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Gentleman Mountaineer, Sir Edmund Hillary Reaches His Final Summit
One of the greatest climbing legends of all time, Sir Edmund Percival Hillary died on Thursday, 10th January, at age 88. The announcement was made today by New Zealand's Prime Minister, Helen Clark, who said: "The legendary mountaineer, adventurer, and philanthropist is the best-known New Zealander ever to have lived. But most of all he was a quintessential Kiwi. He was ours - from his craggy appearance and laconic style to his directness and honesty. All New Zealanders will deeply mourn his passing." The unpretentious bee keeper became a household name on May 27th in 1953 when he and Tenzing Norgay scaled 29,028 feet, reaching the top of Mt. Everest at 11:30 in the morning; after having battled mile deep chasms and icy wind driven waves of snow, that resembled the smaller dunes of the Sahara after a sand storm. As the pair climbed the mountain which had previously claimed several lives, the views of Kangchenjunga, Makalu and Lhotse to the east, must have been truly spectacular. In elation and sheer joy, together Hillary and Tenzing hugged each other and planted four flags; that of the United Nations, Nepal, India and Britain. As befitted his Sherpa heritage, Tenzing made a small offering to Buddha with a few sweets, biscuits and a chocolate bar. Just as moving was Hillary, when he dug a small hole in the snow and buried a crucifix. The Sherpas, natives in the Nepalese Everest region will always remember Tenzing as their champion and symbol of unwaivering ambition and resolve. Also known as a great humanitarian, Hillary established the Himalayan Trust in the sixties, working constantly to build schools and hospitals for the Sherpas. He also worked tirelessly to reforest the upland areas of Nepal. The Nepalese gave the lanky adventurer his nickname of 'burra sahib' - ' big man,' understandably because of his lofty height of 6 feet 2 inches. An impressive achievement and one that he valued the least, was being honored as a member of Britain's Order of the Garter. He didn't believe in knighthoods as a matter of his own politics, even though the knighthood was limited to twenty-four knights and ladies at any one time. True to his good natured temperament, when he returned from the summit of Mt. Everest, he quipped to his friend: "Well George, we've knocked the bastard off!" --------------------- If you're looking for his biography, it's called: Nothing Venture, Nothing Win Here is an excellent video chronicling Sir Edmund Hillary's life. Sources: CNN.com Time Fortune Magazine |
Himalayan Trust
| Britain's Order of the Garter
| Nothing Venture, Nothing Win
| CNN.com
| Fortune Magazine
|
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This intel was contributed by ~ Swan
~ Swan
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