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| Ten Thousand Motels |
Swiss Everest pioneer dies at age 95
By ERICA BULMAN, Associated Press Writer
2 hours, 1 minute ago
GENEVA - Ernest Hofstetter, part of the Swiss team that first traced the route to "The Roof of the World" used by Sir Edmund Hillary to conquer Mount Everest, has died, his son said Friday. He was 95.
Hofstetter, who died June 1 at his French chalet with a view of Mont Blanc, was a member of the Swiss expedition that had to turn back just short of the peak in 1952 but is credited with forging the path that Hillary and Tenzing Norgay used in their successful assault a year later. The path is still used today in climbs to the 29,035-foot peak.
Acknowledging the Swiss contribution, Hillary's team sent them a telegram after peaking: "To you goes half the glory."
"He was kind, but he could also be hard. But it's not a softy who climbs Mount Everest," his son, Michel Hofstetter, told The Associated Press.
The Swiss expedition remains one of the most charming and astonishing feats in mountaineering history: During a weekly get-togethers in a Geneva square, a bunch of climbing buddies hatched the plan to scale Everest.
Unexpectedly, the Swiss received from the Nepalese government the permit for 1952, taking it away from the British who had monopolized it the previous 21 years.
Hofstetter and his friends surpassed all expectations, although they had a big asset: like Hillary, they also had Norgay, the legendary Sherpa.
They conquered the Khumbu Icefall — one of the most dangerous stages of the expedition, which has claimed many lives due to collapsing towers of ice and large crevasses that open without warning. Reaching the broad glacial basin called the Western Cwm, they scaled the huge Lhotse face at 23,620 feet to reach the desolate, wind-swept South Col.
While Tenzing and Raymond Lambert forged on, Hofstetter remained with another group at 26,250 feet, ready to try if the pair failed.
The story of the climb is full of astounding details. Lambert and Tenzing, for instance, camped at 27,560 feet, despite having forgotten their sleeping bags.
The group was also essentially climbing without oxygen because their Swiss-designed sets failed. In the thin air at 26,250 feet, many climbers experience hallucinations and poor judgment.
Lambert and Tenzing reached 28,380 feet but were forced back down because of fatigue and bad weather.
They came within 650 feet of the summit on May 26, 1952. Presuming George Mallory and Andrew Irvine failed to reach the summit in 1924, the Swiss had climbed higher than anyone before.
Hofstetter, who ran a sporting goods store in Geneva, had to persuade his wife to let him go.
"My mother had three children and a business to run," said Michel, who was 8 when his father made the climb. "Still, she let him go. It was a great act of love."
"Nowadays, they've got sophisticated instruments and a meteorologist tells climbers whether it's safe to advance," Michel said. "In those days, you simply looked out the tent to see if there were clouds coming in.
Hillary's team was more organized than the Swiss. It also had working oxygen equipment, although it weighed significantly more.
Hofstetter's expedition was led by Edouard Wyss-Dunant. Others included Rene Dittert, head mountain guide; Gabriel Chevalley, the team's doctor; Rene Aubert; Leon Flory; Lambert; Andre Roch; and Jean-Jacques Asper, now the sole surviving member.
A geologist, a botanist and an anthropologist from the Geneva University also participated. All were members of Geneva's local "L'Androsace" Alpine club.
"They were very lucky," Michel said. "They didn't have any accidents or frostbite. But it could have easily ended a lot differently."
Besides Michel, Hofstetter is survived by his other children, Gerard and Catherine, and granddaughter Yasmine.
There will be no memorial service. Relatives will scatter the ashes of him and his late wife, Jeanne, together in the mountains of southeastern Switzerland.
[Edited by Ten Thousand Motels] |
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| fireontheplatter |
being an avid rock climber and an armchair mountaineer ....heres to you buddy.
cheers..........all night.
rip.....my man |
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| fireontheplatter |
if any of you want to read a great, but tragic story about the freakness of everests weather you should to check out a book titled...into thin air, by john krackhour.
13 people died on the mountain that afternoon, but i won't give the story away. great read for anyone...just like that book ...the perfect storm. |
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| Ten Thousand Motels |
Some interesting reading...for someone...perhaps. 
George Mallory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Mallory |
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| fireontheplatter |
conrad ancor found mallery's body during a heavily funded nationl geographic expedition sometime in the mid 90's. it is all documented in a book called...the ghosts of everest..they were hoping to find a camera to see if they really did make it to the summit, but it was not on his body. they stll have not found irvins body yet....he may have the camera.
why they chose the route they did is beyond me...it it a long horrendous snow slog. there is a place called the 3rd step which is way the fuck up there at something like 27-28 thousand feet and there is pretty much no way around this heap...conrad went up and climbed it after they found mallery's body and doubted there was any way they could have nailed this part...it is rated solid 5.10, which is hard and back then pretty much no one on the planet could climb that grade.
before they set out on this expedition they asked kodak, if the camera is found would it be possible to develope the film and they said yes. still to this day i think irvine has the camera but i think he is burried further on down the mountain.
this all happened in 1922....my god.
a great read peple. |
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| mrhipfl |
swiss people rule.
except at stones shows...lamest crowd i've ever seen |
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