By Nick Galvin
"Well, George, we knocked the bastard off!"
It was with these irreverent words 60 years ago today that Sir Edmund Hillary announced to climber George Lowe that he and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay had successfully climbed Mount Everest.
This year's diamond anniversary of that first ascent is especially poignant following the death of the last surviving direct member of the 1953 expedition – Hillary's lifelong friend, Lowe – earlier in the year.
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay return to the advance base after ascending Everest.
Now only Jan Morris (then James Morris), the correspondent for The Times and acclaimed travel writer who broke the story on the successful climb by Hillary and Tenzing, survives.
It is left to Everest veterans such as Australian Greg Mortimer to continue the Everest tradition.
"It was a stepping-on-the-moon-type moment," says Mortimer, who, along with Tim Macartney-Snape, became in 1984 one of the first two Australians to reach the summit of Everest.
"[Hillary's success] was a really big deal because the medical graphs of the day showed that it wasn't physically possible. There had been various attempts from some very talented mountaineers, so the myth of it grew. It was a major turning point."
Much of it was to do with attitude, says Mortimer.
"They were quite relaxed in a way," he says. "Despite being a big expedition with a formal structure they had a fairly commonsense attitude and were able to look at the mountain with fairly clear sight, rather than battle against it. That easygoing streak that is so lovely in Kiwis came to the fore.
"Time and time again expeditions that have gone to conquer have failed. That's the delightful thing about the mountain. It knocks them down to size."
Mortimer was speaking in the Himalayan village of Namche Bazaar, ahead of ascending to Tengboche for a gala dinner to celebrate the achievement of Hillary and Tenzing.
Even 60 years on, both men remain venerated around the Everest region and preparations for the anniversary could be seen everywhere in the run-up to May 29.
The date is specially significant for the pupils of Khumjung School, which was established by Hillary as part of his extensive philanthropic work in the region.
Earlier this week, pupils there were practising their marching for a ceremony and the extensive campus was being spruced up for the big day.
Headmaster Mahendra Khatet said Hillary was a pivotal figure in the region.
"Sir Edmund was a philanthropist and because of his work the people of the region have gained a lot. With Tenzing Norgay he made the region famous."
Nowadays, hundreds of well-heeled climbers make it to the summit each climbing season, swarming up fixed ropes set by hundreds of Sherpas.
The numbers are so great there are often queues along the route as the expedition teams take advantage of narrow weather conditions.
These modern exhibitions hold no interest for Mortimer.
"I just happened to be one of the lucky ones there at a golden time," he says. "I have a feeling that the time has come for some limitation on numbers.
"But at the same time I feel it is very feasible for anyone with decent health and the will to do it to have a go at climbing Everest. I feel that quite strongly. The experience is very valuable."
Nick Galvin travelled to Nepal with World Expeditions.
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