Peter Hillary
Encyclopedia
Peter Hillary is the son of the late adventurer Sir Edmund Hillary
, who, along with Tenzing Norgay
, completed the first successful ascent of Mount Everest
. When Peter Hillary summited Everest in 1990, he and his father were the first father/son duo to achieve the feat. Hillary has achieved two summits of Everest, an 84-day trek across Antarctica to the South Pole
, and an expedition guiding astronaut Neil Armstrong
to land a small aircraft at the North Pole
. He has climbed many of the world’s major peaks, and on June 19, 2008, fulfilled his ambition of climbing the highest mountains on all seven continents when he summited Mount McKinley
in Alaska
.
, New Zealand
to Sir Edmund Hillary
and Louise, Lady Hillary, into a life of extraordinary adventure and challenge. He began climbing at age 11 when, roped to his father, he scaled Mount Fog in New Zealand's Southern Alps. He has taken leading roles in dozens of expeditions to mountains in the Asia-Pacific region, traversed the Himalayan Range at high altitude and almost lost his life in a storm descending Pakistan
's K2
, the world’s second-highest mountain.
In 1977, two years after his mother and sister were killed in a plane crash in Nepal
, Hillary accompanied his father on a jet-boat expedition up the River Ganges from the Sundarbans
delta in the Bay of Bengal
to its source in the Himalayas
near Bandrinath. The journey included scaling two previously unclimbed mountains, Mount Nar Parbat and Mount Akash Parbat.
Mountaineering aside, Peter Hillary also completed an 84-day trek, together with Jon Muir
and Eric Philips
that established a new overland route to the South Pole.
In 1995, Hillary attempted a climb of K2, the world's second highest mountain, but was caught in a storm when he was just a few hundred metres from the summit. He survived, but the storm claimed the lives of seven others he had been climbing with.
expedition to mark the 50th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay
's historic first ascent in 1953. The anniversary expedition brought together Peter Hillary, Jamling Norgay
and Brent Bishop - the sons of Sir Edmund, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and Dr Barry Bishop
, a member of the first successful American team to reach the summit in 1963. The 1990 expedition was led by veteran Everest climber Pete Athans, who holds the record for the most summits of Everest by a Western climber.
CEO, on Mount Vinson in Antarctica and led entrepreneur Dick Smith
up the Carstenz Pyramid in Irian Jaya. He holds a commercial pilot’s licence for fixed wing aircraft.
Peter Hillary now devotes most of his time to fundraising in support of his father’s Himalayan Trust
, which was established in 1961 to fund capital projects in the Khumbu
Valley region of Nepal. He is also a director of the Australian Himalayan Foundation.
Hillary is also the patron for the Everest Rescue Trust, a non-profit, independent trust set up to operate and manage a self-funding rescue helicopter
service for the high altitude regions of Nepal
.
with David Letterman
and with Diane Sawyer
on Good Morning America
via satellite live from Antarctica. He has been published in The New York Times
, The Sydney Morning Herald
, and Melbourne’s The Age
, among others.
n Ann Moorhead, a member of the Nathan family, a leading Australian family which owned the Maples
chain of furniture stores in Melbourne
and many historical estates including Rippon Lea. With Moorhead he has two children, Amelia Rose and George Maurice. They lived in Melbourne and one of the family's country estates in the Macedon Ranges in country Victoria
.
In 1995 Hillary and Moorhead separated and later that year he was reunited with his high school sweetheart Dutch
-born, Yvonne Oomen. A year later, Hillary married Oomen in a high profile event in Sir Edmund Hillary's garden in Auckland
, New Zealand. The couple's first child, Alexander Edmund, was born shortly thereafter. In 1999, the family moved back to Auckland, New Zealand, and 2002 brought the birth of Hillary's fourth child, Lily Louise. All of his children's middle names were selected to honour family members, including his parents, grandparents and Moorhead's father.
In 2003 Hillary traveled with his two eldest children around the United States
on the "Surviving Everest" National Geographic tour, celebrating the 50th Anniversary Tour of his father's Ascent of Mount Everest. Also for the anniversary, Hillary traveled with his father Sir Edmund and eldest daughter Amelia Hillary on a world tour, which included celebrations at the Narayanhity Royal Palace
, Kathmandu with the Nepalese Royal Family, a celebratory dinner at the Royal Geographical Society
London, events with the British Royal Family, and a private dinner in Windsor Palace.
Hillary and his daughter Amelia have worked together on many occasions mainly with National Geographic including leading a group to Everest Base Camp
through the foothills of Tibet
.
Hillary lives in Epsom
, Auckland
, with his wife and two youngest children.
Edmund Hillary
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...
, who, along with Tenzing Norgay
Tenzing Norgay
Padma Bhushan, Supradipta-Manyabara-Nepal-Tara Tenzing Norgay, GM born Namgyal Wangdi and often referred to as Sherpa Tenzing, was a Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer...
, completed the first successful ascent of Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
. When Peter Hillary summited Everest in 1990, he and his father were the first father/son duo to achieve the feat. Hillary has achieved two summits of Everest, an 84-day trek across Antarctica to the South Pole
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
, and an expedition guiding astronaut Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong is an American former astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, United States Naval Aviator, and the first person to set foot upon the Moon....
to land a small aircraft at the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
. He has climbed many of the world’s major peaks, and on June 19, 2008, fulfilled his ambition of climbing the highest mountains on all seven continents when he summited Mount McKinley
Mount McKinley
Mount McKinley or Denali in Alaska, United States is the highest mountain peak in North America and the United States, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the centerpiece of Denali National Park and Preserve.- Geology and features :Mount McKinley is a granitic pluton...
in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
.
Biography
Peter Hillary was born in AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
to Sir Edmund Hillary
Edmund Hillary
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...
and Louise, Lady Hillary, into a life of extraordinary adventure and challenge. He began climbing at age 11 when, roped to his father, he scaled Mount Fog in New Zealand's Southern Alps. He has taken leading roles in dozens of expeditions to mountains in the Asia-Pacific region, traversed the Himalayan Range at high altitude and almost lost his life in a storm descending Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
's K2
K2
K2 is the second-highest mountain on Earth, after Mount Everest...
, the world’s second-highest mountain.
In 1977, two years after his mother and sister were killed in a plane crash in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Hillary accompanied his father on a jet-boat expedition up the River Ganges from the Sundarbans
Sundarbans
The Sundarbans [Sundarban Tour Booking-9051115228] is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world.The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful jungle" or "beautiful forest" in the Bengali language...
delta in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
to its source in the Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
near Bandrinath. The journey included scaling two previously unclimbed mountains, Mount Nar Parbat and Mount Akash Parbat.
Mountaineering aside, Peter Hillary also completed an 84-day trek, together with Jon Muir
Jon Muir
Jon Muir is an Australian adventurer, rock climber and mountaineer.-Exploration:-Awards:* 1989 - Recipient of the Order of Australia for services to mountaineering.* 2001 - Australian Geographic Society's Adventurer of the Year....
and Eric Philips
Eric Philips
Eric Philips is an Australian polar explorer, adventurer and ski guide.Philips has completed major expeditions on the worlds four largest icecaps and was the first Australian, together with companion Jon Muir, to ski to both the North Pole and South Pole. Philips skied to the North Pole from...
that established a new overland route to the South Pole.
In 1995, Hillary attempted a climb of K2, the world's second highest mountain, but was caught in a storm when he was just a few hundred metres from the summit. He survived, but the storm claimed the lives of seven others he had been climbing with.
Mount Everest
Hillary has been to Everest five times, once reaching 8,300 metres on the West Ridge and twice reaching the summit by the South Col route. With his first summit of Mount Everest in 1990, he and Sir Edmund became the first father and son to achieve the feat. His second ascent in May 2002 was part of a National Geographic SocietyNational Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
expedition to mark the 50th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay
Tenzing Norgay
Padma Bhushan, Supradipta-Manyabara-Nepal-Tara Tenzing Norgay, GM born Namgyal Wangdi and often referred to as Sherpa Tenzing, was a Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer...
's historic first ascent in 1953. The anniversary expedition brought together Peter Hillary, Jamling Norgay
Jamling Tenzing Norgay
Jamling Tenzing Norgay is an Indian-Nepalese Sherpa mountain climber.He is the son of Tenzing Norgay and Daku, his third wife...
and Brent Bishop - the sons of Sir Edmund, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and Dr Barry Bishop
Barry Bishop (mountaineer)
Barry Chapman Bishop was an American mountaineer, scientist, photographer and scholar. With teammates Jim Whittaker, Lute Jerstad, Willi Unsoeld and Tom Hornbein, he was a member of the first American team to summit Mount Everest, on May 22, 1963...
, a member of the first successful American team to reach the summit in 1963. The 1990 expedition was led by veteran Everest climber Pete Athans, who holds the record for the most summits of Everest by a Western climber.
Philanthropy
Like many successful adventurers, Peter Hillary has made a career as a professional public speaker, writer and designer of specialty outdoor equipment. He has also worked as an adventure travel operator and guide, specialising in the Himalayas and Antarctica. He once guided James Strong, then QantasQantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
CEO, on Mount Vinson in Antarctica and led entrepreneur Dick Smith
Dick Smith (entrepreneur)
Dick Smith, AO is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman, aviator, and political activist. He is the founder of Dick Smith Electronics, Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic, and was selected as the 1986 Australian of the Year.-Electronics:In 1968, Dick Smith founded electronics retailer...
up the Carstenz Pyramid in Irian Jaya. He holds a commercial pilot’s licence for fixed wing aircraft.
Peter Hillary now devotes most of his time to fundraising in support of his father’s Himalayan Trust
Himalayan Trust
The Himalayan Trust is a non-profit organization set up by Sir Edmund Hillary after his successful first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953...
, which was established in 1961 to fund capital projects in the Khumbu
Khumbu
Khumbu is located in northeastern Nepal on the Nepalese side of Mount Everest. It is part of the Solukhumbu District, which in turn is part of the Sagarmatha Zone. Khumbu is one of three subregions of the main Khambu and Sherpa settlement of the Himalaya, the other two being Solu and Pharak...
Valley region of Nepal. He is also a director of the Australian Himalayan Foundation.
Hillary is also the patron for the Everest Rescue Trust, a non-profit, independent trust set up to operate and manage a self-funding rescue helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
service for the high altitude regions of Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
.
Public speaker
Peter has spoken to more than 300 high-profile organisations, and to audiences as great as 12,000. He is the patron of Tihoi Venture School, an outdoor education school for 14 year old boys, and gives inspirational talks about his outdoor experiences. He has also appeared on The Late ShowLate Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
with David Letterman
David Letterman
David Michael Letterman is an American television host and comedian. He hosts the late night television talk show, Late Show with David Letterman, broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman on NBC...
and with Diane Sawyer
Diane Sawyer
Lila Diane Sawyer is the current anchor of ABC News' flagship program, ABC World News. Previously, Sawyer had been co-anchor of ABC Newss morning news program, Good Morning America ....
on Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
via satellite live from Antarctica. He has been published in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
, and Melbourne’s The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
, among others.
Personal life
Hillary married AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Ann Moorhead, a member of the Nathan family, a leading Australian family which owned the Maples
Maples
-People:* Chauncy Maples , British Anglican missionary and bishop in Africa* John Maples, Baron Maples , British politician* Marla Maples , American actress, former wife of Donald Trump...
chain of furniture stores in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and many historical estates including Rippon Lea. With Moorhead he has two children, Amelia Rose and George Maurice. They lived in Melbourne and one of the family's country estates in the Macedon Ranges in country Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
.
In 1995 Hillary and Moorhead separated and later that year he was reunited with his high school sweetheart Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
-born, Yvonne Oomen. A year later, Hillary married Oomen in a high profile event in Sir Edmund Hillary's garden in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand. The couple's first child, Alexander Edmund, was born shortly thereafter. In 1999, the family moved back to Auckland, New Zealand, and 2002 brought the birth of Hillary's fourth child, Lily Louise. All of his children's middle names were selected to honour family members, including his parents, grandparents and Moorhead's father.
In 2003 Hillary traveled with his two eldest children around the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on the "Surviving Everest" National Geographic tour, celebrating the 50th Anniversary Tour of his father's Ascent of Mount Everest. Also for the anniversary, Hillary traveled with his father Sir Edmund and eldest daughter Amelia Hillary on a world tour, which included celebrations at the Narayanhity Royal Palace
Narayanhity Royal Palace
The Narayanhiti Palace Museum, or Narayanhiti Durbar , is a palace in Kathmandu, Nepal which long served as a primary residence for the country's monarchs. Narayanhiti, in Narayanhiti Palace, is made up of two words ‘narayan’ and ‘hiti’...
, Kathmandu with the Nepalese Royal Family, a celebratory dinner at the Royal Geographical Society
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences...
London, events with the British Royal Family, and a private dinner in Windsor Palace.
Hillary and his daughter Amelia have worked together on many occasions mainly with National Geographic including leading a group to Everest Base Camp
Everest Base Camp
There are two base camps on opposite sides of Mount Everest. South Base Camp is in Nepal at an altitude of , and North Base Camp is in Tibet at ). These camps are rudimentary campsites on Mount Everest that are used by mountain climbers during their ascent and descent...
through the foothills of Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
.
Hillary lives in Epsom
Epsom, New Zealand
Epsom is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located in the centre of the Auckland isthmus between Mount Eden and One Tree Hill, south of Newmarket, and five km south of the city centre.-Notable features:...
, Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, with his wife and two youngest children.
Works
- (with John E. Elder) In the Ghost Country – A Lifetime spent on the Edge, Random House Australia