The team members reached India and met at Darjeeling on 21 May 1935. With the help of Karma Paul, who had been on all the Everest expeditions since 1922, they engaged fourteen Sherpas but Shipton decided he needed perhaps a couple more and a nineteen-year-old was selected. He was completely inexperienced in mountaineering but was chosen according to Shipton largely because of his attractive grin - Tenzing Norgay. The party headed north through Sikkim into Tibet and then travelled west towards Everest on a route through Sar - further south and nearer to Nepal than earlier expeditions had used. When they reached the Nyonno Ri () and Ama Drime () mountains they split into three groups for exploration. This had all been contrary to the stipulations in their passports issued by Tibet and they were ordered back north through Gyankar Nangpar and onto the traditional road. Earlier from Nyonno Ri they had had a fine view of Everest in unusually good weather conditions and it has since been speculated that, had they made a dash for the summit, they might have succeeded. However, Shipton made no such bid, and indeed it was forbidden by his passport and by the remit of the expedition. They reached Rongbuk Monastery on 4 July.