At Mt Everest

Hokitika Guardian, 26 June 1922, Page 3

At Mt Everest

THE ('LUMBERS’ STORY. • Tin: TlMes ” SKIIVH'F (Received this day at. 9.50 a.m. 1 LONDON. June 24. ; The story of Finch and Captain Bruce's attempt, dated from Ronghuk base camp. (In June 2nd they moved up to camp three, at twenty-mu* thousand feet, carrying oxygen apparatus. They there tested the apparatus and found only one cylinder out of ten usable. They contrived to get tour others, by dismantling u»*l reassembling U'e sound pints. Walking leisurely, j they easily outdistanced their com- . puninus. It might have been a pleasant alpine walk, at ten thousand instead of twenty-one thousand foot. The' attempt began on May 23rd. Setting j nui for till* north col at the foot of w!i:'i we met Mallory’s parte returning fi 'iii Hair loom'd breaking climb, : "e iviched the nerth-east shoulder of' tv.ent.v-iivo thousand live iumlrnd Let up and pitched camp. .Meantime a j simw storm was rapidly working up to j a stale of fury. Wr crawied into our ■ sleeping hags and tried to warm mils' Ives in the frail littl* shelter. Hot 1 drink was impossihl ■ owing to the : alHtudo. We used solidified soil'd- to i comfort ocr chilled bodies. Alter son-

set the gale increas'd to a storm, j tearing the tent wi’h such loi.e 111 :t . it constantly lifted the groundslieet, | j though in 1 were lying upon it. At mid- 1 u'ghl we were t icklv covered wiMi a tine spindrift thrown into the tent and : dice net sleeo. i: was all v.e eould do I'o hold down the tent. If once the t wind had fairly gripped it we would have been Mown :n‘o 11 1 " glacier a thousand feet I clow. liy morning the gale had reached a maximum, (lapping ■ the canvas with a noise like a machine gun and so deafening that we hardly ' we: t- iibie to eon verse. During a lull | wo Look turns to go outside, and sin- j . (ceded in roping down llie tent and I snatched a few moments sleep, much ; . exhausted lie exp sure and hall frozen. At daybreak the snow (eased, hut t/he . 1 wind had not abated. We tried to ; build a wall of stones to windward to , afford protection. Each of these ex- j eiirsioiis though seldom lasting live i minutes, showed there could he no 1 , question of advancing or retreating;, ■ until the gale abated. We lay quiet, j keeping as warm as possible, putting I on every stitch of clothing and huddling ; close together. Suddenly aftei midJay, the wind droji|)cd to a eompara- ' live h eeze. Thai was the time to re- I Moot we (’('sited, h'lt »"e decided '<> , , : ang oil another night, hoping for a ! lir.er day. We heard voices outside at ! six iii the evening. It was the porters j from t lie north col with thermos | (tasks and Ito L beef tea. Ye had aJ 1 good night and found much improve- i , incut by taking the oxygen apparatus : *n bed end sucking tlierefiom in drib- ■ hlet.s all night. \V • contrived to sleep;, well until daybreak, feeling lit and : fresh hut hungry. As soon ns the sun I rose, we struck tent, and shouldered ' our burdens, hut niter we had climbed a • lew hundred feet found an intensely cold j lireerto lied stalled to blow. Our soli-j Pirv companion was a faithful, wonderful Gurkha lion com, mimed Tcjbir. j Even his sturdy constitution showed ! I signs' of wavering. AVe managed to boost him up to tv oiity-sixtliousnnd • leet, where he collapsed. AVe tried to! urge hint on hut without avail. Tejbii j wiis ttlaved out and we sent him hack j to camt). AVe were nmv obliged to j shoulder Teihir’s burden which was a , decidedly cruel imposition. We reach- i iwent.v-six tliousaml live hundred feet. The ground was much steeper : and the wind much fiercer and colder. Wo climbed diagonally, almost direct for the summit by a serine ol steep inclined slabs. wM-re the least slip i would entail disaster. Rv midday wo had reached 27,3(10 feet tuid had negotiated halt the distance between the nurth-ctwt shoulder and the summit,

Just before reaching this. which was our highest point. Bruce had an unfor--1 ii.ui e accident which put his oxygen apparatus out of action, it was broken by knocking the breathing tube against a lock. I was able to share my npp * rates with llnico, and repaired the damage. Meantime (lie wind was cold, and seemed hoot on doing its worst. Ranks of grevisli rolling clouds filled the valley at the head of Rongbuk Glacier and drove up to us before a fierce west wind. AVe lost all feeling in our feet and our shoulders ached with the weight of the apparvd us. AVo doeided that if we tho cylinders on (he ridge descending we would have a mill'll better chance of reaching the summit at tile second attempt. Wo therefore turned hack and descended ill really hail weather and staggered to camp t horoiighlv done no. We felt we could not have taken another stop.