> 01:25:29,287 ♪ I was losing all my youth 1148 01:25:29,287 --> 01:25:35,283 ♪ To a world that's fit for someone else 1149 01:25:37,407 --> 01:25:39,687 ♪ Yeah 1150 01:25:39,687 --> 01:25:44,247 ♪ I'll live just turning pages 1151 01:25:44,247 --> 01:25:46,761 ♪ Mmm 1152 01:25:47,927 --> 01:25:50,087 ♪ Yeah 1153 01:25:50,087 --> 01:25:55,527 ♪ Well, I know that it's worth the ride 1154 01:25:55,527 --> 01:25:58,447 ♪ Oh, whoa, whoa 1155 01:25:58,447 --> 01:26:00,807 ♪ Yeah, yeah 1156 01:26:00,807 --> 01:26:05,687 ♪ I'm left just turning pages 1157 01:26:05,687 --> 01:26:08,687 ♪ Yeah, yeah 1158 01:26:08,687 --> 01:26:11,087 ♪ Yeah 1159 01:26:11,087 --> 01:26:16,567 ♪ But I know it was worth the ride 1160 01:26:16,567 --> 01:26:22,358 ♪ Ain't it good to be alive? 1161 01:26:23,847 --> 01:26:26,687 ♪ Alive 1162 01:26:26,687 --> 01:26:32,080 ♪ Ain't it good to be alive? 1163 01:26:34,127 --> 01:26:37,961 ♪ Alive, ♪ 1164 01:26:38,305 --> 01:27:38,376 Please rate this subtitle at www.osdb.link/u4j3 Help other users to choose the best subtitles