2013 Willi Unsoeld Seminar Presents "High and Hallowed: Everest 1963"

Above: Lightening up the evening at a 50th Anniversary of Americans on Everest event in San Francisco in February 2013, sponsored by The American Alpine Club and Eddie Bauer, Willi Unsoeld is indeed present when Tom Hornbein produces a jar of Unsoeld's mummified toes. Unsoeld lost nine toes after his summit of Mt. Everest.

by Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

"Risk is the heart of all education." - Willi Unsoeld

A film and discussion about the greatest Himalayan climb in American mountaineering history will be the feature of this year's Willi Unsoeld Seminar Series on Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts in Olympia.

High and Hallowed: Everest 1963 tells the story of Willi Unsoeld and Tom Hornbein's pioneering ascent of the West Ridge of Mt. Everest on May 22, 1963, and examines the commitment and passion that helped them succeed.

Hornbein and Unsoeld were the first to attempt an ascent of the West Ridge. Previously, ascents of the mountain had been made only via the South Col and Southeast Ridge or the North Col and Northeast Ridge. They climbed up the West Ridge and down the Southeast Ridge/South Col route.

This ascent was the first traverse of an 8000 meter peak in the world. Being caught out on the descent resulted in establishing an altitude record for surviving a bivouac at 28,000 feet.

Moderated by Krag Unsoeld, filmmakers David Morton, Jake Norton and Jim Aikman will join Tom Hornbein onstage after the film to discuss the film focusing on the theme of Risk and Uncertainty: Adventures in Life and Learning. This event is free.

Tom Hornbein, a physician and American mountaineer with whom Unsoeld accomplished the first ascent of the West Ridge of Mt. Everest, studied human physiological limits and performance at high altitude. He was professor and chair of the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle from 1978 to 1993. His work and research has resulted in more than 100 journal articles and book chapters.

The Everest climb with Unsoeld is recounted in his classic book, Everest: The West Ridge, published by The Mountaineers.

Jim Aikman, a filmmaker and photographer specializing in adventure film and promotional video. Jim says he "recognizes the need for compelling stories and cutting edge imagery amidst a market saturated with mediocre content, where integrity and innovation sets you apart from your competitor more than ever."

Aikman participated in the six-part TV series "First Ascent," co-produced with National Geographic International and worked as a producer with the Reel Rock Film Tour, which tours in more than 40 countries around the world.

Dave Morton, a professional guide and photographer, has reached the summit of Mt. Everest six times. A long time Northwest mountaineer, he has guided and climbed throughout the Cascades, Andes, the Himalaya, the Altai, Alaska Range, and Caucuses in Russia.

Working as a full-time guide since 2000, Morton has led expeditions to all of the Seven Summits as well as climbs and expeditions in Mongolia, Mexico, Bolivia, and other Himalayan peaks. He has guided to the top of Carstensz Pyramid on the island of Papua on four occasions.

Jake Norton, a world-renowned climber, photographer, filmmaker, philanthropist, and inspirational speaker, has summited Mt. Everest three times and has participated with expeditions on all seven continents. His photography has appeared in publications such as Vanity Fair, National Geographic, Forbes, and Oprah, while his film footage has been used in documentaries and television series.

In 2011, Norton founded Challenge 21, a multi-year climbing and fundraising project dedicated to the global water crisis, and its solutions. To date, Norton has launched four Challenge 21 expeditions, and has raised over $250,000 for his non-profit partner, Water For People.

Willi Unsoeld was a philosopher, educator, mountaineer and founding faculty member at The Evergreen State College. His climbs included a first ascent in 1960 of Masherbrum, 25,660 feet, and served as an in-country director of the Peace Corps in Nepal in 1963. He served as executive vice-president for Outward Bound to help spread its philosophy of adventure, risk and learning for three years prior to joining the planning faculty at The Evergreen State College.

As a founding faculty member of The Evergreen State College, Unsoeld embodied the spirit of the new institution: its emphasis on student-directed learning, interdisciplinary programs, collaboration and personal responsibility.

The Unsoeld Seminar series is endowed as a living memorial to Willi Unsoeld, whose spirit continues to influence and guide people every day. The Unsoeld Seminar series is endowed as a living memorial to Unsoeld's interests in wilderness and human values, ethics and human behavior, effective learning and experiential education, philosophy and environmental awareness, nature and culture.

Since 1986, the series has offered lectures, workshops and performances that engage and involve participants, and reflect Evergreen's emphasis on collaboration and personal responsibility.

To be sure, the event will generate inspiration, and more questions than answers.

 
For more information about the Willi Unsoeld Seminar, contact Janine Unsoeld at Ja9unsoeld@aol.com or (360) 791-7736 or Krag Unsoeld at kragu@juno.com, (360) 250-9982.
 

Above: Mt. Everest 1963 Living Legends, left to right, Tom Hornbein, Norman Gunter Dyhrenfurth, David Dingman, and Jim Whittaker in February 2013.

 

Washington State Senate Honors 50th Anniversary of Americans on Everest

 

Above, from left: Jolene Unsoeld, Lt. Governor Brad Owen, Jim Whittaker, and Dianne Roberts in the Washington State Senate chambers after the passage of Senate Resolution 8655 last week.

by Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

In one of many recent, national acknowledgements of the 50th anniversary of Americans on Everest, the Washington State Senate commemorated the historical event by passing Senate Resolution 8655 last week.

In attendance were Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit Mt. Everest in 1963, his wife Dianne Roberts, and Jolene Unsoeld, widow of Willi Unsoeld, who, with Tom Hornbein, summitted Mt. Everest three weeks after Whittaker via a first-ascent of the West Ridge route.

Jolene Unsoeld is a former Washington State representative and United States Congresswoman. A similar resolution, HR 4650, was passed in the House the same day.

Several senators spoke in support of the resolution, which was initiated by Senator Karen Fraser. Fraser said she was inspired to write the resolution because of Washington state's deep ties to the expedition, noting that a large percentage of those involved were from Washington State, and later built their careers here. Many Washington State individuals and companies contributed cash and gave in-kind contributions, including beer, candy, clothing, and supplies, and the team trained and tested equipment at Mt. Rainier.

Senator Curtis King of Yakima noted that the Yakima Rotary Club gave the expedition money; Senator Mike Hargrove showed off a 1963 National Geographic, saying he was not quite ten years old when the ascent was made, but the event got him fascinated in geography. Senator Rodney Tom, a three time summitter of Mt. Rainier, thanked the Sherpas on the expedition, and Senator Kohl-Welles said she once met Sherpa Nawang Gombu who guided her husband up to summit Mt. Rainier.

SENATE RESOLUTION 8655

By Senators Fraser, Hargrove, Honeyford, Kohl-Welles, King, Keiser, Tom, Kline, Parlette, Sheldon, Brown, Pearson, Murray, Dammeier, Mullet, Chase, Hill, Padden, Fain, Ranker, Baumgartner, Shin, Hobbs, Eide, Nelson, McAuliffe, Hasegawa, Conway, Harper, Schlicher, Darneille, Rivers, Cleveland, Rolfes, Becker, Schoesler, Holmquist Newbry, Braun, Roach, Litzow, Benton, Hewitt, Ericksen, Smith, and Bailey
 

WHEREAS, During May 2013, many Washingtonians will celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the nationally and globally acclaimed successes of the 1963 American Mt. Everest Expedition, because Washington climbers achieved its most notable successes, and Washingtonians enthusiastically supported this historic achievement in many ways; and

WHEREAS, Members of this Expedition are famed for four unprecedented mountaineering

achievements:

(1) On May 1, Jim Whittaker, a Washington State native, climbing with Sherpa Nawang Gombu by the South Col route, became the first American to reach Everest's 29,028 foot summit, the highest point on Earth;

(2) On May 22, Willi Unsoeld, who would become a faculty member at The Evergreen State College, and Tom Hornbein, who returned from Everest to the faculty at the University of Washington School of Medicine, pioneered the unprecedented and exceptionally difficult West Ridge route to the summit and descended by the South Col route to complete the first traverse of a major Himalayan peak;

(3) A few hours earlier that same day, Lute Jerstad, a former Washington resident, and Barry Bishop of Washington D.C. reached the summit by the South Col route; and

(4) Both teams were benighted during the descent, Unsoeld and Hornbein catching up with Jerstad and Bishop. All four survived an unplanned and unprecedented all-night bivouac above 28,000 feet without oxygen, tents, or food, and Unsoeld and Bishop suffered severe frostbite; and

WHEREAS, These mountaineering achievements are successes of the human spirit, involving supreme human effort, extraordinary physical capability and endurance, clear vision and goals, intense determination and focus, superior teamwork, high tolerance for discomfort and danger, and exceptional organizational and logistical preparation; and

WHEREAS, These mountaineering achievements are also the successes of the highly appreciated, dedicated, expert Sherpa climbers who accompanied and supported the members of the Expedition; and

WHEREAS, Human survival at the upper elevations of Mt. Everest is possible only for brief periods of time because the air contains roughly one-third of the oxygen density of sea level, temperatures are generally around negative 20 degrees Fahrenheit, and hurricane force winds are frequent; and

WHEREAS, Throughout the 109 days of the Expedition, the team steadily engaged in scientific research relating to physiology, psychology, sociology, geology, and glaciology; and

WHEREAS, The Expedition's worldwide acclaim included recognition by President Kennedy at a White House ceremony, by the National Geographic Society, by King Mahendra of Nepal, by the United States Ambassador to Nepal Henry Stebbins, by India Prime Minister Nehru, by the United States Ambassador to India John Kenneth Galbraith, by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation, by mountaineering organizations throughout the world, by major news media around the world, and more; and

WHEREAS, The people of Washington State played a very significant role in the historic successes of the Expedition, through team members with deep Washington ties, including Barry Prather of Ellensburg and John Breitenbach who attended the University of Washington and tragically died when a massive wall of ice in the Khumbu icefall shifted and buried him in tons of ice blocks; through many contributions of cash and in-kind donations from Washington businesses, organizations, and individuals; through Washington State's United States Senator Warren G. Magnuson serving on the Expedition's Advisory Committee; through the Expedition's training and equipment testing taking place at Mount Rainier; and more; and

WHEREAS, Washingtonians' outdoor recreation heritage of hiking, climbing, and camping in the State's extensive mountain ranges, and the widespread appreciation by Washingtonians of the State's beautiful mountains and stately snowy peaks, served as the inspiration for and enthusiastic support of the Expedition in 1963;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the historic first American ascent of Mt. Everest:

(1) Congratulate members of this historic Expedition Jim Whittaker, Nawang Gombu, Willi Unsoeld, Tom Hornbein, Lute Jerstad, Barry Bishop, and all those who supported them;

(2) Express appreciation to all Washingtonians, to the hundreds of others from around the country who assisted its achievements, and to Norman G. Dyhrenfurth who, with his determination and genius, organized and led the Expedition; and

(3) Encourage Washingtonians to continue to engage in outdoor recreation in Washington's welcoming mountain ranges and to continue to appreciate their splendor and be inspired to greatness by them; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to Jim Whittaker, Jolene Unsoeld, Tom Hornbein, Norman G. Dyhrenfurth, to the other four surviving members of the team, and to the surviving widows or nearest of kin of the team members now deceased.

 

I, Hunter G. Goodman, Secretary of the Senate, do hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of Senate Resolution 8655, adopted by the Senate

 

April 16, 2013

HUNTER G. GOODMAN

Secretary of the Senate

Above, from left: Tom Hornbein, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Jolene Unsoeld, and Jim Whittaker at a 50th Anniversary celebration of Americans on Everest in Seattle on April 20, 2013. Sponsored by The Mountaineers, the event honored Jim Whittaker, who was presented with The Mountaineers Lifetime Achievement Award.

 

 

Above, from left: Jim Whittaker, Norman Gunter Dyhrenfurth, Tom Hornbein, Jolene Unsoeld, and David Dingman at the 50th Anniversary on Americans on Everest held in the San Fransisco area, sponsored by the American Alpine Club and Eddie Bauer in February 2013.