Cho Oyu | 1952 W Ridge-W Face
A UK expedition to Cho Oyu in 1952 via W Ridge-W Face, led by Eric Shipton. Summit reached on 9th May 1952. 10 members recorded.
Expedition Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ID | 2675 |
| Imported | 2026-03-06 18:04:49.359634 |
| Expedition ID | CHOY52101 |
| Peak ID | CHOY |
| Year | 1952 |
| Season | 1 |
| Host Country | 1 |
| Route 1 | W Ridge-W Face |
| Route 2 | - |
| Route 3 | - |
| Route 4 | - |
| Nationality | UK |
| Leaders | Eric Shipton |
| Sponsor | British Expedition to Cho Oyu |
| Success 1 | False |
| Success 2 | False |
| Success 3 | False |
| Success 4 | False |
| Ascent 1 | - |
| Ascent 2 | - |
| Ascent 3 | - |
| Ascent 4 | - |
| Claimed | False |
| Disputed | False |
| Countries | Canada, New Zealand |
| Approach | Nangpa La |
| Basecamp Date | 1952-05-05 |
| Summit Date | 1952-05-09 |
| Summit Time | - |
| Summit Days | 4 |
| Total Days | 5 |
| Termination Date | 1952-05-10 |
| Termination Reason | 10 |
| Termination Notes | |
| High Point (m) | 6800 |
| Traverse | False |
| Ski | False |
| Paraglide | False |
| Camps | 2 |
| Fixed Rope (m) | 0 |
| Total Members | 10 |
| Summit Members | 0 |
| Member Deaths | 0 |
| Total Hired | 18 |
| Summit Hired | 0 |
| Hired Deaths | 0 |
| No Hired | False |
| O2 Used | False |
| O2 None | True |
| O2 Climb | False |
| O2 Descent | False |
| O2 Sleep | False |
| O2 Medical | False |
| O2 Taken | False |
| O2 Unknown | False |
| Other Summits | Climbed Ripimo Shar (RIPI-521-01) and Palung Ri (PLNG-521-01); attempted Parchamo (PARC-521-01); recon Changtse (CTSE-521-01) |
| Campsites | BC(05/05,5700m),C1(06/05,5800m),C2(07/05,6400m),xxx(09/05,6800m) |
| Route Notes | Hillary - 7 March 79 In 1951 (and 1952) crossed Nangpa La and looked at north side (Gyabrag Glacier) Shipton and Hillary crossed back from Hongu over Mingbo La - 1st crossing of Mingbo La. Attempt on Cho Oyu from Gyabrag Glacier to W Ridge. Reached 22,000 ft by Lowe, Hillary, Bourdillon and Gregory. Lowe, Hillary and 3 Sherpas made first crossing of Nup La, then icefalls across Lumpga Glacier to West Rongbuk Glacier to down to main Rongbuk Glacier to East Rongbuk Glacier. Weak attempt on Changtse made by Lowe and Hillary to 21,500 ft (6600m). From N Face also went to or near site of '22 Everest C3. Lowe and Hillary climbed Palung Ri and another peak. Can't remember Bourdillon and Colledge climbing anything. Shipton, Evans, Lowe and Hillary crossed into Barun. |
| Accidents | - |
| Achievement | - |
| Agency | - |
| Commercial Route | True |
| Standard Route | True |
| Primary Route | False |
| Primary Member | False |
| Primary Reference | - |
| Primary ID | - |
| Checksum | 2439739 |
| Year | 1952 |
| Summit Success | False |
| O2 Summary | None |
| Route (lowercase) | w ridge-w face |
Members
10 recorded members.
| Name | Sex | Year of Birth | Citizenship | Status | Residence | Occupation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eric Earle Shipton | M | 1907 | UK | Leader | London, England | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Campbell H. (Cam) Secord | M | 1913 | Canada | Climber | London, England | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Alfred John (Alf) Gregory | M | 1913 | UK | Climber | Blackpool, Lancashire, England | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Thomas Duncan (Tom) Bourdillon | M | 1924 | UK | Climber | Aylesbury, Buckingham, England | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Raymond Leslie Burrows (Ray) Colledge | M | 1922 | UK | Climber | Coventry, Warwick, England | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Robert Charles Evans | M | 1918 | UK | Exp Doctor | Liverpool, Merseyside, England | Physician (surgeon) | Details Other expeditions |
| Edmund Percival Hillary | M | 1919 | New Zealand | Climber | Auckland, New Zealand | Apiarist & alpinist | Details Other expeditions |
| Wallace George Lowe | M | 1924 | New Zealand | Climber | - | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Harold Earle Riddiford | M | 1921 | New Zealand | Climber | - | - | Details Other expeditions |
| Lewis Griffith Cresswell Evans Pugh | M | 1909 | UK | Scientist | - | Physiologist | Details Other expeditions |
References
9 recorded references.
| Expedition ID | Journal | Author | Title | Publisher | Citation | Yak 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CHOY52101 | AJ | Evans, R. C. | The Cho Oyu Expedition, 1952 | - | 59:9-18 (May 1953) | - |
| CHOY52101 | AAJ | - | - | - | 27:581 (1953) | - |
| CHOY52101 | - | Lowe, George | Because It Is There | Cassell, London | - | L293 |
| CHOY52101 | MM | Dyhrenfurth, G. O. & Dyhrenfurth, Norman | Cho Oyu | - | 60:40-42 (Mar 1978) | - |
| CHOY52101 | - | Hillary, Edmund | High Adventure | Hodder & Stoughton, London | - | H316 |
| CHOY52101 | NZAJ | Hillary, E. P. & Lowe, W. G. | Exploration and Adventure in the Himalaya, 1952 | - | 15:4-37 (1953) | - |
| CHOY52101 | - | - | http://www.markhorrell.com/blog/2016/comparing-hillarys-and-tichys-ascents-of-cho-oyu/ | - | - | - |
| CHOY52101 | - | - | http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/12195358101/Asia-Nepal-Cho-Oyu | - | - | - |
| CHOY52101 | - | - | https://www.alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents/Contents_1953_files/AJ59%201953%209-18%20Evans%20Cho%20Oyu.pdf | - | - | - |