UKC

On Facebook, UKC have posted a link to the New York Times “overlooked” Obituary for Alison Hargreaves. However they have stated that the article overlooks Lydia Bradley as the first woman to climb Everest without Supplimentary oxygen.

My view is that it doesn’t, it recognises Hargreaves as the first woman and second person (after Messner) to climb Everest solo without supplimentary oxygen. An important distinction.

Doing a small amount of research, Greg Child seems to think Bradley climbed it solo,  whilst in principle I would bow to his far greater knowledge and experience, I cannot find any evidence to support this. From what I can see, she climbed with Rob Hall and Gary Ball and doesn’t claim to have made a solo ascent on her Adventure Consultants bio, she does claim the first female oxygenless and first NZ women ascent.

Can anyone add anything to this? I know there was some controversy at the time, because she did not have a permit and the claim of the ascent was withdrawn then later re-made.

 It is arguably dubious to recognize any ascent as being solo during a busy season with plenty of other people sharing the route. 

Bradey.

I can ask her if you like?

Mrs Child has just given me a fuller explanation. The distinction appears to be that Hargreaves like Messner was solo, unsupported and without supplimentary oxygen; where as Bradey was solo and without supplimentary oxygen on her summit bid, but was supported on the mountain by the Hall / Ball expedition.

Given the distinction it is perhaps unfair critism of the New York Times.

Perhaps now, but back then I think it would be a valid claim.

The difference being that Alison was totaly unsupported, carrying everything, setting up  camp. Lydia was solo in the sense that when she was moving between camps she was not relying on guides or a partner.

There was also controversey surrounding whether she had actually gone beyond the south summit, she was seen here by another  party exhausted and disoriented late in the day on the way up, this is all from memory so may well be wrong.

Neither were solo. Neither were 'unsupported'.

Hargreaves benefited greatly from a beaten path, the route made, and the psychological benefit of other climbers around, fixed ropes to descend if necessary etc. This is not comparable to Messner's 1980 true solo - no people, no ropes, no camps, no track, no help.

Lydia was officially on the South Pillar route with Ball and Hall but when it became obvious they would not climb that route she joined with other climbers and 'illegally' did the South Col route. She was only climbing alone for the upper ridge section.

There was confusion, with serious consequences, over the Spanish reports of her condition. It was initially reported that she was exhausted, crawling, in a bad way, and thus unlikely to have been able to make the summit. It later transpired that this was a miscommunication and the Spanish did not think that at all, and they believed she went to the top - partly because she described things there one could only know if you'd been there.