Noel Ewart Odell (25 December 1890 – 21 February 1987) was an English geologist and mountaineer. Educated at Brighton College, in 1924 he was an oxygen officer on the Everest expedition in which George Mallory and Andrew Irvine famously perished during their summit attempt. Odell spent two weeks living above 23,000 feet (7,000m, and twice climbed to 26,800-ft and higher, all without supplemental oxygen. Indeed, his performance on Everest was so r...
more
Noel Ewart Odell (25 December 1890 – 21 February 1987) was an English geologist and mountaineer. Educated at Brighton College, in 1924 he was an oxygen officer on the Everest expedition in which George Mallory and Andrew Irvine famously perished during their summit attempt. Odell spent two weeks living above 23,000 feet (7,000m, and twice climbed to 26,800-ft and higher, all without supplemental oxygen. Indeed, his performance on Everest was so remarkable, it was taken as proof that the weight of oxygen equipment nullified any possible benefit.
On 8 June 1924 George Mallory and Andrew Irvine attempted to climb to the top of Mount Everest via the Northeast Ridge route. Keen-sighted Odell reported seeing them at 12:50 p.m. ascending one of the major "steps" on the North-East ridge, "the last step but one from the base of the final pyramid" and "going strongly for the top." But no evidence thus far has proved that they reached the summit, or that they were ever higher than the major...
less
