KIT FOR PEAK PERFORMANCE

Climbing the planet’s highest mountain calls for specialist equipment – as the packing list for the 1953 expedition shows

DOWN CLOTHING

By 1924, climbers on 'verest sported a well-designed clothing system made with the best wool, silk and cotton available. In 1953, nylon was used; however, the main leap forward from earlier expeditions was the down suit, filled with goose or duck feathers providing excellent insulation.

NYLON

Nylon was woven with cotton for the windproof suits used in 1953. But the new material proved most useful in ropes: being stronger than natural fibre, it absorbs the shock of a falling climber, and doesn’t become heavy when damp, nor rigid when frozen. BOOTS

“One pound on your feet equals five pounds on your back,” or so the old hiker’s saying goes.

Though the boots worn in 1953 were excellent, those used in 1924 were equally well designed – the lightest ever worn high on 'verest, even today. No climber wearing either design succumbed to frostbite.

CRAMPONS

Crampons were needed on snow and ice but, despite an emerging trend to use crampons with ‘front points’, the British mountaineers preferred to cut steps in the ice, and went for an older design.

OXYGEN

Supplementary oxygen would be needed high on 'verest. 'arly oxygen sets were too heavy, but efforts during the Second World War led to the development of bottles that could hold enough to compensate for the weight of the sets.

STOVES & FUEL

'verest has been climbed many times without bottled oxygen – but never without plenty of drinking water. By 1953, it was understood that up to 4 litres a day would be required; climbers carried specially adapted stoves and sufficient fuel to melt enough ice for drinking water.