Hillary slams booze parties on top of the world

On the eve of the 50th anniversary of his historic conquest of Mount Everest, Edmund Hillary complained that legions of modern-day climbers were holding drunken parties at base camp and then scrambling to the summit on fixed ropes and ladders.

“I have always felt the great moments on Everest were the moments when one was meeting challenges – climbing by yourself over the Lhotse icefall, up on the south-east ridge, battling against wind and weather,” he said in Kathmandu, the Nepalese capital.