"It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves."

"No one remembers who climbed Mount Everest the second time."

"Despite all I have seen and experienced, I still get the same simple thrill out of glimpsing a tiny patch of snow in a high mountain gully and feel the same urge to climb towards it."

"Nobody climbs mountains for scientific reasons. Science is used to raise money for the expeditions, but you really climb for the hell of it."

"Life's a bit like mountaineering - never look down."

"I think I mainly climb mountains because I get a great deal of enjoyment out of it. I never attempt to analyze these things too thoroughly, but I think that all mountaineers do get a great deal of satisfaction out of overcoming some challenge which they think is very difficult for them, or which perhaps may be a little dangerous."

"It's not a real adventure when you have to pay for it."

"I have discovered that even the mediocre can have adventures and even the fearful can achieve."

"It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves."