Chapter 4 Chapter 1 Ideas

Everyone knows that Mount Everest ① is the highest peak in the world, with an elevation of 29,002 feet (8,848 meters) ②; most people also know that there are two Britons, George Leigh Mallory and Erin Andrew Irvine, who lost his life trying to reach the summit, was last seen making a vigorous climb to the summit, which was only 800 feet away; they must have almost perhaps actually reached the summit. mountain top. Note ① Mount Everest: 8848 meters above sea level, the highest peak in the world, on the border between Nepal and China.The Map of Qianlong’s Neifu, printed in the twenty-fifth year of Qianlong’s reign in the Qing Dynasty (1760), had already printed the place name of Everest Alin, although at that time it was not known that the local mountain was later the highest peak in the world , but after the British confirmed and calculated its highest status in the world in 1856, they named the mountain after the then head of the Indian Survey Bureau: Everest (Sir George Everest, 1870︱86) .Therefore, the whole world continues to use this name until today.In 1952, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Publishing Department of China jointly announced that Everest was officially changed back to the ancient Tibetan name: Qomolangma. Since then, foreigners have also entered the country and called Everest Qomolangma (sound Qomolangma), Taiwan Mount Everest has always been used to refer to Everest, because Everest is in Tibetan, and its literal meaning is the meaning of the Virgin.Mount Everest is located at the junction of Tibet and Nepal. To the north is Tibet. The mountain looks like a huge pyramid. The early mountaineering expeditions all started from Tibet.It was not until 1950 that the climb was changed to Nepal on the south side.Human beings have tried to climb Mount Everest since the 1920s, but have been unsuccessful.It was not until 1953 that the British team successfully climbed from the South Col for the first time, and in 1960, the Chinese team successfully climbed to the summit from the North Col.Editor's note

Note ② In 1856, investigator Andrew waugh successfully measured the height of Mount Everest to be 8,840 meters (29,002 feet); Corrected to the now recognized 8848 meters.This book was completed in 1926. The heights of the main peaks of the Himalayas measured at that time were mostly different from the heights re-measured later. In order to maintain the style of the original book, this translation will maintain the original height indicated by the author and retain the English length Marked, only in the case of important dimensions, the metric measurement of the current height will be listed in square brackets ().Editor's note

How is this possible?And how did Norton and his partner Howard Somervell reach altitudes of 28,100 feet and 28,000 feet, respectively, without oxygen tanks?And how did Noel Odell climb to 27,000 feet for the second time without oxygen tanks, not to mention that if there were a few more porters, he might have reached the summit?How can the Himalayas be able to climb nearly 27,000 feet with load to facilitate the great feats of mountaineers?What's more, during this mountaineering expedition, Edward F. Norton, Somerwell, and Malory first experienced an extremely severe snowstorm at an altitude of 21,000 feet, and the temperature dropped to minus 24 degrees Fahrenheit (approx. minus 31 degrees Celsius), and then to go back and rescue four Himalayan porters trapped in a 23,000-foot glacier, using their best resources and still achieving the above feat.It is that story that is to be told here.

First of all, let's talk about the idea of ​​climbing Mount Everest in the minds of these people. When we see a mountain, sooner or later we are drawn to try to climb it.We're not going to let it sit there forever without getting a kick out of it.This is partly because we like to look at landscapes from high places, but more precisely because mountains challenge us.We must match it, we must show that we can climb to its highest point, to ourselves and to our neighbors.We like to show off ourselves and show what we can do.Climbing the heights is hard work, but we like to do it.This act makes us proud of ourselves and brings inner satisfaction.

But when we look at Mount Everest, we know it's quite a different proposition.Climbing to its top is something we would never dream of.It goes up to the sky, far beyond human reach.At least it seems so.For ages thousands of Indians have looked up to the great Himalayan peaks, and even the nearby lower peaks, much lower than most of them, have never dared to try to climb them. .They will patiently endure a terrible arduous journey in thin clothes from the hot plains of India to a pilgrimage site perched on the edge of a glacier in the Himalayas, suffering as much as any Everest climber, but even climbing that The idea of ​​a towering mountain never entered their minds, not even those who lived in the mountains all their lives and were used to suffering.Their ability to reach the summit is evidenced by the fact that they had climbed nearly 27,000 feet in 1924 with their luggage on their backs.If they were able to climb 27,000 feet with their weight on, it is fair to assume that they could climb to 29,000 feet unloaded.But they still never had Everest in mind.

So how did those islanders from the North Sea come up with such an idea?Looking back, we see the Swiss and the Italians giving us this inspiration.The peaks of the Alps are only half the height of the Himalayan giants, but they are still daunting until the end of the eighteenth century.Sosur and the Italian Placidus a Sopescha reached its summit.Moaning, panting, suffering from headaches and ailments, the climbers reached the summit.Once the highest peaks of the Alps were conquered, the smaller hills were followed one by one.Soon, we Brits followed in Sosur's footsteps.Throughout the nineteenth century, we devoted all our energy to the conquest of the Alpine peaks; after they were conquered one by one, people turned to more difficult games.Douglas.Frisfeld climbed the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains.Martin.Sir Conway ascended the highest peak of the Andes.Italians also came to the battle.Archduke Abruzzi climbed to the highest points of two mountains, Rwenzori in East Africa and St. Elias in Alaska.

Note ③ The highest peak in the Alps is Mount Blanc, with an elevation of 4,807 meters.In 1760, the Swiss geologist De.When Horace Benedict De Saussurem (1740︱99) visited Chamonix (Chamonix), where Mont Blanc is located, for the first time, he promised himself the ambition to climb to the top, otherwise he would also be responsible for promoting the summit.So he offered a bonus to the first person to climb the peak, but it was not until 1786 that the bonus was awarded by a French doctor, Michel︱Gabriel Paccard, who practiced in Chamonix, and his colleagues. Challenge Jacques Balmat to win.However, this glory soon faded away. In the second year, De.Sausul himself climbed Mont Blanc.Editor's note

Note ④ The highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains is Mount Elbrus (Mount Elbrus), located on the western edge of the Ural Mountains in southwestern Russia, with an elevation of 5642 meters; British mountaineer Douglas.Douglas Freshfield (Douglas Freshfield, 1845︱1934) first ascended this peak in 1868.Frisfield served as the chief secretary (1881︱94) and chairman (1914︱17) of the Royal Geographical Society, and the chairman (1908︱09) of the Society of Authors (1908︱09). Since 1999, it has been committed to promoting the listing of geography as an independent subject in British universities.Editor's note

Note ⑤ The highest peak in the Andes is Mount Aconcagua, with an elevation of 6,959 meters. In 1898, the British mountaineer Martin.Conway (Martin Conway, 1856︱1937) first set foot on the highest point of this peak.Conway was also an explorer and art historian, with expeditions beyond Europe to South America and Asia, and a prolific writer.Editor's note Note 6 Ruwenzori (Ruwenzori): The mountain range on the border between Uganda and Congo in Central Africa. It was called the Mountain of the Moon by Ptolemy, the father of modern Egypt in the second century. It has long been considered the source of the Nile River. .Unlike most snow peaks in Africa, it is not formed by volcanoes, but a huge horst; the highest peak is (Margherita Peak) of Mount Stanley (Mount Stanley), with an elevation of 5119 meters , is the third highest peak in Africa.In 1906, an expedition led by the Duke of the Abruzzi (The Duke of the Abruzzi) first climbed the peak. He named the peak after Queen Margherita of Italy. .Editor's note

Note ⑦ Saint Elias Mountain (Saint Elias Mountain): 5489 meters above sea level, Archduke Abruzzi made the first ascent in 1897.Editor's note Success begets greater ambition.After the Alps, the Caucasus and the Andes were conquered one by one, people moved their minds to the majestic Himalayas.Germany's Feng.The three brothers Von Schlagintweit climbed to the 22260 feet of Mount Camet⑧.Officials of the Indian Expedition Corps, on their way to the majestic mountains, have this statement in their records: JS Pocock climbed Garhwal Peak in 1874 ) at 21,000 feet, and W. Johnson climbed a pinnacle in the Kunlun Mountains, whose height was later measured at 23,890 feet.

Note ⑧The Himalayas are thirty to forty-five miles wide and include many of the highest peaks in the world. The highest peak, Mount Everest, is located on the northern border of Nepal. However, there are also many peaks in India, such as Kangchenjunga on the border between Nepal and Sikkim. 8586m), and Nanda Devi (7817m), Kamet (7756m), and Trisu in Uttar Pradesh (Trisul, 7120 meters) etc.Editor's note However, the major assaults on the great peaks were made by Europeans who had been trained in mountaineering techniques developed by climbing the Alps.They come from almost every European country, and some from the Americas.Graham claimed to have climbed 23,185 feet in 1883; Sir Conway made his way up the Karakoram peaks on the Baltoro Glacier.Swiss Jacot Guillarmod also explored the same area.American Dr. Bullock Workman and his wife climbed to a height of 23,400 feet.Dr. TG Longstaff climbed to the summit of Mount Trisu, 23,406 feet (7,120 meters).Forrestfield explored Kangchenjunga⑨. Note 9 Kangchenjunga (Kangchenjunga): also spelled Kanchenjunga or Kinchinjunga, with an elevation of 8586 meters. Before the discovery of K2 (8611 meters), it was always considered to be the second highest peak in the world after Mount Everest. .Freesfield challenged this peak in 1899, but failed to reach the summit.Editor's note Then came the most serious and best-organized mountaineering groups, attempting to ascend as high as humanly possible.What prevents people from climbing the peaks of the Himalayas is not the actual obstacles on the mountains, such as cliffs or ice and snow that lie between people and the peaks.Between the Alps, every real climb is as difficult as climbing the Himalayas, and humans have overcome any such difficulties.He climbed the bloodiest precipices and crags, and found his way to the most inaccessible icy precipices.The severe cold of the Himalayas was no obstacle: in the polar regions, humans can withstand even harsher freezes.The real obstacle is the lack of oxygen in the high-altitude air.The higher we climb, the thinner the air and the less oxygen there is.Oxygen is an indispensable substance for human beings to survive.Then the Italian mountaineering team led by Grand Duke Abruzzi decided that there was only one question to ask: in the oxygen-deficient air on the high mountains, what height can a person reach with his own efforts?It was 1919. At that time, it was very difficult to obtain climbing permits from the governments of Nepal and Tibet, which are located on both sides of Mount Everest. Grand Duke Abruzzi was unable to conduct his experiments there, so he chose to climb at the height of 2 The 8,278-foot peak of the Karakoram Himalayas, also known as K2⑩.Later, because that mountain was not conducive to this experiment, he changed to climb Bride Peak (Bride Peak), ascending to 24,600 feet.Had it not been for the dense fog and snowstorm, he might have climbed to higher altitudes. Note ⑩ is Jogri (Jogri), K2 is an alias, with an elevation of 8,611 meters. It is the most difficult climber among the 14 8,000-meter mountains in the world. It is located on the border between Pakistan and Xinjiang.Editor's note Therefore, human beings had been continuously and steadily marching towards the road of dominating the mountains, and the idea of ​​climbing Mount Everest was deeply rooted in people's hearts.Colonel Hon CG Bruce (now promoted to brigadier general) had thought about this as early as 1893.He had been with Sir Conway in the Karakoram Himalayas, and it was when he was hired to serve in Chitral (Editor's note: on the northern border of present-day Pakistan) that he came up with the idea.However, his chance to put this idea into practice never happened.Many years later, the Duke of Curzon (11) when he was Governor of India asked Douglas.Freesfield suggested that if he, the Duke of Curzon, could obtain permission from the Nepalese government to allow an expedition to climb the mountain via Nepal, the Royal Geographical Society and the Alpine Club should join forces. Mount Everest expedition.However, the Nepalese government did not issue a permit, and the proposal fell through.The Nepalese are a secluded and reclusive nation, but because they have been quite friendly with the British for many years, the Indian government (12) let them go without forcing them. Note 11 Lord Curzon: 1859︱1925, a British politician who served as the Governor of India (1898︱1905) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (1919︱24). important role.Editor's note Note 12 Indian government: India became independent in 1947. The so-called Indian government refers to the British-Indian coalition government, that is, the Indian colonial government under British rule.Annotation Mr. Forestfield, who has been appointed as the chairman of the British Mountaineering Association, was also appointed as the chairman of the Royal Geographical Society at that time; it is not surprising that he would propose such an idea in line with his temperament: forming a Everest mountaineering team.Unfortunately, his tenure coincided with the Great War (referring to World War I).After the war, Captain Noel proposed this idea again. He had explored the Himalayas on the Tibetan side in 1913; One expectation: At least explore Everest.When the author became President of the Royal Geographical Society in 1920, the time seemed ripe to put the idea of ​​climbing Mount Everest into practice.I spent several years in the Himalayas and also in Tibet, so I know the local conditions quite well.Furthermore, it is difficult for individuals or small groups of three or four to climb the Alps, but it is often not a problem to be hosted by a large organization with abundant resources. At the same time, great progress has been made in another direction.In fact, when Grand Duke Abruzzi was climbing in the Himalayas, Louis.Brejo (13) flew over the English Channel.The war also brought great impetus to the manufacture of aircraft.The result: Human beings can now fly higher than the summit of Mount Everest.So the question of how high humans can raise themselves seems to belong more to pilots than to mountaineers; and pilots have already surpassed mountaineers.So why go to the trouble of climbing Everest to prove what has already been proven? Note 13 Louis.Brejo (Louis Bleriot): 1872︱1936, French aviation pioneer, in 1909, he drove a 24-horsepower monoplane to complete the record flight over the English Channel for the first time, and became an airplane in his later years manufacturer.Editor's note Answer: These are two completely different things.The pilot sits in the craft, breathes oxygen, and lets the machine take him up.Of course, he needs skill and courage to fly the plane, but his ascension still depends on the machine, not on his own, and he has ample oxygen by his side to replenish it at any time when the oxygen in the air is insufficient.The climber must rely on his own vitality, must keep himself close to the surface.What we want to know is whether there are places on the surface that humans cannot reach without any auxiliary equipment.So, we chose this highest mountain and conducted this experiment on it. Some people really questioned: what is the reason for such trouble?If you want to go to the highest point of Mount Everest, wouldn't it be over with a plane?College rowers might be asked a similar question: If they're going from Putney to Moat Lake (14), why not take an airboat?It was much faster and more comfortable than paddling all the way there.A 100-meter runner may also be asked: why not call a taxi? Note 14 Putney (Putney), Mort Lake (Mort Lake): Both are cities on the River Thames in London. Mort Lake is a little upstream to the west of Putney, flowing through the Thames River between Mort Lake and Putney It just forms a ㄇ shape, and it takes about 20 minutes by bus between the two places.Since 1845, this section of the river has been the site of the Cambridge-Oxford inter-school rowing competition.Editor's note To climb Everest means to climb up and climb up with your own legs.The whole point is here.Only in this way can man be proud of his own abilities, and what a soul-satisfying thing it is to have good abilities.What a poor thing life would be if we were always dependent on machines.It's all too easy to keep trusting in science and machines instead of exercising our bodies and souls.In this way we lose much of the joy in life, the kind of joy that would have tempered our bodies and minds to perfection. So, back to the beginning!Deciding to climb Everest is a common impulse, like wanting to climb a neighboring hill.The effort required to climb Everest is far greater, but still based on the same impulse.Indeed, wrestling with Mount Everest is a fight in which the spirit wants to overcome the material.Man, the divine being, wants to make himself superior to matter, even the most powerful matter. Humans and mountains also originate from the earth, and there are some similarities between the two.But no matter how huge the mountain is, or how small it looks, the level of being of the mountain is always below that of human beings.Man, smaller in form, is greater in substance; the drive in him will not rest until he is placed on the highest point of the lower being.He will not flinch from the height of the mountain.The mountain may be tall, but he will show that his spirit is higher; he will not be satisfied until he has conquered it under his feet. This is the secret buried in the hearts of Everest climbers. And in proving his strength, man will find the joy that exercise brings him.