Craghoppers (Regattas sister company) announced its sponsorship of the long awaited 2001 Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition. The company is the only UK sponsors of the expedition.
Back in May 1999, the Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition team, led by Eric Simonson discovered the body of famous mountaineer, George Mallory very close to the summit of Everest. On March 11, 2001, the same team left for Everest to continue the work, in an attempt to locate and document artifacts of the early attempts. What they want to establish is whether it really was Hillary who climbed Everest first in 1953. Or did Mallory and Irvine manage to get to the top in their fateful expedition in 1924?
In a statement from the team, they explain the nature of the expedition: ''Finding the remains of Andrew Irvine is not the goal of this expedition. Recovery of a camera and images that might definitively tell the story of Mallory and Irvine's final day is the goal. This expedition team has no morbid fascination with the dead, and is only willing to confront that grim reality high on Mt. Everest in order to seek the truth, a truth that this team believes the dead would want known to the world."
There has been much discussion about the current expedition. Irvine's family wished his body to be left in peace. However this group of professional climbers/mountaineers are conducting an extremely important archaeological excavation in very dangerous conditions, the products of which may rewrite the history of Everest forever.
Craghoppers' technical heritage stems from an early successful expedition to Everest with Doug Scott in 1975. Craghoppers has also been involved with such adventurers as Jonathan Pratt in his quest for climbing all 14 8,000m peaks.
A spokeswoman for the company said: ''We are also very excited about the potential finds on the mountain and fully support professional work of this kind.''
First expedition update - 27/03/01
The team has arrived safely at Base Camp and every member is doing well (except the sat phone, which seems to have a bug and is impeding communications). Last we heard they had loaded 56 yaks and headed to Advance Base Camp with 3 search team members and 13 climbing Sherpas. So the assault is on. Eric reports that snow cover on the mountain is a little heavier than 1999 but still less than normal.
A major discovery is made - 05/04/01
The 2001 Mallory and Irvine Expedition Team has already made a major discovery: the site of the 1922 British expedition's Advance Base Camp. At least three oxygen cylinders definitively from that climb were discovered below the current Advance Base Camp area. The 1922 expedition was the first to take oxygen to the mountain, it's use was highly debated on grounds of the "unsporting" nature of deploying artificial aids to assist in reaching the summit. The cylinders our team has discovered are classics! The team will return to the site with the detectors provided by Metrotech and will give the whole area a good scrubbing.
Eric reports that the mountain is now as bare as it was in 1999. The wind has been blowing hard since they got there, which is bad for morale down low, but great for scouring away all the snow up high. If these conditions continue to prevail, the search conditions will once again be tops. The team reached the North Col on March 29th, the earliest Eric has ever had a team on the Col. No one else was even at Base Camp yet. The climbing team and Sherpas are really tearing it apart right now. It is a big, strong, healthy team! (Notable exception: head cook Pemba has the mumps and is under quarantine since the Sherpas don't get vaccinated for these diseases and if they aren't careful, an epidemic could shut this team
down.)
Daily Dispaches at this address
http://www.mountainguides.com/everest2001/images/p_mountain1.jpghas
Back in May 1999, the Mallory and Irvine Research Expedition team, led by Eric Simonson discovered the body of famous mountaineer, George Mallory very close to the summit of Everest. On March 11, 2001, the same team left for Everest to continue the work, in an attempt to locate and document artifacts of the early attempts. What they want to establish is whether it really was Hillary who climbed Everest first in 1953. Or did Mallory and Irvine manage to get to the top in their fateful expedition in 1924?
In a statement from the team, they explain the nature of the expedition: ''Finding the remains of Andrew Irvine is not the goal of this expedition. Recovery of a camera and images that might definitively tell the story of Mallory and Irvine's final day is the goal. This expedition team has no morbid fascination with the dead, and is only willing to confront that grim reality high on Mt. Everest in order to seek the truth, a truth that this team believes the dead would want known to the world."
There has been much discussion about the current expedition. Irvine's family wished his body to be left in peace. However this group of professional climbers/mountaineers are conducting an extremely important archaeological excavation in very dangerous conditions, the products of which may rewrite the history of Everest forever.
Craghoppers' technical heritage stems from an early successful expedition to Everest with Doug Scott in 1975. Craghoppers has also been involved with such adventurers as Jonathan Pratt in his quest for climbing all 14 8,000m peaks.
A spokeswoman for the company said: ''We are also very excited about the potential finds on the mountain and fully support professional work of this kind.''
First expedition update - 27/03/01
The team has arrived safely at Base Camp and every member is doing well (except the sat phone, which seems to have a bug and is impeding communications). Last we heard they had loaded 56 yaks and headed to Advance Base Camp with 3 search team members and 13 climbing Sherpas. So the assault is on. Eric reports that snow cover on the mountain is a little heavier than 1999 but still less than normal.
A major discovery is made - 05/04/01
The 2001 Mallory and Irvine Expedition Team has already made a major discovery: the site of the 1922 British expedition's Advance Base Camp. At least three oxygen cylinders definitively from that climb were discovered below the current Advance Base Camp area. The 1922 expedition was the first to take oxygen to the mountain, it's use was highly debated on grounds of the "unsporting" nature of deploying artificial aids to assist in reaching the summit. The cylinders our team has discovered are classics! The team will return to the site with the detectors provided by Metrotech and will give the whole area a good scrubbing.
Eric reports that the mountain is now as bare as it was in 1999. The wind has been blowing hard since they got there, which is bad for morale down low, but great for scouring away all the snow up high. If these conditions continue to prevail, the search conditions will once again be tops. The team reached the North Col on March 29th, the earliest Eric has ever had a team on the Col. No one else was even at Base Camp yet. The climbing team and Sherpas are really tearing it apart right now. It is a big, strong, healthy team! (Notable exception: head cook Pemba has the mumps and is under quarantine since the Sherpas don't get vaccinated for these diseases and if they aren't careful, an epidemic could shut this team
down.)
Daily Dispaches at this address
http://www.mountainguides.com/everest2001/images/p_mountain1.jpghas
