The snow-covered Everest North Face gleamed brilliantly white in the afternoon sun, not a cloud in the sky. I could see how the jagged Pinnacles had stopped so many expeditions over the years who attempted the northeast ride. The normal route from the North Col joined the northeast ridge just past the Pinnacles. I could clearly see the famous first, second and third steps leading the normal route to the summit. To the left of the summit area was the Great (Norton) Couloir reached by Edward Norton in 1924. To the right of the summit was the Hornbein Couloir, named after Thomas Hornbein who climbed it on the 1963 American Expedition. From the summit, the West Ridge plummets at an angle of 45 degrees before meeting the less steep long West Shoulder.