Expedition Timeline

Securing the 1924 expedition team

On 24 October 1923 Sandy received an invitation from the Mount Everest Committee to join the 1924 expedition. The letter arrived at a time of unprecedented emotional turmoil in Sandy’s life, one that opens a window onto his most vulnerable side. His best friend Dick Summers had proposed to Sandy's own sister Evelyn, who had accepted. This was completely unexpected, and Sandy's immediate reaction wasn't the most positive.

He signed his contract to join on the 19th November. 

Learning to Ski in Mürren

Arnold Lunn invited Sandy to Murren, Switzerland, for three weeks over Christmas and New Year to learn to ski. And so he went. Sandy quickly revealed his attitude, earning the nickname of 'Human Avalanche'. While his method of testing and falling could be met with skepticism, he did learn impressively quickly: after only two weeks, he entered the Strang-Watkins Challenge Cup for slalom running, and won. 

Clothing List with Sandy’s annotations

The Mount Everest Committee had issued a long list of the necessary items for each participant, and Sandy's annotated list is still preserved. This document is extremely interesting as it allows us to know precisely what members were recommended to bring, to see Sandy's personal take on this list of suggestions, and to compare it to today's equipment. 

'Two Birkenhead men in the party'

In the minds of the Liverpool press at least, the names of George Mallory and Sandy Irvine were linked from 11 January 1924, when The Liverpool Post had published the names of the 1924 expedition members on and ran the headline: ‘MOUNT EVEREST EXPEDITION— TWO BIRKENHEAD MEN IN THE PARTY’.

Sandy in his room working on the Oxygen Apparatus

The Mount Everest Committee started to bombard him with paperwork, but of all of this what caught the attention of his 'mechanical-mind' was the oxygen sets, as proven by the photos that capture him at Merton in his makeshift workshop.

Testing the air

Once back from his skiing trip in Switzerland, he briefly stopped in Oxford: before leaving for Tibet, he wanted to test what it felt like to be (and breathe) at high altitudes. Conveniently, his sister Evelyn was member of the predecessor of the Flying Squadron. She was able to arrange a test flight for him: Sandy thus briefly experienced, for the first time, the thrill of altitude, as he was brought to 20.000 feet.

Staying with Marjory at the Jules Hotel, Jermyn Street

The days in London were not just a time of exciting preparation for Everest and of sweet time with Marjory, buit possibly also Sandy' first time meeting George Mallory.

Sandy and Marjory did not try to hide their relationship, as she would appear with him at Henley, in London, and would even accompany him for the first part of the journey to the Arctic expedition to Spitsbergen.  Eventually, this relationship led to a divorce between Marjory and Harry Summers in spring 1924, the last drop of a series of infidelities that had become too hard to conceal.

Wayfarers' Club Dinner

A dinner in honour of the four 'North Country’ members of the expedition was given by the Wayfarers' Club on Friday 28 February at the Exchange Club in Fenwick Street. R. G Plint's menu shows Beetham and Hazard’s signatures at the base of the mountain but Mallory and Sandy had signed their names across the summit.

Setting sail

The California finally set sail on the evening of 29 February after several hours of delay. Sandy’s first letter was written at the end of their second day on the ship bound for Bombay.

From Liverpool to the Mediterranean

Sandy’s first letter was written at the end of their second day on the ship bound for Bombay. As usual his letter contained instructions to his mother about his personal effects which he appeared to have left scattered all over the house in Birkenhead. A suitcase he had borrowed from an Oxford friend would need to be sent back, cleaned and emptied (‘I’ve left some bits of primus in it!) and his grandfather’s hymn book, which he had left on the billiard table, he asked her to hide until his return. It evidently contained anecdotes and tunes, probably irreverent, that he didn’t wish his grandfather to see by mistake.

Getting to know each other

Two days into the journey Mallory wrote to Ruth giving his impressions of his fellow travellers. Beetham he found good-humoured and unselfish, ‘I expect he’ll be very useful altogether’. Of Sandy he wrote: ‘sensible & not at all highly strung he’ll be one to depend on, for everything perhaps except conversation'.

Voyage through the Red Sea

From Port Said the ship sailed through the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea.

From the deck they were rewarded with marvellous displays of ‘flying fish that looked like small swallows flying or rather gliding very close to the water and schools of porpoises quite 500 at a time, a fascinating sight especially as we got quite close to one lot...'

Arriving in Bombay

Four days later they arrived in Bombay. The bustling, busy port intrigued Sandy. His senses were assaulted by a wealth of new impressions, as he wandered around, slightly dazed and finding his land legs after three weeks at sea. He took photographs of the dockers unloading the ship and watched with amusement as their heavy boxes of equipment were bundled onto groaning carts and pushed off towards the station.

Letter from the Siliguri to Darjeeling railway with photograph

The highlight of the journey for Sandy was the ride from Siliguri to  Darjeeling where the railway leaves the plains of India behind and rises into the mountains, entering into an entirely different world. The last bit of train journey 6 a.m. — 11.30 a.m. climbing 7000 ft up to Darjeeling in a motor rail coach on a2 ft gauge railway doing most terrifying curves & traverses of cliffs & swaying about the whole time was most delightful.

Arrival in Darjeeling

Sandy, Mallory, Beetham and Hazard arrived in Darjeeling on Saturday 23 March where they were to spend four days packing and sorting their clothing and equipment, meeting the other expedition members who had gathered from all over. They were staying at the Mount Everest Hotel and it was here that Sandy met up with Odell, who had travelled from the Persian Gulf.

The 1924 Expedition Team

Everyone was full of optimism and the 1922 veterans each privately expressed the belief that they had the strongest possible team.

The Expedition leaves Darjeeling

The only possible approach to the mountain was across the Tibetan plain, a march of some 350 miles. There were no proper roads so that the assistance of motorized vehicles was out of the question. Everything the expedition would need for the march in the way of equipment and, for the great part, food had to be carried by pack animal.

Crossing into Tibet

They had come from a valley of lush vegetation into a dryer and cooler valley in the lee of the pass where the trees were now predominantly pine.

Onto Phari

Sandy's focus is once more on the Oxygen apparatus as he realises the sets need to be completely rebuilt.

First view of 'Mother Goddess of the Earth'

Sandy and Mallory climbed a small hill behind their camp at Jikyop and gained their first, clear view of Everest. They examined the south and east side of the final pyramid very carefully through binoculars, discussing possible routes and sites for camps. It was a thrilling moment for Sandy and although they were still some sixty miles from it ‘the whole mountain, or what of it we could see, gave the impression of tremendous bulk. It was from here that he took the photograph of Everest that he sent back to Evelyn. That afternoon he was back struggling with the oxygen apparatus with renewed vigour.

Visiting the monastery of Shekar

From the very top of the Dzong it was possible to gain a view of Everest, rising inexorably above the neighbouring peaks. Here the Tibetans brought incense and other offerings to Chomolungma, as ‘she stretches out her white arms on both sides, a goddess in the form of stone and ice’.

Camp III 

The food supplies at the camp were not as well organized as they should have been and the climbers were without soup that night, and therefore vital liquid. Added to that the jam and cheese were frozen solid.

Hard days and harder nights for the Expedition

When Capt. Bruce arrived at Camp II on May 8, he expected to meet only the cook and a couple of porters, instead of which he found it fully occupied. Norton was there as well and it soon became clear that there had been some kind of major breakdown in the line, and morale was low. While Norton was devising a new plan, Sandy was still up at Camp III, which had been affected by high winds and low temperatures.

The first losses for the team

Sandy got back at Base Camp on the afternoon of May 11. The descent had also been hard: one of the porters, Tamding, fell on the ice and broke his leg, and at Camp I Sandy found the cobbler, Manbahadur, suffering from hypothermia, and whose feet were frostbitten. Still at Camp I there was also Shamsher, who was unconscious, probably suffering of what today would be called HACE (high altitude cerebral edema).

Blessing at the Monastery

'We all went down to the Rhanbuk (sic) monastery to be blessed by the chief Lama. After sitting for an hour and a half eating meat and macaroni with chop sticks (well, chewed ends), drinking Tibetan tea and eating radish with very strong pepper in an ante-chamber, we were ushered into the presence of the Lama...'

Back on the mountain

Sandy's diary entry on 17th May 'The day we were scheduled to reach the summit. Not a cloud on the mountain up till 11 a.m. Perfect climbing day, no wind early. What a pity!'

A tricky descent 

When Sandy met Norton, Mallory, and Odell, he was informed of the many obstacles and difficult descent they had had to face. In typical Sandy style, he seems to gloss over how hard their mission must have been, as he notes in his diary: 'They had a pretty exciting time coming down. Norton glissading out of control and George going down a crevasse unseen and unheard by the rest. All were very tired when they got in'. 

North Col

While Mallory, Norton, and Odell recover, Sandy sets out with Somervell, Hazard, and twelve porters to take loads up to the North Col. They have to do this in terrible weather, and Sandy's first impression of North Col is not a favourable one. 

Difficult days at Camp III

One of the most unpleasant aspects of life at Camp III was the cold.  Everybody complained of it in their letters and diaries. Norton described it as a truly horrid spot. It was sited on the moraine on the edge of the East Rongbuk glacier so that the ground underfoot was of rough stones, covered in fresh snow and deadeningly cold. 

A dramatic rescue and a second loss for the team

The summit plan for May 28th soon had to be cancelled, as another emergency required all energies. Odell and Bruce only got half-way up to Camp IV when they decided that the snow was too unstable and it would be dangerous to proceed. Meanwhile Hazard, who had been up at the North Col for two days in miserable conditions was expecting to be relieved by Odell and Bruce. But during the descent, of the twelve men who were with Hazard, four retreated to Camp IV, and needed to be rescued. Sandy was too sick to join the rescue team, and evacuated camp descending with Hazard. On May 25th, Sandy descended to Camp I and discovered that that morning Manbahadur, who had been suffering of frostbite, had died at Base Camp.

A third plan for the summit

Bruce’s plan, which was eventually adopted, was to drop the oxygen attempt as the apparatus was heavy and required many more porters than were available. There would therefore be two attempts, a day apart, both without oxygen. Mallory doubted that he personally would be strong enough to climb high again, but he had more experience than anyone else so he agreed to make the choice of the two climbing parties. As Geoffrey Bruce was the only really fit man among them he chose him to be his partner and Somervell and Norton to make up the second party. Odell and Sandy were reserves. 

Sandy works on the rope ladder 

It must have been a very bitter moment for Sandy as he saw the chance of his summit attempt slipping away. But he kept himself busy. During the trip, Sandy's practical mind and his gift for engineering had not only been useful for the oxygen sets, as he had become the trusted handyman of the group, fixing personal objects (as his own sleeping bag, Mallory's saddle, and Beetham's camera) as well as expedition items. His new project would make a significant difference for the ascent: a rope ladder to ease the porters’ passage up the formidable ice chimney between Camps III and IV on the North Col. 

Sandy and Odell as support team

Sandy’s diary entry of June 1 offers an honest if terse assessment of his work: 'Up at 4:30 a.m. to cook breakfast for the climbers. Very cold and disagreeable job. Thank God my profession is not a cook!'

Another retreat for Mallory

Mallory and Bruce succeeded in establishing Camp V about 200 feet higher than the 1922 site, but the wind got up considerably and they were unable, the next morning, to persuade the porters to carry loads higher in order to establish Camp VI. Mallory decided that they had no option but to retreat, a bitter decision for him.

Mallory confides in Sandy with his new plan

The porters were exhausted and had been unable to tolerate the wind at Camp V. Geoffrey Bruce, having strained his heart, was keen to get down to a lower altitude as soon as possible. Mallory was tired but preoccupied. Before he retired to his tent Mallory confided in Sandy his idea for another attempt, this time with oxygen and this time with Sandy. 

Preparing for an oxygen attempt

Sandy spent the whole of the afternoon of 3 June getting the two oxygen sets ready and ensuring that the porters were able to carry the maximum number of cylinders up to Camp V.

Norton and Somervell establish Camp VI at 27,000 ft

The rumour that Norton and Somervell were returning to the North Col turned out to be untrue and Sandy wrote in his diary for 4 June, ‘Mallory and I prepared for our oxygen attempt but shortly after breakfast a porter came down to say that N and S had established Camp VI at 27,000 ft and stayed the night there. Great was the excitement in the Camp.’ 

A final push

After Norton and Somervell's failed attempt, Mallory told Norton that he had a final plan, for a further summit attempt with oxygen. And he wanted to go with Sandy: while Norton tried to tell him that Odell was more experienced and fitter, Mallory wanted someone who fully trusted the oxygen set (while Odell has expressed perplexities about its efficacy).Final plans were made on 5 June, while Norton was lying in his tent, coping with a sever attack of snow-blindness. 

Sandy and Mallory leave for their summit bid

Sandy and Mallory left Camp IV at 7.30 a.m. on 6 June 1924. 

Odell took out his camera just as they were preparing to leave and snapped a shot of the two men, Sandy with his hands in his pockets, head bowed, waiting patiently, while Mallory fiddled with his oxygen apparatus. Little did Odell know that this would be the very last photograph taken of Mallory and Sandy alive.

A last message from Mallory

'Dear Odell, We're awfully sorry to have left things in such a mess — our Unna cooker rolled down the slope at the last moment. Be sure of getting back to IV to-morrow in time to evacuate before dark, as I hope to. In the tent I must have left a compass — for the Lord’s sake rescue it; we are without. To here on 90 atmospheres’ for the two days — so we'll probably go on two cylinders — but it’s a bloody load for climbing. Perfect weather for the job! Yours ever G. Mallory'

Mallory and Irvine disappear

As Odell made his way down by the extreme crest of the north ridge he halted every now and again to scan the rocks above him for any sign of movement of the climbers. It was a hopeless task as they would be almost invisible against the rocks and slabs. He saw nothing and arrived around Camp V in less than two hours, thus deciding to proceed down to Camp IV. 

No sign of Mallory and Irvine

'No trace can be found, Given up hope, Awaiting orders'. 

The memorial cairn is built

“The Cairn” is built by Beetham and Somervell on 13 June near Base Camp, to remember the losses on the three British expeditions.

The news reaches England

The news reached London in the afternoon of 19 June, and the Irvine family on Friday June 20th at 7 p.m., via telegram.

Odell's letter 

Sandy and Odell had first met in North Wales, and then they had become close during the Spitsbergen expedition. After Sandy's death Odell would remain close to the Irvine family, as well as being the only expedition member who had faith in Mallory and Irvine's summit success.

Ruth Mallory's letter to Sandy's family 

Among those who got in touch to express their proximity to the Irvine family, there was also another person who had been affected as directly as them: Ruth Leigh-Mallory, George's wife. In her brief letter, Ruth offers to Willie Irvine the little consolation she can provide, copying for them a passage from the last letter she received from George, in which he praised Sandy.