Hillary Hill, the mountainside of Mount Everest: description and history

What is the Hillary Step, every mountaineer who dreams of conquering Everest knows. Some say that this is a terrible place, littered with the corpses of the failed conquerors of the "Peak of the World". Others - that nothing special and dangerous comb does not represent itself. In the Alps, for example, there are also more complex walls. And if the weather conditions contribute, and there are enough oxygen in the cylinders, then it is easy to overcome Hillary's slope to the height adapted organism. Sherpas do this several times a season. They also fasten ropes, which then cling to climbers and commercial tourists. But this article is not intended to answer the question whether it is easy or difficult to overcome the Hillary step. We'll just tell you what it is. And from this information and photos you can make an impression of the complexity of the trip.

Everest

In the mid-nineteenth century, the British geodetic service determined the highest peak of the Himalayas with the help of instruments. It was located on the border of Tibet and Nepal Peak 15. The summit at a height of 8,848 meters above sea level was named in honor of the head of service, geodesist George Everest. The British did not know that the mountain already has a name. Nepalese called her the Mother of the Gods - Sagarmatha. And the Tibetans called the mountain of Jomolungma. For them, the shining peak symbolized the Great Mother of Life. This territory was considered sacred. Only in 1920, the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama allowed the Europeans to try to storm her. However, Jomolungma submitted to the eleventh expedition, which came to Hillary's Hill on Mount Everest. It is named after one of its members, who, in conjunction with Sherp Tenzing Norgay, first climbed to the "Top of the World".

What is the Hillary Step?

The climb to Mount Everest does not present a great deal of technical complexity. On the way, there are no vertical ledges, on which only a trained climber can climb. Problems encountered by Everest conquerors, are associated only with the huge height of the mountain. For 8000 meters above sea level, the so-called death zone begins. Oxygen in a rarefied atmosphere is too small to sustain life. Low temperatures and pressure get up to the most bad things with the human mind, denude low instincts. In this situation, each step is difficult. And here, just near the treasured summit, at an altitude of 8,790 meters, the Hillary Hill - a vertical ledge consisting of ice and compressed snow - grows. There is no way around it. On both sides it is surrounded by very steep cliffs. It remains one thing to climb an almost vertical thirteen-foot ledge.

Climbing Hillary to Everest

Expedition of 1953, the eleventh in a row, consisted of more than four hundred people. The lion's share was made up of porters and guides - Sherpas. This people have long lived at high altitude. Due to adaptation, the Sherpas have voluminous light and strong hearts, as well as surprising adaptability to frost. The expedition moved slowly. Lifting and adaptation took two months. The group camped at an altitude of 7,900 meters. The first to storm the summit went two British climbers Ch. Evans and T. Bordillon. But because they had problems with oxygen masks, they had to return. The next day, on May 29, the New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherp Tenzing Noguei went to try their luck. After the Southern saddle they were blocked by a huge firn step. Hillary tied a rope and began to climb the almost steep slope. So he reached the snow cornice. Soon, along the rope, Norgay climbed up to him. The tops of this pair of climbers reached at 11.30 in the morning.

The climbing difficulties associated with the Hillary step

The first conquerors of Everest reached their goal before noon, and therefore were able to leave the "death zone" before sunset. This is a very important circumstance. Because spending the night above eight thousand meters above sea level means a sure death. Now the conquest of Jomolungma is put on a commercial basis. A lot of rich and ambitious tourists of varying degrees of preparation are sent to storm Mount Everest. But they, and enthusiast alpinists have the same daily routine. Rise in the dark, march-up, photographing on the Top of the World for about 15-20 minutes and a quick descent into the camp. But Hillary's Hill - the slope is too narrow for two people to miss. As a result, queuing lines are often created around it, and even fights arise. After all, commercial tourists who paid several thousand dollars for climbing Mount Everest do not want to come to terms with the idea that they need to turn back because time is later. Some abandon the guides, go to the top and perish along the way.

Plans for commercial tourists

There are several ideas on how to make Everest more accessible. Hillary's steps can not take more so many victims. It no longer seems such an insurmountable obstacle. In early April, the Sherpa team arrives at a stationary camp, equips its buildings, and then goes to the top. There these courageous people hang ropes on the steps of Hillary, over which thousands of Europeans and Americans will rise during the season. These rich tourists will be followed by Sherpas with luggage and oxygen bottles. That's why the idea of building on Everest ... elevator is seriously considered. Of course, the top of the mountain will have to be put in a dome, which will be pumped up with air, like an aircraft cabin. But even if you translate this bold idea into reality, still thousands of people will storm the slopes of the mountain, rushing to the snowy peak.

Sherpas Plan

Conductors, who also do not want to lose their earnings, offered a less expensive idea than a lift to Everest. It consists in laying several stationary stairs along the Hillary step. This plan does not look so unrealistic. Sherpas and so establish structures in the base camp at an altitude of 5300 meters. They lay metal stairs through the Khumbu glacier in constant motion and equip the route to the Silence Valley (6500 m). Earlier, they hung two ropes in the narrowest point of the ledge. Now they offer to install wide metal staircases on the Hillary Steps. Everest thanks to them will become more accessible, because this rock will not have queues.