The ambition to climb Kamet was almost certainly inspired by Smythe's book 'Kamet Conquered' some time before the trek to Josimath and the glaciers above the Arwa Valley in 1936 (1). That trek would almost certainly have been undertaken as a trial and a preparation for Kamet. Ridley and his friend started their secret preparations for Kamet soon after their return. There is no surprise that they were inspired: Smythe's feat was a matter of great prideto Englishmen, not least English soldiers, and trekking in the area around Raniket was a popular activity for the Surreys which was encouraged by officers. ( 2) We know something of the preparations. They must have contacted the great climber Bill Tilman after his success on Nanda Devi. "Ice axes were presented by Mr Tilman after his climb on Nanda Devi the year before" (3). Ridley outlines in his journal the preparations, which he said took seven months. Lacking sufficient funds for proper equipment, they made do as best they could, using service kit for clothing and tents, ("Twenty-one pounders") and acquiring locally ordinary comestibles "with sustaining power", sunglasses from the bazaar and boots "made by the regimental 'Mutchi'". Only on sleeping bags and light overall suits did they spend more heavily, ordering excellent and specially made items for Manchester. (4). Others, such as fellow soldier Wilkins, may have been involved in the planning; he speaks of the original 12. From the beginning Ridley and friends kept their real intentions secret. They were 'granted two months' leave from the battalion for the purpose of "trekking"'. There were two good reasons for duplicity. Firstly they were inexperienced and " a journey to the Himalayas was different again, and then to scale a peak! It is a small wonder that they concealed the objective of their trip." (5) On the early return of Hamilton, there was real concern in the regiment for their safety, but they were, by then, beyond any possible contact. Secondly there was something of an assumption that officers climbed and men trekked. The Statesman of India (4.4.37) carried news of "Two Expeditions"; an officer-led party to the Nanda Devi Basin and Ridley's "to cross foothills". Clearly Ridley's disinformation was thoroughly effective. They left Raniket on 3rd May for the 200-mile journey to base camp. Ridley's account (6) does not dwell on this stage, which had already been covered in 1936. (7) Their first view of Kamet was from the Kuari pass, after which they walked up the deep Dhauli Valley to Goting. On 24th May they set out with first stores to establish base camp BELOW the terminal moraine of the glacier. "This is a lower base than we anticipated" and well below Smythe's. The gradual fall back from Smythe's sequence of camps, partly caused by the lack of money to retain porters, was to be their undoing. Bull and Ridley came back from a recce next day to find Hamilton in a very weak condition with stomach trouble. He was sent down on the 26th with some porters, never returned, and 'gave the game away' to the Regiment.

Kamet has an easy approach up the East Kamet Glacier and then three more difficult stages:1. A rock band which can be avoided by an easy snow couloir leading to the 'snow terrace'; 2. A very difficult rock and ice 'precipice' which cannot usually be circumvented by a further, more dangerous couloir; and 3. A final stiff climb to the summit after the easier slopes of Meade's Col. From 27th May to 3rd June they established Camps 1, 2, and 3 (in two positions), gradually moving up the glacier and just starting to carry kit up the first couloir.

Next day Bull and Ridley (and possibly Williams) were established in Camp 4 on the snow terrace, but from here vacillation, (they moved the camp 3 times), the fearsome nature of the precipice and bad weather prevented them from reaching a fifth camp above the precipice, whereas Smythe had established two higher camps. The efforts needed from so few men, however, to have lifted heavy gear thus far, were nothing less than heroic, Hillier in particular being singled out for his hard work.

By 10th June they were desperate. A blizzard had been raging for 3 days and there were avalanches all around. Stores and time were short and they were nearly out of cigarettes. Their "weakened physical state made further load-carrying unlikely". They decided that next day was their last chance to go for the summit climbing unloaded.

The story of how they came so close to success is eloquently related in Ridley's diary. They were lucky in that the couloir to the side of the precipice was in such good order that they could climb it and circumvent Smythe's greatest difficulties, reaching a point above Meade's Col before running out of time. They left sadly; the summit was just a few hours in front of them and they could have climbed it. Their triumph was in getting this far.

Footnotes and references:

1. 'Kamet Conquered', F S SMYTHE, Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1932. Smythe described the Arwa Valley exploration at the end of his book. Ridley tells in his journal of carrying the book as a guide on Kamet, and the strong probability is that he had already done so in1936. His account of this trek, 'In Sacred Himalchal,- A Trek to the Badrinath Range' is the Regimental Journal, Vol. 1 No.2, May 1937. The Himalayan Journal, see Note 3, says that Ridley and his friends were generally inspired 'by Spenser's book on mountaineering' and by Smythe and Tilman

2. The Regiment used the Raniket area for training out of the summer heat, in mountain warfare, for example, with Gurkhas at Almora nearby. Treks were seen by officers as having obvious training benefit.

3. Himalayan Journal, Vol.x, 38, page 181

4. From Messrs R. Burns Ltd., Camping Equipment Manufacturers and Expedition Outfitters, listed at Hanover Mills, Bury Street, Manchester, in 1937.

5. Email from fellow soldier Alex Mineef, 6.07.00

6. "Himalayan Adventure by Corporal Ridley". Journal of the Eastr Surrey Regiment, Vol.1, No.4, May,1938

7. Ibid, No 3, 1937