Hillary Step on Mount Everest: Where It Is and Why It Matters

If you are a mountaineer or someone keen on mountaineering history, you will know what we mean when we talk about the Hillary Step.  For others, let us explain.

The Hillary Step sits at 8,790 m /  28,839 ft, just below the summit of Mount Everest in Nepal.  Its 12 m / 40 ft vertical rock face was the last obstacle climbers had to (literally) overcome before reaching the summit of the world’s highest mountain.  But is it the same today as it was when it was discovered?  Let’s answer that question after a brief background of the step and how it got its name.

Giving a Name to An Obstacle

It doesn’t take a genius to work out that the Hillary Step got its name from one of the first two men to successfully climb Everest – Edmund Hillary.  But why was this particular place given this name?

Lying between the South Summit and the true summit of Everest, about 60 m / 197 ft from the top, this vertical wall was first seen in 1953, when Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made the first successful ascent.  By the time they reached this daunting obstacle, they were exhausted but oh-so-near to the top.  This last push up the vertical rock became a symbol of achievement for them, and those who followed, in reaching the summit of the world.  It was named the Hillary Step to mark this milestone achievement and became a byword in the mountaineering fraternity for courage and success.

Being a mix of rock, snow, and a very narrow ridge with exposed drops on either side, it was also very technical to climb the Hillary Step.   Because of its challenges, it became famous among mountaineers…if you could make it up the Hillary Step, you were almost there… you had achieved your goal! It became a legend in its own lifetime as they say.

2015 Earthquake

On April 25, 2015, Nepal suffered from a huge earthquake that killed around 9,000 people and left many more thousands homeless. In the Everest Region, the earthquake caused massive avalanches.  With nearly 1,000 climbers on the mountains, it could be said that we were lucky there were not more deaths.  As it was, there were 19 bodies recovered from base camp as a result of an avalanche powering down Mt Pumori, sweeping the Everest  Base Camp across the Khumbu Glacier. 

There were dozens of climbers stranded on the mountains who needed rescuing, as their secure routes down were gone.  Eventually, bodies were recovered, and people were rescued.  According to the Nepal Mountaineering Association, there were 19 deaths, 10 being Nepali Sherpas.  A Google executive and team of three were mapping the area for a Google Earth project: they did not make it out.

Did the Earthquake Affect the Hilary Step?

There is mixed information – even all these years later.  It was reported that the step collapsed or was altered considerably.   A newer route is now in place, but it also presents an equal challenge.  With more snow (it is thought the main rock wall-face has collapsed) it may not be as technical now to cross the Hillary Step, but it is equally as challenging and dangerous both physically and psychologically.

Regardless of how the 2025 earthquake impacted Hillary Step, we know that today climate changes are taking place globally, and there has been less snow on the Himalayas for the last couple of years.  This will also take its toll on this part of the mountain.

The Future

People are not going to stop climbing Everest or the other mountains in the Himalayas.  As the landscape changes, people will adapt, and new challenges will be overcome.  The Hillary Step will remain standing as an important landmark for climbers and will offer the same sense of achievement as it always has.