Arriving at Base Camp

29th April 1924

Base Camp, photo N.E. Odell, courtesy of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG).

Situated eleven miles from the Rongbuk monastery, at the foot of the Rongbuk glacier, Everest Base Camp was a bleak place. No sign of vegetation, dominated by the bulk of Everest and frequently in shadow, its rocky, rough terrain was uninviting at best. It was, however, to be home to the expedition party for the next six weeks and it became a veritable little village of tents with comings and goings of porters, tradesmen, interpreters, messengers and the all-important postal service.

Working at Base Camp was hard work and the climbers all felt the lack of oxygen at 17,800 feet. Even taking off their boots and climbing into their sleeping bags left them breathless. Sandy wrote in his diary: ‘felt rather exhausted with the altitude. A simply perfect day, everyone working like mad sorting stores. I spent an hour or so on Beetham’s camera and the whole of the rest of the damn day on oxygen apparatus'. Summers senses from the following diary entries that Sandy had lapsed into a state of rising panic about the oxygen apparatus. The conditions under which he was working were far from ideal and his tool kit was basic at best. As Sandy writes in his diary, 'the base camp looked very a uninviting place'.

Furthermore he knew that the oxygen apparatus would be required soon and should be ready to be carried up to the higher camps quickly. He was also aware that work was taking him out of the picture as far as the other climbers were concerned and was clearly worried that if he did not complete the work he would get behind in the climbing schedule.