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Sherpa's Memories: Last Link to Mallory & Irvine's Everest Tragedy
17 Oct
Summary
- Search for Andrew Irvine's remains begins on Everest's north face.
- A 97-year-old Sherpa shares memories of the 1924 expedition.
- Sherpas climbed for money, not for ambition, in Everest's early days.
An American expedition is currently searching for the remains of Andrew Irvine on Everest's bleak north face. Irvine disappeared in 1924 alongside George Mallory during their famous attempt on the mountain. This quest for Irvine's body connects to a bygone era of mountaineering, before commercialization. The article highlights Sherpa Ang Tsering, now 97 and living in Darjeeling, as the last living link to that 1924 expedition.
Born in Nepal in 1904, Ang Tsering sought work in Darjeeling and became a renowned Sherpa. He climbed Everest in 1924 and 1933, and Nanga Parbat in 1934. He recounts that Sherpas participated in these expeditions primarily for wages, not for climbing ambitions. Conditions were arduous; in 1922, seven Sherpas died in an avalanche, and in 1924, two Gurkhas died at base camp.
Ang Tsering received just twelve annas (three-quarters of a rupee) for his 1924 Everest trip, significantly less than his earnings as a woodcutter. Despite the dangers and low pay, Sherpas were viewed as reliable workers by the British. The Himalayan Club in Darjeeling managed expedition logistics and ensured fair treatment and compensation for families of deceased Sherpas.
Ang Tsering, having lost his wife in 1960, has since turned his back on Everest. He reflects that today's Sherpas often seek government jobs for pensions rather than mountain work. While modern Sherpas earn substantially more, the community in Darjeeling, like the remnants of the Raj, represents the fading echoes of Everest's mythical past.
