June [Hillary] had been doing all these things - the Himalayas and all the rest of it - so we had done things together for a long time, and, particularly as far as our Sherpas were concerned, we had a very sound, I think, philosophy. So that made it very easy for us to agree on what should be done.

My most important projects have been the building and maintaining of schools and medical clinics for my dear friends in the Himalaya and helping restore their beautiful monasteries, too.

Nothing can replace courage, a resounding motivation and that little bit of luck.

I get older I get more cantankerous, but June [Hillary] gets a bit more cantankerous, too.

When you're climbing at high altitudes, life can get pretty miserable.

With practice and focus, you can extend yourself far more than you ever believed possible.

When you go to the mountains, you see them and you admire them. In a sense, they give you a challenge, and you try to express that challenge by climbing them.