Swiss Himalayan Expedition 1956

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Himalaya Expedition 1956: 1st row from left: 1st von Gunten , 2nd Schmid , 3rd Marmet , 4th Diehl , 5th Edi Leuthold Arzt, 6th Luchsinger 7th Reist , 8th Reiss , 2nd row from left : 3. Eggler

The aim of the 1956 Swiss Himalaya Expedition was the first ascent of Lhotse and the second ascent of Mount Everest . Fritz Luchsinger and Ernst Reiss managed the first ascent of Lhotse, Jürg Marmet and Ernst Schmied the second and Hansruedi von Gunten and Dölf Reist the third ascent of Everest.

preparation

Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research

The Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research (SFAR) planned after the successful Swiss Himalayan expedition in 1952 another mountaineering expedition with a team of first-class climbers connected to glaciological and meteorological observations in the Khumbu glacier region. The expedition, financed with national donations, was officially called the Swiss Mount Everest Expedition 1956 .

The SSAF chose Albert Eggler as head of the expedition . He was captain of the mountain troops and a veteran of the Academic Alpine Club Bern (AACB). The core team with Eggler, Marmet and Reiss already knew each other. The latter was on the Swiss autumn expedition in 1952 on the Everest south saddle. The SSAF was looking for the remaining candidates from among the twenty best Swiss-German alpinists. Marmet chose the light, French Makahn oxygen apparatus (6.6 instead of 14.2 kilograms from 1952).

Attendees

Albert Eggler (expedition leader), Wolfgang Diehl (deputy expedition leader), Hans Grimm, Hansruedi von Gunten (catering), Edi Leuthold (expedition doctor), Fritz Luchsinger (equipment), Jürg Marmet (oxygen equipment ), Fritz Müller (glaciology), Arthur Dürst ( Geography, image and sound material), Ernst Reiss (mountaineering boss), Dölf Reist , Ernst Schmied (catering). 22 Sherpas under the direction (Sirdar) of Pasang Dawa Lama and Dawag Tenzing.

Expedition course

On April 7th, the base camp was reached at 5370 m . After overcoming the Khumbu Icefall , Camp I was set up in the glacier basin at 5800 m . On the way to Camp II ( 6110 m ) at the entrance to the Valley of Silence (western basin), the large transverse gap was overcome with aluminum ladders. Camp III ( 6400 m ) became the advanced base. Camp IV ( 6,800 m ) was set up on May 1st on the lowest terrace of the Lhotse slope and on May 6th, camp V ( 7,400 m ) on a terrace below the "Yellow Ribbon". A cross-corridor with a rope railing was created on the “Yellow Belt” as access to the lower station of a rope winch elevator in the Lhotse flank. The upper station was at Camp VIa under the "Geneva shoulder". World iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld iconWorld icon

Due to snowfall and wind drifts, the path up to the «Geneva shoulder» ( 8020 m ) had to be re-groomed again and again. On May 17, Camp VIa was occupied by Reiss and Luchsinger, Camp V by Reist and Gunten, Camp IV by Eggler and Schmied and Camp III by the remaining participants.

Lhotse first ascent

On May 18, Reiss and Luchsinger managed to climb the Lhotse for the first time over the Lhotse-Couloir within six hours, as the first Swiss to climb an eight-thousander.World icon

Mount Everest second and third ascent

On May 21, camp VIa was moved over the «Geneva shoulder» to the south saddle ( 7986 m ). The new camp VIb was located one hundred meters west of the camp site of the British expedition of 1953. On May 22nd, Schmied, Marmet and four Sherpas climbed the Everest south ridge with oxygen equipment, where they set up camp VII with a two-person tent at 8,400 m and moved into it while the Sherpas returned to Camp VIb. World iconWorld icon

On May 23, Schmied and Marmet reached the summit of Everest as second climbers after Hillary and Tenzing after a 5 ½ hour ascent .World icon

On May 24th, Reist and von Gunten climbed on the good track of their predecessors in 4 ¼ hours from Camp VII as the third climber to the Everest summit.

As the monsoon was approaching, expedition leader Eggler decided not to send another rope team to Everest. On May 29th, the whole team arrived safely at the base camp.

See also

literature

  • Albert Eggler: Summit above the clouds Lhotse and Everest . A special volume from the series of books by the Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research directed by Othmar Gurtner. Hallwag Bern 1956
  • Oswald Oelz : Everest • Lhotse, Swiss on Everest 1952 and 1956 . With 120 historical illustrations. SSFA 2006, ISBN 3-909111-23-8
  • Mount Everest map : Everest area on a scale of 1: 50,000. Core area 1: 25,000 with routes on Everest, Lhotse and Nuptse from 1953–1990. Federal Office for Topography (swisstopo), published by the Boston Museum of Science and the Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research 1991.

Web links

Commons : Swiss Himalaya Expedition 1956  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ SSFA: Expedition member Mount Everest / Lhotse from 1956
  2. SSFA: Expedition with the support of SSFA: The Swiss Mount Everest / Lhotse Expedition 1956
  3. ^ Swiss Foundation for Alpine Research: Everest Event 2006 from April 30, 2006 in the Kultur-Casino Bern
  4. [1] Swisstopo of December 11, 2017: How Mount Everest came to Wabern